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The Black Sword
(Turin
omthe edges of the Anfaugli, Turin was snatched from Morgoth's
F grasp by the Elf Gwindor, who took him back to Nargothrond on the
Narog. Here he dwelt at the court of Orodreth the King, and was held in
honour by him and his people. Thus it was that the Evil fate which enmeshed
Turin, was to spread out and weave the destruction of Nargothrond itself.
Turin became mighty in Nargothrond and was called Adanedhel, the Man- Elf
by the people. He rose in power and esteem and calling himself 'Morrnegil',
The Black Sword, was to lead the war-hosts of Orodreth against the armies
of Morgoth.
It had long been the practice of the Noldor of Nargothrond, to husband their
resources for war with great care and to fight the Enemy by means of stealth
and the setting of ambushes. This was not to The Black Sword's liking who,
ignorant of the Doomthat he was fulfilling, bridged the Narog and led out the
War host of the King in noise and splendour.
- 1 M239
I' lirp(il
Orodreth of
Nargothrond. He is armoured in
plate and chainmail. Originally an
insignia used by captains to
distinguish themselves to their
hosts in the field, the wings gradually
became a symbol of Kingship
amongst many of the Elven kindreds,
worn by some upon a silver circlet,
but by most of the Noldor, on an
ornate war- helm.
He carries a long sword, jewelled at
the hilt. Orodreth's cloak is decorated
with his own insiania. the waterlily
and the diamond. The traditional emblemof his house was an eight spoked wheel
surrounded by a golden disc, but when his brother Finrod relinquished the crown in his
favour, Orodreth instead used his own emblemof the water Lily, rather than adopt that of
his brother who yet lived.
The host of the Noldor was destroyed on the field of Tumhalad, and the fair
C i of Nargothrond sacked and laid waste by the Dragon GlaUNng. Turin
had played his unwitting part as the agent of Morgoth's curse, and had
brought destruction ever in his wake. But Morgoth was not yet finished with
the son of Hurin. Still he hounded him as he fled North to Brethil and joined
with the Haladin in that place. Here Turin called himself 'Turambar' or
Fatemaster, a title of miserable irony, in viewof his final acts; for Glaurung,
although slain by Turin, had bewitched Nienor his sister, and she, ignorant
under the Dragon spell, of who she was, had wedded Turin and conceived
his child.
Glaurung, in a last fulfilment of Morgoth's curse, had lied the spell upon his
own expiry, whereupon Nienor became aware of who she trul y was and slew
herself. Turin, upon learning this and unable to bear the weight of Doom
longer, took his own lie with the evil blade Gurthang.
F i n d z z
and Gwindor
[[
When Turin came to
Nargothrond, the heart of
Finduilas, Orodreth's daughter
was turned from Gwindor, her
previous suitor, to Turin who for
his part, did not return her love.
Finduilas' costume is
embroidered with the waterlily
emblem, albeit much slenderer
than previously and with no
central diamond. The sleeves of
her gown likewise have a 13e lily
flower rnoti as partofthe paltern.
She wears an ornate circlet of
silver about her head. Gwindor
wears a tunic which comes to a
point at the front in traditional Elven
house. His cloak-clasps are decorats
been of Finrod's household before hi
a handgrip decorated as an unfu
Nargothrond.
-I
I
;tyb, which is decorated with the motifs of his own
I with spoked wheel patterns, showing himto have
capture atthe Nimaeth Amoediad. His sword has
ing bud, a popular moti among the Noldor of
M238 Turin 'Black
Sword" mounted
Turin was shown great favour by Orodreth of
Nargothrond, and was the only Man ever to lead an
Elven host. He is arrayed in Elvish arrnour, a mixture
of plate and chain-mail. His helmet is also
distinctively Ehren, with characteristic wings at the
sides. He wears a Dwarf-made mask on the front of
the helmet. The foreplate of his armour carries the
insignia of Orodreth, in the form of a stylised
water-lily inset with a diamond, a motif common
amongst all the Noldor. He carries the great sword
Gurthang, Beleg's weapon of old and now re-forged
by the smith's of Nargothrond, and whence he
derives his name 'Mormegil', the Black Sword.
M242 Hithlum
Easterling
warrior
This warrior wears his hair long and swept
back, and with long moustaches His
sword, whosescabbard attaches to his bet
by means of a heart-shaped piece of thick
leather, is long and of the cavalry sort His
mail is formed of squares of metal sewn
onto an undertunicof leather. He wears
greaves made of thin iron strips and
has a small, semi-circular shield with a
spiral motif, characteristic of the Moon
worshipping Easterlings. Bright primary
colours are favoured among the
Easterling bibes, principiy reds, yellows
M245 Niniel the
Bride
Niniel was, through Glaurung the dragon, Morgoths
utimate tool for the destruction of Turin Deprived
by Glaurung of all memory of her previous l i e she
fled naked to Brethil and was tended and cared for
by the Haladin of that place. Her costume is simple
and she wears double skirt, a common custom
amongst the women of the Edain Each is decorated
with embroidered flower patterns around the rim.
Her hair is adorned wlth flowers, acommon practice
for weddings amongst the Haladin in their poverty,
II
b I
lacking as ihey do, the refinements of jewellry and
rich cloth.
M243 Brandir
the lame
Brandir was the leader of his people, the
Haladin, in Brethil, during the years
following the Battle of the Un-numbered
tears. Brandir's costume is simple and
coarse made, reflecting the harsh times
that had befallen his folk. His cloak and
tunic will be brown, green or the
parchment colour of unbleached cloth.
He wearsashirtofsoftleatheras hisonly
armour and carries a Northman (Edain)
sword, an heirloomof the second house
of the Edain from a time before the
fortunes of his people fell at the Nirnaeth
Arnoediad. Brandirwasfalselythought by
Turin to have caused Niniel's death and L!
was slain by him.
II
II
M247 Elven
warrior
(Noldo)
This figure represents one of the
retainers of Orodreth, who fought
under Turin at the battle of Tumhalad.
Heis clad mostlyinfine Elven mail,
but with some plate armour on
his arms and legs. Like Turin
and Orodreth his helmet is
r winged. His gauntlets are
decorated with the
'unfurling-bud' design and his
longsword has a diamond emblemon
the pommel, both characteristic Noldo
symbols. His cloak is decorated with
the waterjily motif of Orodreth, the
leaves of which would be red and the
surrounding semi-circle coloured gold.
M246
Angband Orc
Captain
Like all the Orcs of this age this
figure is garbed in primitive dress
and crudely beweaponed. (see
fig M222 Morgoth Orcs). His
clothing consists largely of pets
and fur-scraps, but with some
.I
leather armour on his upper
torso. The features that most
clearly distinguish him from his
underlings are his helmet, whip and
iron-headed axe. The helmet, of a
dull iron colour, and axe have been
forged in the smithies of Angband
and the whip, even at this early
period was used by the Orc leaders
to instill discipline and obedience on their less intelligent followers. It is unlikely that at this
stage, the Orcs would have been sufficiently skilled in metallurgy to produce their own
weapons.
M244 Turin
Turambar
When Turin came to Brethil after the
wreck of Nargothrond, and joined the
people of Brandir, he set aside his fine
Elven mail and the evil sword Gurthang,
and took for his weapon, the spear. The
Haladin of Brethil were cowed and small in
number, and their ways of fighting were by
ambush and trap. The only items of Elvish
origin that remain to Turin are the short
sword at his side which is decorated with the
lily emblemof Orodreth, and a part of his
Elven chainmail, which is worn underneath
a leather jerkin. His clothes would be green
and brown in colour, suitable to the secret
warfare of the forest.
M241 Brodda the Easterling
The chieftain of an Easterling tribe who
were allied to Morgoth during the Baffle
of the un-numbered tears, Brodda was
rewarded with lands in Dor-Lomin after
the conflict. His rank is denoted by the
many golden chains of office which hang
about his neck, each depicting
suzerainty over a sub-chief who would
present himwith the chain as a sign of
his own feaHy. He wears an embroidered
belt, the ancestor of the long decorated
belts of the Third age Sagath, and
greaves of bronze. The patterning on his
clothes and cloak is angular, another
characteristic of Easterling design.
Easteriings fight predominantly from
horseback and he wears a long cavalry
sword which has no cross-piece below
A the grip. His long swept back hair and
moustaches are also characteristic of the
Easterlings
This text is sup ort material for Middleearth
Ltd., Macroom, Co. Cork, Ireland, under
figurines rnanukctured by Mithril Miniatures
licence from Tolkien Enterprises Inc.
These figures are available from good hobby
and games stores.
Trademarks and mpynghts 1991 Tdken Enterprises lllc MERP 1s mpynght 01 iron Crown
Enterprises Inc 1991
E d i t o r i a l
RUNES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . f .4
Stewart gives a mission statement and talks about direction.
F e a t u r e s
ITEMS FOR ANY REALM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
THE SILICON DUNGEON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
INFILTRATION OF THE MI ND MAGGOT FROM PLANET V . . .16
NATIVES OF THE BI G EASY . . . . . . . 25
THE DARK TOWER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
FEATURE REVIEW: DREAM PARK . . . . . . . 50
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
FEATURE REVIEW:DANGEROUS J OURNEYS . . . 56
LICENSED TO THRILL . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
CAPSULE REVIEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Spike Y. J ones gives us some magic items modelled in our own image.
J im Trunzo lets us in on what's hot and what's not in computer
games, including a peek at the new Wizardy.
A new live action roleplaying scenario by Roger Spendlove
of the Dream Park Corporation.
C.R. Shaver &J ason Rush bring us seven new Archetypes in the
second of their five-part Shadowrun series detailing New Orleans.
A Crossover Story for Vampire:The Masquerade and
Werewo1f:The Apocalypse by Chris Hind.
Stewart Wieck gives us the highs and lows of R. Talsorian's new
Dream Park Game.
David Martin, our cover artist, shows us an overview of his work
Rob Hatch lets us in the newest release from E. Gary Gygax
and Game Designers Workshop.
A look at the plusses and pitfalls of licensed game products.
Staff reviewers take a look at hordes of new products.
Credits
J ulylAugust 1992
Publisher: White Wolf
Editor-in-Chief: Stewart Wieck
Layout and Design: Chris McDonough
Assistant Editors: Ken Cliffe and Robert Hatch
Art Director: Richard Thomas
Production: Sam Chupp
Advertising Director: Wes Harris
Cover Artist: Dave Martin
Poster Artist: Tony Harris
Cartographer: Chris McDonough
Staff Writer: J im Trunzo
Line Reviewers: Gene Alloway, Donnie Collette,
Steve Crow, Christopher Earley, Keith Eisenbies, J im
2 J U L Y / A U G U S T 1 9 9 2
Foster, Matthew Gabbert, Phillip Hess
Hind, Sean Holland, Daniel Huber,
Allen Mixson, Charles Peirce, Herb Petro, Thomas
Riccardi, David L. Pulver, Anthony Ragan, S. J ohn
Ross and J ohn Setzer.
Art Credits: J osh Timbrook, Tony Santo and
Richard Thomas
Editor-in-Spirit: Stephan Wi e
Deutsch Sprecher: Mark Rein
Printed i n the United States of America.
Special thanks this issue to:
R. Talsorian Games for providing a prepublication
copy of Dream Park for the Feature Review.
Garou and Kindred mix it up in The Dark Tower by Chris Hind P. 34
WHITE WOLF Magazine (ISSN 0897-9391) is published bi-
monthly by White Wolf. The mailing address for all items is: White
Wolf, 4598-B Stonegate Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, GA
30083. The phone number is (404) 292-1819. WHITE WOLF is
distributed through subscription and distribution services
throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Overseas
subscriptions are available. All subscriptions are priced as follows:
any US . address =$24, any Canadian address =$35, overseas
via surface mail =$50, overseas via airmail =$80. All rates are for
twelve issues. Checks or money orders should be made payable
to White Wolf. Subscribers are given constant notification of the
last issue of their current subscription by the number following
their name on the address label.
WHITE WOLF Magazine and White Wolf are both copyright White
Wolf. All material printed in these pages is the exclusive property
of White Wolf unless prior arrangements have been made with the
author/artist. None of the material may be reproduced in whole or
in part without prior written permission from the publisher.
Third Class postage is paid at Stone Mountain, GA. Postmaster:
Please send address changes to White Wolf, 4598-B Stonegate
Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, GA 30083.
The mention of or reference to any companies or products in
these pages is not a challenge to the trademarks or copyrights
concerned.
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 3
I feel that there is definitely a place for an independent
game magazine in this hobby. Its simply a matter of the function
best served by such a magazine. WHITE WOLF Magazine has
experimented with several different approaches and formats, but I
think its time to work on a long-term perspective.
WHITE WOLF Magazine is finally receiving the attention wed
came a dedication to cover the smaller game companies, probably
because wewere one ourselves and I saw a chance to help others
get some attention.
The next format involved dedicating each issue to a certain
theme, like the Horror Issue or Fantasy Issue. We followed this
format from WW18 through WW30, but I feel that it has been
worn out. The format made the magazine too predictable and, I
Although its too soon to say for certain, it looks like
always hoped it would, and it may truly fill the void that has
existed since the passing of magazines like Different Worlds. The
feedback on WW31 has been tremendous so far. The favorite
article seems to have been United States v. The Lizard Thing,
but many others
commented on the Feature
Review with the Other
Opinions, the Live-Action
scenario, and the beautiful
Shadowrun article.
the new format and the
new era of WHITE
WOLF Magazine behind
us, its time to prepare for
think, scared off potential readers because they didnt enjoy
whatever genre was being targeted.
There are a few unifying elements of the new format. Now,
wefeature one popular game with regular articles for an entire
year (like the Shadowrun pieces
this year, though the idea grew
out of the Torg adventures
printed last year) and supplement
it with articles that have a more
universal appeal, like last issues
United States v. The Lizard
Thing; while this article
certainly would most interest
those who play superhero games,
it is also fun reading for other
With the beginning of
by Stewart Wieck
the future. Toward that
end, I would like to prepare a Mission Statement for the
magazine. A Mission Statement is a simple but powerful device
used by individuals, groups, and companies to provide a focus for
the future. These statements indicate why an individual or group
does what its doing. Its not an inane statement of expectation or
desire, like In three years WHITE WOLF Magazine will be the
most,widely read roleplaying game magazine. Such sales or
monetary goals are outside the tenets of a Mission Statement,
though one can hope that by achieving or upholding the Mission
Statement such rewards will also be earned.
I hope to create a statement that will serve the life of the
magazine, perhaps even beyond my issue-to-issue involvement
with it (which will probably only end when the magazine goes to
a monthly publication schedule). The future will undoubtedly
force changes in the magazine, but hopefully a Mission Statement
created now will serve to impose my personal vision on the
magazine for its entire existence.
On the way to the future, I should begin with the past.
WHITE WOLF Magazine was originally conceived as a forum
for the writing of both myself and Steve Wieck. It quickly
became more (and consequently less) than that as webegan to
view the magazine as an actual periodical. Searching only for
artists soon became a search for writers as well. With more writers
came less writing by the Wieck brothers, and I have at times
mourned the burden the magazine has become. Today the
magazine is a duty, as the majority of my writing in the magazine
is in the form of reviews, but with the new format and expanding
audience I think there is a chance to create a new vision.
The changes in the format of the magazine have always been
incremental. The first big change came with WW8, and this was
also when Steve and I decided on a basic format of one fantasy
adventure per issue supported by whatever assortment of articles
for other games that wecould put together. Out of this gradually
4 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1992
garners or those who just enjoy
comic books. Licensed to Thrill in this issue is another
example. Other elements include at least one Feature Review
that is supported by Other Opinions, an article or adventure for a
game published by a small game company, a dedication to
printing our columns like People of the Land and Items for
Any Realm on a more regular basis, and a Live-Action scenario.
Mission Statement? Any Mission Statement for this magazine
will have to include a number of elements, including: 1) a
dedication to supporting lesser-known games that are worthy of
attention, 2) bringing an awareness of other forms of roleplaying
like Live-Action games, and 3) providing information about new
developments from all game companies. There are some angles
that the magazine probably wont pursue. For example, there has
been an on-again off-again desire to make WHITE WOLF
Magazine more newsy by including details about events within
the industry, but I think the focus is more appropriately directed
at the games and the creators than the political duels between
companies except where the latter interferes with the former.
There are many more desires and possibilities to consider
beyond this bare list, but I suppose thats partially how a Mission
Statement succeeds. A Mission Statement provides criteria by
which to judge any proposals concerning the magazine. The
Mission Statement that follows will be reprinted in every issue of
the magazine, and while wemay not live up to it in every regard
right now, it is something to work toward. I hope youll let us
know how were doing.
WOLF Magazine is dedicated to the purpose of making garners
aware of new advances in roleplaying games and game tech-
niques. While pursuing this goal, roleplaying will be always be
considered as art, as well as simply entertainment.
So what does all this history and format change mean for a
WHITE WOLF Magazines Mission Statement: WHITE
I
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6 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
candle continues to burn (a maxi-
mum of one turn per inch of the
candles height). This magic candle
can be extinguished and relit like a
normal candle, but the wax
melted from it cannot be
- reformed into candle-form to
extend the maximum
lifespan of its smoke-
spirit.
\
While its possible
that almost any creature
could be represented by a
candle of smoke-spmts, it is
unlikely that any wizard
would expend the
effort to carve and dip
an eight-foot long red
dragon candle; man-
sized creatures are the
usual limit, with the
occasional L-sized
monster being the
exception.
Icon of Identity
(Wizard)
This magic item takes the form of a
small, man-shaped statuette crafted from
any common sculpting material. While
highly decorated examples are often
found, the decorations serve no intrinsic
purpose; the magic of the icon of identity
can as easily be imparted to a plain,
almost crude statuette as to a beautiful
work of art. In order to function, the icon
must be magically linked to a person by
attaching a personal effect of that
individual (such as a nail-clipping or
strand of hair) to it. Once that is pre-
formed, certain spells cast on the icon
will affect the person it is now linked to.
While this effect is similar to that
attributed to voodoo dolls, there are some
important differences between the two.
The first is the fact that the icon is
completely reusable, and the subject of
the icons effects can be changed in a
moments time by merely removing the
personal effect tying the icon to one
individual and replacing it with one
attuned to another. Second, only magical
effects can be transferred through the
icon; poking it
with a pin or
dipping it into
boiling water
will have no
effect on the
individual the
icon is linked to. Finally, harming the individual
magically is not as easy as simply destroying the icon
with a fireball or disintegration spell; if the spell cast at
the icon destroys the icon, its ability to transfer magical
effects to a distant person is destroyed as well. Even a
relatively weak damaging spell such as shocking grasp or
heat metal is likely to affect the icon enough to render it
an inert piece of wood, metal or bone.
Instead, it gives a mage greater range and control
for his spells; spells with a range of touch like protec-
tion from evil can be cast at a distant person through the
near-to-hand icon, while area effect spells such as
haste or slow will only affect the subject of the icon.
The casting of clazraudzence and clairvoyance spells on
the icon allows a stay-at home mage to follow the
progress of a friend, enemy, henchman or hireling as if
WH I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 7
he were using a
crystal ball, and
he could aid or
hinder the
individual spied
upon at will.
After Pacas death his collection of puppets was split
up, and as few more have been created over the years,
the chance of finding more than a single puppet in any
one persons possession is slim.
The thieving abilities of pilfering puppets vary; each
has 70 points to spend on any of the following thieving
skills: Pick Pockets, Open Locks, Find/Remove Traps,
Move Silently, Hide In Shadows and Climb Walls, and
the nonweapon proficiency Appraising (each 5% spent
on this proficiency gives the puppet a 1 in 20 chance of
performing this skill). As 70 points is not a lot to spread
out over seven skills, most puppets have only a few
skills at a relatively high chance of success (such as
having 35% each in Climb Walls and Open Lo&,
producing a puppet proficient at second story work).
The original collection of pilfering puppets had the full
range of abilities distributed between them in a number
Pacas Pilfering Puppets
This item takes the form of a carved wooden
m~i Onette (almost always in hUmanold shape) from
one to two feet in height. While it can be used as a
normal Puppet in a show, when the Proper Command
word IS spoken it becomes animated and, trailing
its now useless strings behind it, will per-
form thefts at the direction of its owner.
The puppet can only stay animated for
a period of half an hour per day, after
which time it becomes once again
an unmoving construct of wood,
paint and strings.
band of pilfering puppets is
unknown, but it is known
criminal puppeteer facsimiles and well-
named Paca the
Showman who prepared in advance
commissioned a
s no innate intelli-
The creator of the original
master has described
by the puppeteer and
mated puppet are all
Appraise items on its own can be given
ore general commands such as: enter
hat store and take the three most
valuable items you find. They see by
way of a special magical sight that
works as well in darkness as in light
but have no sense of
travel from town
each town when
capture or destroy if one
knows about their presence.
AC 7 and can take 10 hit points of
They take normal damage from
weapons and spells, except that
discovered rose.
8 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
they are immune to chrm, illusions and other spells
affecting the mind of the victim, or any spell only
affecting living creatures, such as stinking cloud. Pilfering
puppets resist dispel magic spells as 12th level, but if they
fail their saving throw they return to their inert form
and cannot be reanimated for two days.
XP Value: 500
Ottos Obedient Armv
the troops
would take up
battle forma-
tions (eerily
mimicked by
the miniatures
on their table),
and then they
could either be commanded conventionally or by orders
#
made to a mage manipulating the statuettes.
In order to guard against the possibility of the
troops on the field being disrupted by an accidental
disruption of the table holding their linked miniatures,
the miniatures were so constructed that the only
movements they would pass on to their linked
soldiers were those imparted by the force of a
(Wizard)
While the commanders in most small-scale battles
take the field along with their men, in large-scale
to stand outside of the
battle and command from
a position where he can
see more clearly the
overall situation, as
opposed to having his
vision restricted to the enemy
within swords reach. But one of the
greatest difficulties of this command
style is that it can take time and effort
for the commanders orders to be
relayed to his troops, and often
the situation on the field will
change too fast for his
couriers to cope with.
In order to overcome
this difficulty, Otto, one o
the famous wizards of
Greyhawk, was commissioned by a warring
king to produce an army of miniature soldiers
whose movements on a tabletop would
duplicate those of the rulers real troops on
the battlefield, and which could themselves
be manipulated in order to change the
position of the real troops on the field. In
short order the wizard produced his Obedient
Army, a collection of inch-tall sculpted
soldiers that could be magically linked to
the kings troops a short time before a
battle and then released from their
linkage after the fighting was done.
Each toy soldier was sculpted from precious
metals and stones to represent an average soldier in the
army, with a
Each miniature had to be linked to its real-life counter-
soldiers (and horses, in the case of cavalry) march in
single file through an arch Otto had constructed which
engagements it isnt
for a general
telekinesis spell. Inhibitions on the movement of
the miniatures are magically built into them so
that the telekinesing mage cannot force the
figures to move across the tabletop at a
speed faster than the linked soldiers can
-Cmove on the real field. Thus, while the
Z mage could pick up a linked minia-
ture with his hand and hold it over
the table without imparting the
power of flight to the soldier repre-
sented, he would not be able to
I telekinetically lift it unless the soldier
d
had the power of flight
magic item in use is shown on
page 113 of The Complete
y. (An example of this
Fighters Handbook, with one
of the two depicted com-
manders presumably a
fighter/mage of some sort.)
Although Otto only
produced one Obedient Army
(a collection totalling some 500
miniatures; his commissioner
Id hardly afford to pay for
a larger army (at about
100 gp per statuette), and
used his magically-controlled
soldiers as shock troops, in difficult terrain or condi-
tions, or interspersed with his normal troops in large
battles), his methods have since been duplicated by
other mages, so that a collection of 50 or more figures
in a wide array of
by any
with considerable expense), or a new set offigures
could be commissioned from a mage by a wealthy State
number (some 5%) On horseback*
can be
Pa individuallY, a Process Performed
having the
serious commander with a minimal effort (but possibly
link them to an
figure. Aftenvards,
or ruler. Methods of linking soldiers to figures besides
WH I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 9
developed since
Otto's time, and
will normally
either be included in the price of fabrication of a new
Amy or can be easily discovered through research.
X P Value: 400 per figure
Shadow AssasSin
(Alteration, Necromancy)
Wizard, 5th level
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 turn/level or until completion of missiorl
Casting Time: 1 turn
Area of Effect: Bone touched
Saving Throw: None
tom assassin which immediately sets out to kill a person
designated in advance by the casting wizard, relent-
lessly seeking out its victim at its maximum move of 9.
The material component for the spell is a single bone
taken from the body of an executed murderer of the
same species as the assassin's intended victim and
carved into a likeness of that victim; the bone turns
into dust after the shadow assassin completes its
The casting of this spell creates a one-time phan-
dmntuahcim Qamcs Company
Proudly Prsrmh:
mission or at the end of the spell's duration. The
shadow assassin takes the form of a shadowy outline of
the executed murderer (which isn't detailed enough to
show a recognizable face) that contains only one bit of
solidity - the carved bone hovering eerily within the
outline i n the same position it occupied in the
murderer's body.
This solid bone is the only vulnerable portion of a
shadow assassin's body as all weapons pass through the
other parts of its body as just so much air. In addition,
its mostly insubstantial form means that it can squeeze
itself through openings only large enough to admit the
bone, so that the tiniest of bones (those small enough
to fit under a closed door) can follow a victim almost
anywhere.
As there are over 200 bones in the human body, it
would appear that components are common; however,
there are three mitigating factors. The first is the fact
that most jurisdictions have laws against grave-robbing
and some will actively work to prevent the trade in
murderer's bones by cremating or breaking the bones of
these criminals. The second is the fact that each bone
must be individually and expertly carved into shape
before it can be used in the casting of the spell, a
process taking anywhere from two to 24 days, assuming
that the caster has the Artistic Ability: Sculpting
nonweapon proficiency and succeeds at a proficiency
check. A failed proficiency check means that the
sculptor has destroyed the bone he was working on and
will have to start again with another bone.
The final limit on the use of this spell is that the
abilities of the resulting shadow assassin are determined
by the size of the bone used in its creation. Large bones,
such as the long bones of the arms and legs, make the
strongest shadow assassins, while small bones, such as
those making up the fingers or even those in the inner
ear, are much weaker; however, these assassins have
higher armor classes, as it is harder to hit these bones in
midair than it is to hit large bones. The armor class of a
shadow assassin is the same as its Hit Dice, with the
total range of hit dice and armor classes for bones in a
body going from 1 Hit Die and AC 1 to 10 Hit Dice
and AC 10.
its victim, doing one point of damage per hit die on a
successful hit (minimum of one point). Because of its
highly specific purpose, a shadow assassin can do no
harm to anyone other than its intended victim (al-
though anyone can attack a shadow assassin at will),
nor will it attempt to attack others, even those that
interfere with its mission. 'tmd
6
A shadow assassin fights by attempting to strangle
1 1
10 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
A
-. .
I his +piece
First in Fantasy
RoleBPlaying
sourcepack from
the editors of Role
Aids'" includes:
the most
powerful spells in
fantasy role-
playing, never-
before-seen
creatures, new
magic items, new
character classes
and more!
Mayf ai r
Games
I
I
FR
rn .
/
A
I
I
ray Jim Trunzo
The software industry, like television, runs in cycles, and what gamers have experi-
enced during the past few months is akin to summer reruns. After the glut of programs
debuting in December and J anuary, a software lull set in, aided and abetted by big-name
titles that simply failed to come anywhere close to anticipated release dates. Now a tidal
wave of products has flooded the market and consumers have a plethora of riches from
which to choose.
I
I
uinm UNDERWORD
THE SNGlAN ABYSS
Origin, p.0. gox 161 750, Austin, TX 7871 6;
exploring every nook and cranny of your surroundings.
The time normally spent managing the inventory of six
characters, tracking six sets of skills, and SO on shifts to
checking what your Single character IS doing at the
IBM & Compatibles, 386s ~ or 386/486 machines;
Requires 2 meg of RAM and Expanded Memory
Manager; 256 color VGA; Suggested Retail:
$69.95
moment.
scheme employed by The Stygian Abyss. The graphic
This switch in emphasis is also aided by the graphic
through the eyes fantasy game
1 will wipe away any preconceived
notions of what computer fantasy
gaming is all about. Its that
innovative.
Unlike other excellent first-
person perspective games, The
Stygian Abyss assigns you a
~ single persona instead of placing
you in charge of an entire party.
I
With only one character to worry
about, emphasis switches strongly
from party maintenance to
I
i
The Stygian Abyss requires diplomacy, bartering,
intellect to piece together puzzles, and of course,
fighting. Combat, like all actions in the game, takes
some getting used to. A Power Gem -1 measures the
world - the Stygian Abyss - survive its perils, rescue
Arial and return.
look takes some getting used to because although the
graphics are rendered in 256-color VGA mode, the
style is different from the highly polished art of Eye of
the Beholder and the upcoming Wizardry game or
even from the slick animated cartoon look of Sierra
On-line games.
At first glance, the graphics
may seem a bit crude. This is due
for the most part to the fact that
the main View Window in Ultima
Underworld takes in only what
could logically be seen at one time
by the human eye in a dimly lit
area. This limited immediate view
allows the window to portray even
small objects in perspective
relative to your proximity to them.
For example, a piece of cheese may
be an indiscernible shape from a
distance, but as you move close
enough to it to pick it up, the
graphic image of the cheese will be L
bigger than an entire character in
most games.
This enlarging/shrinking perspective is done so
smoothly that you really feel like youre moving,
turning, walking running, even swimming. Again, the
constantly shifting size of every object in your viewing
window (walls, floors, monsters, missiles, swung
weapons, magic spells, allies and so on) necessitate a
different graphic style that takes time to appreciate but
eventually thrills the viewer.
Incidentally, all you ever see of yourself in the
View Window is your hand and whatever is in it at the
time. If you have a sword in it, for example, you will
view the tapered blade increase in size as you bring it
near you in preparation for a strike and decrease as it
speeds toward its target.
Although the graphics play a large role in the
overall effect of this drama, the game part should be
given equal billing. The interface is completely mouse-
driven (keyboard equivalents are available but not
recommended) and not a single word needs to be typed.
Command Icons, dialogue selection boxes and indi-
vidual weapon, food, clothing, and spell icons relegate
all other tasks to the click of a mouse.
The plot of The Stygian Abyss appears to be
straightforward; however, this time it appears that you
have been brought back as an Avatar by a malevolent
force and framed for the kidnaping of the beautiful
young Baroness Arial. Your only chance to prove your
innocence is to brave the dangers of Ultimas Under-
strength being put into each of the three types of strikes
that can be delivered. If the target cursor is high in the
View Window, an overhand blow will result; if it is in
the middle of the window, a sideways slash will occur;
and if it is low in the window, a lunging thrust will take
place. You can opt for a quick but weak attack or a
slower more powerful one. Knowing your opponent will
often be the determining factor here.
example, it took me a while to learn to jump. Yes,
jump. J ump over boulders, jump onto ledges, jump over
chasms, jump down shafts, jump up to reach levers.
And swim. And run. Origin prides itself on the fact
that Ultima Underworld is a true vicarious experience,
as close to virtual reality as you can get with a home
computer and a ten-inch screen.
hours and hours and hours. The Stygian Abyss consists
of 25 actual miles of dungeon passages, chasms and
rivers and you need to explore almost every inch of it.
The game also contains (heavy sigh of relief) auto-
mapping and a really neat feature that allows you to
take a quill and write your own comments on the map
itself.
Ultima Underworld is simply the kind of product
that you need to experience to fully understand where
Origin has taken fantasy gaming.
Roleplaying (5); Strategy (4); Playability (5); Sum (5)
All actions in the game need to be learned. For
The game isnt cheap but youll be at this one for
Complexity (moderatehigh); Graphics (4);
sort of mastery in a chaotic environment. The comput-
erized version of Twilight 2000 places the gamer in
Poland in the year 2000 A.D., as the leader of a twenty-
man platoon whose goal is to free Poland from the grip
of a dictatorial madman, Baron Czarny.
The game begins, like all roleplaying games, in the
TWILIGHT 2000
Paragon Software, Berkshire Center, Suite
402, Greensburg, PA 15601 ; IBM & Amiga (IBM
Reviewed); Retail $59.95
Twilight 2000 is a product that has been long
overdue: overdue in the Sense that the games release
character creation mode, allowing Youto either Play
came approximately eight months after it was expected, * witha Preedes1gned PlatoQn Or create your Own groUPl
k by man. For the inexperienced, the strong recom-
and overdue in the sense that Twilight 2000 has
mendation is to go with the existing
established itself as one of the premier posteWW 111
roleplaying games on the market. Numerous reasons
were given for the delay of the computer version of
Twilight, the most frequent being that Paragon wanted
to make sure that it was ready for the market when it
made its debut.
ironically, full of bugs, making the game virtually
unplayable. The people at Paragon quickly fixed the
problems, however, and the game now runs as it was
intended (and if you happened to have purchased a bad
copy, Paragon will courteously make things right free of
charge).
Unfortunately, the initial copies of the game were,
group; if you are an ardent Twilight 2000
player and familiar with the nuances of
the system, you might wish to create your
own team.
Once youve decided upon the
composition of your platoon, youre ready
to embark upon the first of over 50
missions. Each mission allows you to
designate which four members of your
platoon will comprise the squad for that
mission. Other members may be called up
via hand-held radio if needed during a
mission; however, if a new member is
recruited, an original member of the squad
must be dismissed to maintain the maxi-
mum squad size of four.
Graphics vary in both type and quality, though all
of them are very good. Full-screen shots, 2-D
overheads, 3-D through-the-scope views, and close-ups
are used to maximum advantage throughout the game.
Game play is a two-sided coin. Heads: the action is
fast, furious, realistic and guaranteed to give garners
sweaty palms. Tails: different aspects of the game can
be quite cumbersome. For example, traveling long
distances can be handled with ease; yet moving around
within cities can be awkward due to the small area
depicted because the detail is so great and the images
are so large. Other parts of the game run into the same
Whats the game like once its up and
running? I t is safe to say that fans of the
pencil and paper version wont be the
least bit disappointed, nor will those who
want to climb into real armor (as in tanks)
and play with real missiles (as in grenade
launchers). Twilight 2000 is as accurate a
military simulation as its progenitor.
theme of Twilight 2000, the game is
based upon survival in a hostile, post-
nuclear world where formal governments
no longer exist and various military and/cr -
mercenary groups struggle to achieve som
For those of you unfamiliar with the
I
d
INTRODUCING THE FIRST GAMES ONLY NETWORK
~~
Where can you f l nd TSR, Inc., Origirpwtems, Jnc., West End Games, Sierra On-Lhe Inc., White WOE New World
Computing, R T a l s o ~ , Chaosium, Flyhg Buffalo, Inc., Darkflower Enterprises, AND MUCH, MUCH MORE?
THF SUMMIT GAlMES ~ @ NETWORK
This multi-tasking menu-driven network
allows you to UPLOAD and DOWNLOAD
fdes simultaneously, while stdl having
complete control of up to FOUR LIVE
WINDOWS plus GLOBAL FUNCTIONS.
IBM compatible only. Modem must be
Hayes compatible.
Whether youre a computer games fan,
role-playing devotee, or war game enthu-
siast, we have what you want.
For more information: Call 1-800-955-9957 (Voice Line)
Write SUMMIT GAMES NETWORK, 3130 AntUley Road, AMlene, Texas 79606
To order by modem - (915) 672-2810 (7, Even, 1 Stop)
inconsistencies. Please note, however, that even the
down sides of Twilight 2000 dont seriously impair this
(,vera11 strong product.
To call Twilight 2000 a roleplaying game is a bit
of a stretch in either of its versions. Yes, you do have
nice individualism in each of the recruits and they do
advance from stage to stage throughout the game, and
yes, you do encounter NPCs who are helpful and with
whom you establish a surface-level relationship.
However, the nuts and bolts of Twilight 2000 is
combat and the essence of the game is using the men at
your command, utilizing your tanks and weaponry to
their best advantage and implementing solid strategy
and tactics. Wargamers will he pleased to learn that a
battle can often last an hour or longer due to the
attention Paragon has paid to details and realistic
action.
Twilight 2000 will challenge both novice and
experienced gainers. Those tired of standard science
fiction and/or high fantasy should investigate Paragons
latest offering because it has a uniqueness not found in
many games. Dont he surprised to see a sequel in the
near future; like its pencil ani1 paper predecessor, their
are many avenues open for computer Twilight 2000.
(2); Strategy (5); Playability (3); Sum (3)
Complexity (moderate); Graphics (4); Roleplaying
MAGIC CANIJLE II:
THE FOUR AND FORN
Mindcraft Software, Inc., 2291 205th St., Suite
201, Torrance, CA 90501 ; IBM & Compatibles;
Amiga (available soon); Retail: $49.95
When The Magic Candle came out several years
ago, it broke new ground (not an easy task in computer
fantasy games) and went on to garner numerous awards.
Now, Mindcraft has refined the hallmark of their game
line, and Magic Candle 11: The Four and Forty
returns us to the fascinating and dangerous land of
Gurtex on an even more ambitious adventure than
before.
The Guardians of the land have been iinprisoned
in 44 black candles as the forces of evil try once again
to overcome King Rehnard of Deruvia. A band of
heroes must discover the multi-layered plot, find the
guardians and set the ~ r l d right. Dungeons, cata-
combs, mines, dark towers, dozens of t~wns and villages
- the entire continent of Gurtex is yours to explore
during the course of your quest.
that the game play isnt. Magic Candle I1 (MCII) is,
like its prequel, innovative, departing in a number of
ways from other games of its ilk. For example, charac-
ters, including the hero/heroine who you choose to lead
I f the abo\re sounds somewhat mundane, be assured
your party of six, are pre-set. There is no character
generation segment to the game. Thirty-plus potential
party members await your invitation to join you on
your quest, all with different qualities and skills that
can be enhanced through training and experience.
In MCII you can assign your adventurers different
tasks, and even separate them from the main group. A
mage might be told to stay at a Mage Guild to learn
new spells, another character might be told to take a
job and earn money for the group, and the rest of the
party may continue on in the adventure.
This volatile party system allows for tremendous
variation in party composition, and begs the gamer to
use character management wisely to be sure he has the
best people for the specific tasks that need to be
accomplished. Some garners, though, might see a down
side because you do need to keep track of whos doing
what and where, but the program contains features to
aid you in this endeavor.
1 In MCII you can assign your ad-
venturers different tasks, and even
separate them from the main group.
A mage might be told to stay at a
Mage Guild to learn new spells,
another character might be told to
take a job and earn money for the
group, and the rest of the party may
continue on in the adventure.
Another feature unique to MCII is the Notepad.
This feature, when activated, will retain every bit of
conversation, text and action as they occur. The
Notepad can be saved to disk, viewed via a text editor
or word processor or printed immediately. The gamer
never has to worry about wading through mounds of
scrap paper containing key information.
smallest detail in order to closely approximate live
roleplaying. The clothing and supplies used by the
characters must match the weather conditions or
there are consequences. On the same order, friendly
non+player characters may not respond if approached
by characters with weapons drawn, which makes sense,
but which also necessitates close watch by the gamer as
to each characters present state.
Details like the above make the game extremely
accurate and believable and provide a real sense of
reality in a fantasy setting. However, there are so many
details to which one must attend that some garners may
feel put upon, wanting the computer to handle the
Mindcraft continues to pay attention to even the
intricate nuances of the game rather than be encum-
bered with these things themselves. It really comes
down to a matter of taste.
It becomes obvious early in the game that
Mindcraft has opted for a deep, involved plot set in as
real a world as possible in lieu of graphics, animation
and special effects. Thats not to say that these features
are lacking: the graphics are nicely done in VGA mode
and depicted in a 2-D top-down view, and animation is
present as is sound board support. Nothing about any of
these elements are going to make you gather people
around your computer to look at the pretty pictures!
However, you might well discuss the intricacies of plot,
note that nothing is generic about the game (each
village is laid out differently on the screen, for ex-
ample) or mention the artificial intelligence that makes
the game so real.
Overall, Magic Candle I1 is a product that will run
the gamut with game players. Most people will rank
MCII among the best fantasy games theyve ever
played due to its realism, others will be nonplused, and
a few may even find it not to their taste due to the
attention that must be paid to minute details. If you are
looking for a game that has a somewhat unique ap-
proach to fantasy role-playing and dont mind less than
state-of-the art visuals, Magic Candle I1 is just the
game for you.
(Like Twilight 2000, Magic Candle I1 contains
%ugs; some are simply quirks that dont affect game
play; others are serious. Only early copies of the game
are plagued by these gremlins and Mindcraft has a free
disk available that corrects the errors. The disk also has
utility files that enhance the game and provide full
mouse control. Contact Mindcraft for details.)
(5); Strategy (3); Playability (4); Sum (3)
Complexity (moderate); Graphics (2); Roleplaying
Silicon Dungeon Exclusive
A Sneak Peek at Sir-Techs
Cru
(This sneak peek is based on an incomplete version
of the product being reviewed. Its intent is to alert garners
to a special product about to be released and should not be
considered the final word on the product.)
After the resounding success of Sir-Techs Bane of the
Cosmic Forge, a through the eyes rendition of Sir-Techs
acclaimed Wizardry series, garners have waited with
anticipation for the much-publicized sequel. And waited.
And waited. They have been teased by advertisements,
small blurbs in magazines, and 256 color VGA screen shots.
Well, the wait is almost over, and one look at an alpha
copy makes it clear that to say that it will have been worth
16 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1992
I
I
the wait is a gross understatement.
Crusaders is determined to be all that it can be and
to outshine the considerable competition that has recently
redefined the fantasy adventure genre and set much higher
standards in all areas. To that end, Sir-Tech has continued
to delay release of Crusaders until it is as bug-free and full,
featured as possible. Considering the scope of Crusaders,
that is a tremendous undertaking.
Crusaders of the Dark Savant isa delightful mixture
of new and old. The game retains the strengths of Bane of
the Cosmic Forge while adding considerable depth. If Bane
The non-player characters interact
more frequently, more logically, and
more functionally with the gamers
group. The artificial intelligence
appears to be state-of-the-art and
tracks all interactions between your
party and each group type with
which you come into contact.
wasa complete overhaul of the old Wizardry series,
Crusaders refines and augments its predecessor. The first
change is strikingly obvious: a full 256 color palette and
VGA graphics replace the dithered EGA presentation of
Bane. The new look equals and in some ways surpasses
most of the games on the market and exceeds all others in
variety.
those gamers who did not play or did not complete Bane.
Regardless of which opening sequence plays, the actual
game will place your party of six (created from a
combination of 11 races and 14 character classes) in a
wilderness outside of New City on the planet of Guardia.
Here your party will encounter other races so unique that
they must be seen to be believed. However, all of you have
one thing in common: finding the legendary Astral
Dominae, a device with the power to create a universe -
or to destroy one.
This short synopsis of the key plot element brings
several other improvements of Crusaders to the fore. The
non-player characters interact more frequently, more
logically, and more functionally with the gamers group.
The artificial intelligence appears to be state-of-the-art and
tracks all interactions between your party and each group
type with which you come into contact. For example, the
Umpani dont seem to care for the TRang; if you become
friendly with one group, the other may not be willing to
deal with you, making it necessary for you to use force
rather than diplomacy when dealing with one or the other.
Word of your actions spreads among the inhabitants of
Guardia.
The game offers multiple beginnings, including one for
Because this is a preview, this review is not going to go
into detail about all the features of Crusaders, nor will
ratings appear at the end of the article. Suffice to say that
all aspects of Bane of the Cosmic Forge have been
supplemented, which means more monsters, more spells,
and more weapons. Significant changes besides those
already mentioned include outstanding realism in sound
and animation. Birds chirp, swords whoosh, spells snap and
crackle and pop! Swords diminish in sizeas they draw away
fromyou and grow as the thrust nears you, missile weapons
do likewise. Between the graphics, sound effects and
animation, Crusaders produces an excellent visceral and
vicarious experience.
first look is the depth of the story. While there is plenty
of combat, Crusaders is much more than just a hack-and-
slay adventure. The puzzles, character interaction and non-
combat encounters make the game play like a good mystery
book reads. Crusaders unfolds a little at a time, providing
numerous mini-successes to encourage the player to
continue on for the more than 200 hours this game will
take to complete in the same fashion as a good book builds
the needed interest to sustain a reader over the course of
200 pages.
Crusaders of the Dark Savant has certainly passed its
initial test as far as the Silicon Dungeon is concerned. We
can only imagine the other delightful surprises that await us
in the final version of the game. #J
Probably the last thing needed to be mentioned in this
Magic Tricks
on your PC!!!
Heres a chance t o
become a wizard i n
real life!!!
Your PC will perform effects that will
amaze everyone!!!
For the fi rst time ever, your PC will be
able to perform mindreading, ESP, pre-
dictions, X-ray vision, and more. Easy to
learn. Comes with instruction manual and
props.
10-trick Prof essi onal version
$48 +$5 shippinghandling
5-trick Basic version
$22 +$3 shippinghandling
Send check or money order to:
MicroMagic Productions
175 5th Avenue Suite 2625
New York, NY 10010
(212) 969-0220
Requires PC or compatible with VGA, EGA or CGA
Also available I-trick demo version $3 +$2 s/h
I
A
a Live Action Role-Playing game scenario
by Roger Spendlove of the Dream Park Corporation Design Group
Something in this town is not right.
Lately, people have been acting strangely. Not bizarre or outrageously, just - well, the truth is,
everyones too normal. Nothing unusual or interesting has occurred in weeks, and the citizens seemto be
acting out their lives without any emotion. Theres no passion in their actions, no volition except to preserve
the status quo. Everyone, that is, except yourself. Youcant figure out whats happening, but you know for a
fact that you are not a part of it.
Youre not just paranoid! People really are conducting duy-to-day tasks with glazed eyes as if theyre
programmed robots. Or zombies? Maybe theyve been possessed by an alien or demonic intelligence?!
But not everyone! There must be others who, like yourself, are unaffected by this mysterious force.
Thus begins the adventure of the lnfilcration of the Mind
Maggot from Planet V, a Live Action Role-Playing (LARP)
scenario, in which mundane yet heroic gamers play themselves as
they attempt to outwit and thwart the invasion of an insidious
menace from outer space!
If you intend to play in this adventure, READ NO
FURTHER! If you intend to Game Master this event, youll
need the following: (a) a group of six to 20 friends, two of whom
agree to play predetermined roles, and one who will serve as a
co-game master; (b) two players homes (preferably the two
playing the Professor and Simon); (c) two locations in the
wilderness such as a little-used public park; and (d) a few easy-
to-make props detailed later. Oh, and of course lots of imagina-
tion and creativity, but gamers usually have no problem
supplying these!
lNVlTlNG THE PLAYERS
After assembling your guest list, ask one of the guests to act
as your co-game-master. One GM is needed for each of the two
teams. Next, get two players wholl agree to play the pre-
determined roles of the Professor, and Simon Larvaplixos
(or Simone, if female). All others will be portraying themselves.
For two of the encounter sites, youll need to use players
homes (be they houses, apartments, mansions, yachts, etc.). The
Professor and Simon are the best choices since the encounters
deeply involve their characters, but any home will do. The two
GMs dwellings would be good alternatives.
Assign two-thirds of the remaining players to the
Professors team, and one-third to Simons team. Send each
player an invitation which consists of the first three paragraphs
of this article, and one piece of background information listed
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 19
later. Feel freeto
makeupyour own
additional bits of
lore, to customize
the gameto your
locations. For the
Professor and
Simon, send their characters description as well.
Youwill probably want to include an out-of-character
note explaining that youreinviting them to participate in an
unusual Live-Action Roleplaying Game. The only skills theyll
beallowed or able to performwill bereal-world, true-to-life
skills they are personally capable of; furthermore, they must
performtheir skill with a prop of somesort. Thus, if they
anticipate doing somerock climbing, they should bring rope,
spikes, pitons, etc. If they want to usecomputer programming
skills, they must bring a computer; music skill requires an
amazeyou.
However, youvebegun to suspect that a threat from
outside Earth has landed and begun to infiltrate the town youve
called home for several years. The local citizenry has been
acting strangely complacent, as if their actions werecontrolled
by an outside force. Recalling the telepathic technique you
learned on Golga-Trameehs-8, youbroadcast a messagewhich
should have been received by any and all humans in your
vicinity who still retain their own personalities. All hope for
your adopted home lies upon whether any unaffected humans
remain, and whether they answer your summons ... !
PLAYERS ON THE
PROFESSORS TEAM: Each should receive
This morning, as you werein the shadow-world betwee
the following paragraph as part of their invitation:
20 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
less against your plan to infiltrate and consume the entire
population. Well, maybenot every one of them. Besides, they
might makea nice, easily controlled legion for the invasion of
other, morepowerful worlds!
However, yourealize that somefew individuals may be
immune (for someinexplicable reason) to your psionic control.
Such individuals could organizea resistance effort - as
happened during your last invasion attempt at the planet
If there are indeed Earthlings who are immune to your
hey work with you, not against
ERS ON SIMONS TEAM:each
ive the following paragraph as part of their invita-
agreeto it. This
means no wrestling,
boxing, fencing,
water guns, and so
forth. (2) Whenever
players wish to leave
a home baseand
seek out an encounter site or performsomeother major action,
M to informhimor her of their plans.
report the outcome of each
ossible. ( 3 ) At most encounters, there
the exact function of the device(s)
card, then read the appropriate passages
s containing sections for the
eyes only, dueto their extraterrestrial
should sign all cards beforeplacing them,
at actions are
It did not take you long to notice that, although the mind
controt failed on you, it succeeded upon every other human
youvemet since then. The mind-touch left a tenuous link wi th
Simon, and youveusedit to
spaceshy, (cleverly disguised as a typical Eanhling home) at
[ h n
at [insea date time gameis to hi n] to see what is going
on. Perhaps you will makehiman offer: you wont expose or
thwart his plot in exchange for your being left alive dnd un-
posesed...
figure out on their own!
I f the players seem confused about the object ot the game,
informthem that the object is, in part, to figure ()Ut what the
object of the gameis, and then to do it! This is the essenceof
Live-Action Roleplayins - youmake your OW gameby the
actions youchoose. They Wi l l eventually gather enough
information to determine that the Primary gOa1ofthe
Protessors teamis to eliminate the devices and allies by which
the Mind Maggot plans to infiltrate Earth. Simons tcamwill
endeavor to eliminate Earths last resistance by possessing the
free minds and bringing them under Simons control. For the
players on Simons team, makecertain they understand they are
not and cannot be mind-controlled by Simon. They retain
control of their actions at all times, and may even, it they
choose, join the
that heis hiding in his
of pcSs honle], Youvedecided to him a \visit
THE TWO GAM
MASTERS: ~ecause several edi ti ons and
encounters could take placesimultaneously, in very different
locations, a single GM could not possibly be present at them all;
nor is it possibleto second-guess when someofthe encounters
will actually take place. Therefore, two GMs are needed, one for
each team. However, since the players may decide to divide
their forces and seek out multiple encounters at once, the two
GMs may still be unable to go to every place theyreneeded, so
they mqht have to stay ina central, easily contacted location
?he homes serving as Simons wi sedSpaceship and the
Professors house would bethe best choices, becauseseveral
imponant encounters might take place there. If one GM does
decide to ;Iccompany his or her team on a major expedition,
then the other GM must remain at a home base.
Before the playefs get too far into the game, GMs mist
convey the fundamentat N~es: ( 1 here is to be bl utei y 110
phpapicol contact ot &G da all participantf hvdvd
team.
PREGAME LORE
& CURRENT EVENTS:
Aneuspaper ar t i cl e, ~oneweekugo(ei t her or bot h~~:
Up0 Sitings Appear Hoax
byRichard Lovejoy
Two nights ago, wimesses from[name of players town]
reported an unidentified flying object However, after
initial claims, none of the witnews have corroborated their
Stories. Althou;9h several known and public People, such as
sqmt
Lgnn Chandler of Maloppar observatory, initially and indepen-
S p e d to dte Post~Bsacon.
Anthony of the rtepmat of Pubtic S~QJ and
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 21
dently reported the
UFO, not one of the
witnesses will
still remember pretty well where it fell [GM insert vague
directions to the location of the Meteor encounter.].
further confirmtheir
OVERHEARD RADIO NEWS
REPORT (either team) : Say Bo, speaking of Weird
Wednesdays, have younoticed that weird sculpture on display
in the park at [GM insert address of Transmitter encounter].
Dont know why the artist didnt sign his name, cause its kinda
pretty.
Yeah J o, weird but beautiful. Its graceful yet angular
contours giveit an air of alien beauty and aloofness.
Everone ought to go take a look at it. Maybethen the
artist will show himself. So Bo, what other weirdness have you
noticed on Wednesdays.
claims.
Sgt. Anthony
now claims that It
llective of individuals
asa humorous incident. This person denies all claims he made
the previous evening. Sgt. Anthony refuses to elaborate. He
will not or cannot supply the names of his collaborators in the
prank.
Initial reports claimed it came fromsouth to north,
meandering over the city asif looking for something. It were
movin too dang slow for any kind of airplane I ever seen,
Sergeant Dean Anthony said at 12:32 a.m. It wereflyin just
the way a brick dont, he said.
humongous, you know, likethe sizeof a house flying sphere
comeout of the south and settle into the forest east of [town].
Ms. Lynn Chandler of the Maloppar Observatory tele-
phoned the offices of this newspaper to informthe inhabitants
of [town] that she had tracked an object descending fromdue
north of the solar ecliptic plane. It entered our atmosphere, I
would estimate, somewhere near the equator of the far side of
the Earth. It must have decelerated around the south pole
Mysterious postal package (Professors teamonly) : Yesterd
ton deGuerrio but sent to your own address. I
ing note, hastily scribbled on a yellow legal p
Marton - must get this to you beforethey get m
se mymemory! The UFO I tracked entering Earths
landed in your city! These are mynotes on its fl
e you can decipher handwriting and locate land
Other witnesses reported sighting a big but not
ler could not elaborate, as
he observatory failed. N
g eventful occurred tha
22 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
roleplay constantly - in other words, treat the circumstances of
the game as real for its duration.
As everyone discusses the situation, theyll quickly realize
they possess little bits of information, but no real concept of
whats truly going on. It would behoove them to compile notes
and experiences, then decide the best course of action. They
will no doubt wish to discover more and better information as
they continue to play the game.
possible courses of action: (a) seek the meteor; (b)
landing site (which will then lead to the location of
p disguised as ahome). The Professor may accom-
oup of players on an expedition, or remain at his
re in the park; (c) locate the
COUNTER: SIMONS
GUISED SPACESHIP
of an SDI satellite s
r.-!!!!!A!!!
computers (make
any sort of prop/box
with a panel that
opens). If Simon
places a Transmitter
Crystal within the
computers orifice
and works at reprogra
) into a Psycho-Dominatus Amulet.
player may engage another player
ssor) in a test of wills. Any wielder of an
n a card printed with the following rules
to prove authenticity. Simon has this
ation Power - The challenger states a
..which the victim must
W H I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 23
details on how the material may bevaporized).
ENCOUNTER: THE MIND
CONTROL TRANSMITTER
container) containing a marble. These are the power crystals,
which the Galactic Policeaffixed to the spaceship of con-
demned criminal Simon Larvaplixos. If it wereconnected to the
engines of Simons ship, it would prevent the spaceship from
functioning in any way and nullify all Simons powers, but
somehow it wasdisconnected and left here, at the ships origin
landing site.
Tape to the bottom of the prop another card which reads:
This isa digital readout on a computer-like screen: Criminal
Simon Larvaplixos of the planet Veelshinkl-Pyrth, condemne
for enslaving and exterminating the species of planet Palinkee.
Said criminal occupant has managed to free itself fromthis
deactivation buoy. The Buoy will track the current whereabout
of the ship to a maximumrangeof 200 light years. Current
and crystals must be equal to the number of players in the ga
not including sinon Or the professor.
Insidethe light-proof containers, alongside the mar
itters beacon; however, since you just exposed
meteor radiates intense
24 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1992
I
I
t
1
I
3 J
f
rhe Second in a series of five articles & adventun
detailing the New Orleans Area
I I
'I)
- 1
I
Seven New Archetypes for Shadowrun
by C.R. Shaver & Jason Rush
/---
BAYOU DWARF
Hey, cher. Youwont see too much of me in dat city,
cause it aint my home. No, no. I been living on da bayou
all my life. Back dere onda real land, where none of dis
cyber drek matters. Its just you, your boat, and da swamp.
I may not be much in da city, but you need help in da
bayou, who you gonna go to? Who tell you where da
gator are, where your boat can go? Me, dats who. On da
streets I dont amount to much, but on da bayou . . . cher,
dere Imking.
Commentary: TheBayou Dwarf is an odd caseamong
his kind. Spurning the bright lights and high tech of the
city, he has retreated to the bayous, living a quiet, bucolic
life. Helives off the land, and enters the city only when
circumstances force himto do so. But in his own environ-
ment, the Bayou Dwarf is unparalleled as a guide, tracker,
and hunter.
Skills: Attributes:
Body: 5 Armed Combat: 3
Quickness: 3 Bayou Stealth: 5
Strength: 4 Etiquette (Street): 2
Charisma: 2 Firearms: 4
Intelligence: 3 Motorboat: 5
Willpower: 3 Motorboat (B/R): 5
Essence: 6 Pirogue: 3
Reaction: 3 Swimming: 3
Cyberware: Unarmed Combat: 3
None
Contacts:
Bartender
Dwarven Technician
Houngan
Tribesman
Ammunition: 100 Rounds Regular (HP)
100 Rounds Regular (SG)
100 Rounds Regular (SMG)
Survival Kit
Survival Knife
Gear:
t
Ares Predator
Defiance T-250
Middle Lifestyle (3 months prepaid)
Ruger 100 Sport Riflewith
Magnification 3 Imaging Scope
Samuvani-Chriscraft Otter
TheBayou Dwarf has thermographic eyes and a bonus of
+2 to his Body against diseases only. Check for allergic
26 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 19 9 2
I
i
I
1
a
CHROMED ZULU
Welcome to the jungle, chummer. I used to buy into all
that Zulu Nation garbage, but I wised up. Seeing the streets
up close was what did it. Out here, there aint no roomfor
belief or pride in the past. A good gun in your hand beats
either of em cold.
So, whatcha say? Dont let my looks fool you. Under-
neath this hot body Imall twisted steel. More than enough
to pull off any run you want. Forget the samurai: they all
run when they see a Zulu walking the streets.
Commentary: TheChromed Zulu once lived in the
Zulu Nation, but exposure to the streets has changed his
ways. Forsaking the culture of the Zulus if not their
name, heisanother element of the urban sprawl, trying
to earn a nuyen as best hecan.
I
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 6 Armed combat: 5
Quickness: 6 Athletics: 4
Strength: 5 Bike: 2
Charisma 4 Etiquette (Street): 4
Intelligence: 4 Unarmed Combat: 4
Willpower: 5 Firearms: 5
Essence: 1 .OS
Reaction: 5 (9)
Cyberears with Hearing Amplification, Damper
Cybereyes with Low-Light, Organic Magnification ( 3 ) t
Retractable Spur
Skull Hardwire-Urban Stealth: 4
Smartgun Link
Wired Reflexes (2)
Contacts:
Fixer
Gang Member
Houngan
Street Samurai
Ammunition:
100 Rounds FirepowerTM (HP)
100 Rounds Regular (SMG)
Ares Predator II
DocwagonTM Contract (Platinum)
5 Smoke Grenades
Harley Scorpion
lngramSmartgun with Recoil Reduction Ivl 2
Lined Coat
Middle Lifestyle (1 2 months prepaid)
Survival Kit
Cyberware:
G w :
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 27
1
k
L
F
L
ELVEN JAZZER
Youseem surprised that one of the Awakened should
)e interested in jazz. Youexpect me to be limited to the
nusic and instruments of my own kind, eschewing the arts
i f humanity. Well, you are wrong. Tome, jazz isthe only
nusic worth listening to or performing. It rises far above the
imits of rock or Euroslag electro-pop. Thelow moan of the
)ass, the high scream of the sax, all are almost ethereal.
9lmost magical, you might say.
Unfortunately, club owners do not agree with this
?nlightened point of view. Few will listen to me, and even
'ewer will book me. So, on occasion, I amforced to look
?lsewhere for income. Then, I turn to the shadows.
Commentary: TheElven J azzer is a rare sight on a
jhadowrun. Usually she will only participate if she cannot
ind a club date. But on a run her undeniable charisma is
Dftenvaluable, as isher knowledge of the streets. Whether
3n a run for cash or just the thrill, the Elven J azzer can hold
her own.
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 3 Armed Combat: 3
Quickness: 4 Bike: 2
Strength: 2 Etiquette (Media): 4
Charisma: 4 Etiquette (Street): 5
Intelligence: 4 Firearms: 4
Willpower: 3 Special Sltills:
Essence: 5.6 Instrumental Music: 6
Reaction: 4 Musical Composition: 6
Datajaclc
Synthesizer Link
Contacts:
Bartender
Fixer
Media Producer
Rocker
Ammunition:
50 Rounds Regular (HP)
Ares Predator
Instrument and Amps
Knife
Lined Coat
Cyberware:
Gear:
Middle Lifestyle ( 1 month prepaid)
Tres Chic Clothing
la
TheElven J azzer has natural low-light eyes.
28 J U L Y / A U G U S T . 1 9 9 2
HOUNGAN
I follow de old way, dat existed before you or I were
even born. Forget dis Awakenin drek. Dereal powers in de
Loa, mon, and de Loaspeak tru me. Yougo to de shamans
and de mages, see what dey do. Its all one an the same,
dey just dont give de real powers no credit. But when it
comes down, and dey be needin someone to talk wit de
Loa, call down der Spirits, who do dey come cryin to? Me,
mon. LikeI always say, when dey need de real power,
dey know who to deal wit. And deyll always need
me. Myju-ju take care 0 de demons. And you never
see de demons til they come callin.
Commentary: Thehoungan is usually a dark,
mysterious person. The voudoun tradition teaches
her that the Awakening has nothing to do with
her powers; the houngan believes she has been
touched by the gods and she acts accordingly.
Houngans tend to be aloof, shadowy figures, satisfied
with inspiring fear instead of goodwill and respect
instead of camaraderie. This does not mean that the
houngan needs to be evil; she just prefers to beat a
distance, more attuned to the Loathan to the mortals
around her.
1
I
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 3 Biotech: 2
Quickness: 2 Conjuring: 6
Strength: 2 Enchantment: 5
Charisma: 5 Etiquette (Street): 4
Intelligence: 4 Firearms: 2
Willpower: 4 Magical Theory: 5
Essence: 6 Sorcery: 6
Magic: 6
Reaction: 3
None
Any Street Type
Shaman
Street Shaman
Cyberware:
Contacts:
Talismonger
Gris-Gris
Medkit
Ruger Super Warhawk
Temple Materials (4)
Spend 10 total points of force among the spells below:
Analyze Device Entertainment
Mana Bolt Chaos
Heal Deadly Wounds Mask
Clairvoyance Heal Moderate Wounds
Powerball Detect Enemies
Hibernate
Gear:
Spells:
I---
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 29
NATIVES OF THE BIG EASY
I!
NIGHT STALKER
Frag, hasnt been enough ghoul activity lately to feed a
Touse. Guess Ive been doing too good a job. Aint seen a
;hod or a bloodsucker to geek now since I nailed that vamp
wo weeks back.
Yeah, thats right , Im a member of the Stalkers,
hummer. Yousee some ghoul scarfing an arm, Imthe one
hecity sends to deal with it. But there just aint enough
ash in it, so Imlooking for a little overtime. Yougot any
deas?
Commentary: TheNight Stalker is a member of an elite
quad of police officers that isspecifically trained to deal
withcreatures of the night: ghouls, vampires, and their kind.
n cities where these beings thrive, the Night Stalker acts as
iunter and tracker, each member of the division working
done in fighting the undead. However, when business is
;low, the Night Stalker will not hesitate to turn to
shadowruns to maintain his income.
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 4 Armed Combat: 5
Quickness: 4 ( 5) Athletics: 4
Strength: 4 ( 5) Bike: 2
Charisma: 1 Biotech: 3
Intelligence: 4 Electronics: 3
Willpower: 3 Etiquette (Street):
Essence: .75 Firearms: 6
Reaction: 4 (8)
Throwing Weapons: 4
Stealth: 6
Unarmed Combat: 4
Cyberware:
Cyberears with Damper,
Hearing Amplification,and Sound Filter ( 5)
Cybereyes with Electronic Magnification (31,
Low-Light, and Thermographic Imaging
Improved Retractable Hand Razors
Muscle Replacement (1 )
Smartgun Link
Wired Reflexes (2)
Contacts:
City Official
Merc
Street Cop
Street Samurai
Ammunition:lngramSmartgun with recoil reduction Lvl 2
100 Rounds FirePowerTM (HP)
10 IPE Offensive Grenades
100 Rounds Regular (SMG)
Medkit
50 Rounds Explosive (SMG)
Middle Lifestyle(9 months prepaid)
100 Rounds Regular (56)
Mossberg CMDT/SM Ares Predator I1
Survival Kit Armor Jacket
Survival Knife Harley Scorpion
Gear:
30 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
!I
NATIVES OF THE BIG EASY
VAMPIRE HUNTER (MAGICAL ADEPT)
1 am a hunter, but my prey isneither animal nor human.
My hunt is an age-old quest against evil, against the children
of the darkness. I seek the nosferatu - the vampire.
Thevampire existed before the Awakening, before
history had ever begun. That age is their strength, for only
cunning born of millennia allows the foul creatures to
survive. But they have lost their greatest strength: everyone
now knows they exist, and it is my duty to see they exist no
more.
bygone age. With the Awakening and the realization that
vampires are real, the Vampire Hunter's services are in
demand once more. Although he is no physical match for his
prey, the Vampire Hunter is a cool, clever person capable of
dealing with his unique foe.
Commentary: TheVampire Hunter is the survivor of a
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 2 Armed Combat: 2
Quickness: 3 Biology: 6
Strength: 2 Biotech: 5
Charisma: 1 Crossbow: 4
Intelligence: 5 Etiquette (Street): 4
Willpower: 4 Magical Theory: 6
Essence: 6 Physical Sciences: 6
Magic: 6 Sorcery: 6
Reaction: 4
Cyberware:
None
Contacts
Detective
Street Cop or Night Stalker
Street Mage
Talismonger
Ammunition:
20 Bolts
30 Rounds Regular (HO)
5 Antidote Patches (6)
Armor Vest
Low-Light Binoculars
Medium Crossbow
t2 Healing Fetish Focuses
Low-Light Goggles
Medkit
Streetline Special
2 Tranq Patches (6)
2 Trauma Patches (6)
Spend 20 total points of force among the spells below:
Anti-Spell Barrier Personal Analyze Truth
Physical Barrier Heal Deadly Wounds
Personal Clairvoyance Slay Vampire
Heal Serious Wounds Personal Detect Enemies
(Extended)
G a r :
Spells:
2
WH I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 31
\
I
NATIVES OF THE BIG EASY
: -
L
ZULU WARRIOR (PHYSICAL ADEPT)
Inthe Zulu Nation, 1 am the peace-keeper and defender. No
me may walk its streets and break its laws, or threaten the safety of
:he Nation without answering to me.
Do not let my name deceive you. Yes, I follow the ways of my
Zulu ancestors, fighting the yoke of oppression that others would
ay on my neck. But I do not dwell in the past: I use the technology
>f today, as well as my warrior training, in defending my home.
On these streets, you answer to me. I suggest you remember
that.
national pride all members of the Zulu Nation feel. They see
themselves as separate, both physically and spiritually, fromthe
rest of humanity. The Zulu Warrior patrols the streets of the Nation,
anxious to defend it against all attackers and any threat to its well-
Commentaty: The Zulu Warrior is a product of the fierce
being. They often participate inshadowruns against corporations
they think have treated the Zulu Nation unfairly. All Zulu Warriors
are members of the Defenders of the Zulu Nation (q.v.), a magical
group.
Attributes: Skills:
Body: 6 Athletics: 3
Quickness: o Edged Weapons: 5
Strength: 5 Etiquette (Street): 2
Charisma: 3 Firearms: 4
Intelligence: 5 Unarmed Combat: 3
Willpower: 5 Stealth: 4
Essence: 6 Adept Abilities:
Magic: 6
Reaction: 7
None Physical Sensory Improvement:
Low-Light, FlareCompensation,
Gang Member Hearing Amplification, Damper
Houngan
Street Samurai
Street Shaman
Lined Coat
2 Antidote Patches (5)
2 Tranq Patches
Binoculars Trauma Patch (5)
Colt Manhunter with Survival Kit
Laser Sight Survival Knife
5 AFR-7Flash Grenades 5 Smoke Grenades
Heckler &. Koch MP-5 TX
Automatic Successes (Stealth): 4
Increased Reaction Lvl 2
Cyberware: Pain Resistance: 2
Contacts:
Gear: Ammunition:
100 Rounds Regular (HP)
100 Rounds Regular (SMG)
with Laser Sight, Recoil Reduction Ivl2
Notes:
TheZulu Warrior may call on 2D6 other Warriors for help.
Defenders of the Zulu Nation
The Defenders of the Zulu Nation are all Zulu Warriors, sworn
to defend their Nation at any cost. Thegroup isoverseen by the
ruling council of the Zulu Nation, who also acts as its patron. The
group's goals are simple: to defend the Zulu Nation and ensure that
'Gs placein the world issecure.
Name: TheDefenders of the Zulu Nation
Type: Dedicated
Members: 50
Limitations: Zulu Warriors only.
Strictures: Belief, Fraternity, Obedience.
Resources/Dues: Middle. No Dues.
Patron: Ruling Council of the Zulu Nation.
Customs: TheDefenders are totally devoted to the Zulu Nation,
and will take any steps necessary to protect it. In urban areas given
over to the Zulu Nation, the Defenders are both the military and the
law. The group may initiate shadowruns against corporations they
think have given the Zulu Nation a raw deal, often hiring
shadowrunners to act as extra muscle or to provide diversions.
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RK
TOWER
by Chris Hind
A story for
V A M P I R E
r
Ifat his council I should turn aside
Into that ominous tract which, all agree,
Hides the Dark Tower.
Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came
J
- Robert Browning,
c-,
a
This is a crossover story for players of both Vampire:
The Masquerade and Werewolf: The Apocalypse. The
plot remains essentially the same for both games. However,
each scene provides separate guidelines for the actions of
Kindred and Garou to take into consideration their differing
motives and abilities. The Werewolf material is set off in
sidebars. There are also two introductions: Mortals
Masque for Vampires, and Gaias Fold for Werewolves.
A third section, Crossover, provides some suggestions
for those wishing to guide the story for a mixed group of
Kindred and Garou.
This story is fairly linear, as must always be the case
when space is limited. The story has been created along a
fairly static pattern, with scene progressing to scene in a
straight line. However, this does not mean that you must
play it as a linear story; the following events are merely
one way the story can unfold, and Storyteller improvisation
is encouraged.
The story takes place in late autumn, early spring, or
during a mild winter. It might make an excellent follow-up
to Ashes to Ashes if you are playing Vampire, or a
follow-up to Rite of Passage if you are playing Werewolf.
The Theme
This storys theme explores the danger of embracing
ones dark half, whether one is Kindred, Kine, or Lupine.
This spark of evil - call it Rage, the Beast, the Shadow, or
Thanatos (the death instinct) - resides within us all. For
I
34 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
I
i
the most part, it is imprisoned within the Dark Tower of our
souls, distant and untouchable. But it can corrupt the very
walls of its prison, and occasionally it escapes. Those who
wish to can usually recapture it.. .
Not everyone is successful.
The dark half is very persuasive, offering great rewards in
return for its freedom. When seducing Vampires, the Beast
promises to fulfill all inner urges, to mold its host into the
ultimate predator. Some individuals even seek out the Dark
Tower wi th the intention of releasing its captive perma-
nently. Herein lies the greatest threat that evil can pose.
During this story, characters witness three examples of
the dangers inherent in embracing ones destructive impulses:
A mortal whose primordial, bestial instincts lie hidden
under a civilized veneer.
A Lupine family -human by day, but who undergo a
terrible transformation when they give in to the Beast in
their hearts.
tion from the monster he had become, but whose retreat into
the wilderness only furthered his degeneration.
Thi s story is not meant to bea morality play. I t is simply
an illustration of the dangers of total release. Those who
choose to ignore the facts presented in this story can freely
turn down the dark path. But they have been warned ....
Beowulf, the Vampire who sought to protect civiliza-
Background Events
Successive generations of harp-playing and tale-telling scops
have exaggerated and elaborated upon the legend of Beowulf.
Yet that epic poemis based on a kernel of truth. Beowulf the
Geat did indeed sail fromthe south of Sweden to aid King
Hrothgar of Denmark. Hedid wrestle with the monstrous
Grendel, finally ripping off its arm. The account of him
entering the underground lair and returning with Grendels
head is also true. But the tales do not explain that Beowulf
was a Kindred, and Grendel was his Sire.
Beowulf clung to his Humanity like a drowning sailor to
a spar. He possessed great hatredfor Vampires who embraced
the Beast, as Grendel had. He continued to lead his people as
a mortal warrior would and soon became king of the Geats.
During his lengthy rule, he fed off animals and bestial
Kindred. But eventually, the thirst for human vitae became
difficult to resist. Beowulf feared that the Beast which stalked
his soul would eventually pounce.
Then came the Wyrm.
Was it really a dragon? Or the burning sun attempting to
crush his immortality in its fiery coils? He no longer recalls.
Nor can he remember how he survived the inferno. The
event - whatever it was- could not have come at a more
opportune time. Thought to bedead and lain to rest,
L
L
W H I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 35
/
--
Beowulf left his people before the
Hunger could hurt them.
roamed northern Europe, always
distancing himself from the human
population. But Europe seemed much
too crowded. Aided by Ghoul retain-
ers (the most loyal being Erik the Red
and Leif Erikson), he retreated to
Iceland in 874, to Greenland in 982,
and eventually to Vinland by the year
1000. Beowulf found this New World
perfect. Mortals did live here, but i n A
missed his Viking retainers
orders to discourage further
colonization. He has wan-
dered over much
of North America, but has remained
near present-day Tierburg for the past
300 years: a place of power drew
him, and there he makes his haven.
He has been in a self-induced
torpor for the last fifty years. Upon
recently waking, Beowulf realized his
great folly: by shunning civilization,
he became increasingly bestial and
less able to resist the Hunger, which in
turn led to increased solitude. He has
For the next 200 years, Beowulf
come to understand that this
vicious cycle will
He has chosen to
Sire a replacement, a
important lesson which
has taken Beowulf over
a millennium to learn.
But his Beast has
able to success-
mortal. Each
discovered two
deer hunters in
his forest domain,
body of one of his Herd
hunters, who immedi-
Beowulf has finally been able to
create a Childe.
It is at this point that the story
begins.. .
Mortals Masque
For Kindred, the story begins in
Chicago (though it can beadapted to
any city). One night, the characters
hear through a number of different
contacts and sources that they are to
meet someone very important at
OLeary s Rehabilitation Institute. In
fact, they are likely to hear this
message more than once - most of
the citys Kindred, Anarch and Elder,
seem to know about it. Malkavians in
particular seem to delight in passing
along the full weight of the message,
especially the or else part.
started this ubiquitous message. This
will not stop the messenger from
trying to frighten the characters and
sound in-the-know at the same time:
Oooo, you in BIG trouble now ....
The players could try to track the
message back to its source, but this
would be time-consuming and
difficult. Their best bet is to visit the
OLeary Institute and hope for the
best.
However, nobody knows who
Gaias Fold
Garou characters begin in
Tierburg, Indiana (for more infor-
mation on this small town, refer to
Scene Two: Wolf in Mans Cloth-
ing). It is assumed that they belong to
a tribe in this area or are just passing
through. Somehow the characters get
hold of a tabloid newspaper with a
very interesting cover story (see
Handout #l). An elder in the tribe
might ask them to investigate, or they
may decide to do so on their own.
The man in the article might be a
Garou who has lost the ability to
shapechange (by losing his Rage), or
possibly even a Lunatic - one of the
few adult humans with Werewolf
potential. He should be brought into
Gaias fold. On their own accord or at
- - I
36 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
.
the urging of tribal elders, the charac-
ters travel to Chicago to rescue him.
Chicago lies 50 miles to the
north. In such a large city, you should
make the Garou feel very uneasy -
here the Wyrm has its greatest
influence. You may improvise some
urban encounters if you wish, but be
careful not to end the story before it
has even started (the Vampires are
surely watching, but they take no
action). By asking for directions
(Charisma t Etiquette, difficulty 4) or
referring to a map of the city, charac-
ters should have little trouble finding
the famous OLeary House.
Crossover
For a crossover story, simply use
both introductions and have the
characters run into each other at the
OLearys house (see Scene One:
Wight in White). The Garou may
quickly realize that Edward Bemils
problem has nothing to do with
lycanthropy. However, his state is
highly unnatural and unbalanced, and
needs to be corrected. After all,
balance is the most important thing for
Garou, even among themselves.
For the rest of the story, combine
the Vampire and Werewolf material
where appropriate. Change scenes if
necessary. For instance, in Scene
Three: Unsafe Haven, Selene may
offer false clues to draw Garou away
from the slumbering Kindred, and
then double back to set the cottage
ablaze. A crossover story is more
challenging to guide but can ulti-
mately be more fulfilling and eventful,
since it uses all of the material,
Scene One: Wight in White
OLeary s Rehabilitation Institute is
located in an older section of a
northern Chicago suburb. It is held in
high regard for its treatment of
patients with substance abuse disor-
ders. Tendrils of ancient ivy cling to
the dark old building. The house and
large yard are surrounded by a
wrought iron fence and half-dead
bushes. The fence keeps in the
patients; the bushes keep out prying
eyes. At night, light shines from a
single window on the asylums second
floor. A Perception +Alertness roll
(difficulty 6) allows that character to
notice a shadowy figure silhouetted
against the light before it disappears
from the window.
How the characters get inside is
up to them. They can Dominate the
guard at the gate, or sneak in
by climbing the walls
woman in an old-fashioned wicker
wheelchair at the end of a hall. She
stares at the characters for a moment,
and then slowly rolls around a corner.
They reach the comer just in time to
see her roll down another hallway.
When, and if, they chase her down
that hallway, she appears once again
at the end of yet another hallway.
The characters should have a
chance to catch up with the woman,
but it shouldnt be easy.
rooms they will see people in
I d\
hospital gowns with their
arms and legs spread-eagled
and strapped to their beds;
their mouths are gagged.
After a time the
characters will notice a
c1
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 37
t
Handout #I
Man Possessed by Wendigo,
Cannibalizes Hunting Buddy
By Scottie Cartwright
TIERBURG-Five days ago,
state police arrested a
blood-drenched man on Highway
41 near Tierburg, Indiana.
One officer suffered minor
abrasions and a broken wrist during
the arrest. Declared this officer:
He was a madm an... a wild animal.
He tried to rip out my throat with
his bare teeth.
The man was identified by his
drivers license as 42-year-old
Edward Bemil of Chicago. Later
that night, a local resident
discovered the remains of a body in
the woods nearby.
Blood was everywhere, this
source exclaimed. His face was
gnawed off like chipboard by a
porcupine. The deceased has yet to
be identified.
Detectives have pieced together
the murderous events: Apparently,
Bemil and a friend were hunting in
the woods near the small town of
Tierburg. For reasons unknown,
Bemil killed his buddy -- not with a
rifle shot, but by strangulation.
Even more horribly, the killer
feasted on the dead mans flesh.
Bemil has been admitted to
OLeary Rehabilitation Institute for
acute psychoses induced by LSD or
another hallucinogen. Family and
friends deny that Bemil was a drug
user of any sort.
One of the countrys leading
experts on paranormal studies offers
an alternate explanation, one that
this reporter finds much more
believable: Bemil is possessed by
Wendigo, the Amerindian spirit of
cannibalism.
inner Beast, but the characters
will have to observe the
madman closely (or use
powers like Aura Perception
and score four successes) to
learn this.
A Vampire (or perhaps even
a Werewolf) may attempt to
persuade the Beast to transfer
itself into her body. Roll
Manipulation t Animal Ken
against a difficulty equal to
the characters Humanity (the
Beast is attracted to bestial
people). This extended action
requires 10 successes. A botch
alienates the Beast, making it
hostile toward that character.
If successful, the Vampire
now possesses two Beasts and
is twice as wired as usual.
Double all difficulties (maxi-
mum 10) to resist Frenzy. This
t
i
Vampire had better be on her
best behavior .... (If the patient is
killed, the Beast automatically
merges with the Vampire with the
out of reach (she has an Obfuscate
Discipline of 3). As the strange chase
continues, characters should realize
that she is leading them somewhere.
Eventually they turn yet another
corner and run up against a large
metal door. Woman and wheelchair
are nowhere in sight. The door is
unlocked and slightly ajar.
padded walls, bare except for a cot. A
man in a straitjacket raises a slack face
to his visitors. He shuffles forward,
mumbling ... free ... let me free ... cant
breathe .... Once freed - or when it
becomes apparent that the characters
have no intention of removing the
straitjacket - the patient snaps,
begins to scream insanely, and then
attacks. Only three successes on a
Wits t Alertness roll (difficulty 6)
provide any warning. The surprise
factor allows one bite attack (lacking
fangs, he does only two dice of
damage); afterwards, the patient
bounces himself off the walls and the
characters (equivalent to kick attacks).
During this frenzied attack, the
patient roars (in your best Exorcist
voice): Whelp! ... Thou hast come for
the vitae of thine Elder ... But Ama-
ranth will be mine!
The characters should have little
trouble restraining the madman. After
a few minutes of observation - and
lowest Humanity.)
When the characters leave the
cell, they meet the woman in the
wheelchair, who heard the whole thing
from the hallway. This old lady is
Maureen OLeary, a Kindred as crazy
as any inmate in the place (see
Chicago by Night for more informa-
tion). She throws a newspaper at them
culty 6) or
Medicine
(difficulty 8)
roll - a charac-
ter can diagnose
the patient as not
suffering from
any known 4
mental disor- 3
der; the
combination of
symptoms fail to
make any sense.
The patient is
possessed by
some Vampires
Werewolues in the Asylum
In rescuing the Lunatic, Garou face similar problems. If
they sneak in at night, use the above guidelines with the
exception of meeting Maureen OLeary. They may also
approach OLearys house during the day. Posing as a
doctor, one character might trick the Institutes head into
transferring the patient into his custody; roll Manipula-
tion +Medicine (difficulty 9, or 6 with official-looking
documents). The characters could also pretend to be
relatives and plead for the patients release; roll Cha-
risma t Empathy (again, difficulty 9, or 6 with a fake
I.D.). Finally, Gifts - particularly Glib Tongue or
Ultimate Argument of Logic - may be useful.
I
6
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I
k
mortal threatens the Masquerade,
killing him would be an incomplete
solution. The Beast must be returned
to its rightful owner, and that Kindred
punished by authorization of the
Prince of Chicago (this claim may or
may not be true).
If questioned further she will
indicate that the search for a Beast-
less Vampire should probably begin in
Tierburg. If one of the characters has
absorbed the Beast, OLeary cackles
and adds: Then youve got your own
reasons for going there, hmmm? The
characters may drag Edward Bemil
with them, or absorb the Beast (as
discussed earlier). Maureen will cover
for the madmans escape or death.
Scene Two: Wolf in Sheeps
Clothing
The small (and fictional) town of
Tierburg, Indiana, lies fifty miles
south of Chicago, just off Highway
41. A sign at the town limits reads:
WELCOME TO TIERBURG
A Town With Heart
Someone has driven a railroad tie
though the heart symbol. Tierburgs
population has always hovered around
1,000. A considerable portion of the
townsfolk descend from German
immigrants who settled in Indiana
between 1830 and 1850. Visitors also
notice a good number of Amerindians.
These people do not fit the wary-of-
strangers stereotype; they are quite
friendly with outsiders, since summer
brings many tourists and cottagers.
They operate a bingo parlor on their
reservation outside of town, and have
been doing quite well financially for
the last few years. They are very
ready to give directions on how to get
to the reservation since they all share
in the profits from the bingo.
Geographically, this hick town is
little more than Vollmonds gas
station/general store, Faith Lutheran
Church, a Town Hall (bridge every
Saturday night!), about 30 or 40
homes, and a number of adjacent
farms.
concerning the recent murder is
Vollmonds. Kindred who leave
Chicago shortly after dusk should
arrive before the 9:OO closing. It is a
weathered gray building decorated
with rusting license plates and an
ancient Coca-Cola advertisement. The
gas pump looks like a survivor from
the 1940s. When the creaky screen
door opens, a bell jingles.
fishing tackle to chocolate bars,
foodstuffs to ammunition. Also for
sale are genuine Indian crafts, such
as moccasins, bead necklaces, and
soapstone carvings. All prices are
150% normal.
The store is owned and run by
one large family, almost a clan -
An obvious source of information
Vollmonds sells everything from
Wolfgang and Barbara Vollmo
The Vollmonbs
The Vollmonds belong to the Fianna Tribe.
Wolfgang and Ursula are likely the elders who sent
them to rescue Edward Bemil. With the aid of the
Vollmonds, the characters study Bemils problem and
attempt to unlock his Werewolf potential. As mentioned
earlier, medical knowledge fails to offer any mundane
psychological explanation. However, Garou have more
tools than the average doctor ....
Garou who use Gifts to speak to the Beast, a
malevolent spirit, receive some very rude replies.
Questions concerning its nature are answered with
enigmatic answers. For example: Monsters we are lest
monsters we become, This flawed Vessel is both
virtue and curse, or May the Wassail-cup be ever-
full. An Intelligence +Occult roll (difficulty 8)
indicates that many of these terms are derived from
Vampire lore.
The Beast has a Willpower of 9 for resisting
exorcism. If this is successful, the spirit leaves Bemil
and enters the character with the highest Rage. That
person immediately gains 4 Rage points. All frenzies
favor the instinct of fight over flight. Further
exorcisms will simply bump the Beast back and forth
between vessels.
A successful probe into Bemils brain reveals a
foreign spirit running rampant. The mind reader also
hears a tiny voice begging for release. This is
Bemils psyche, locked away in a dark recess of the
subconscious.
After a little experimentation - and perhaps an
Intelligence +Enigmas roll (difficulty 6) - charac-
ters can define Bemils madness. He goes berserk in
the presence of three stimuli: bloodshed or death;
fire or sunlight; and Werewolves or Vampires.
During this story, he is almost always in a frenzy or
an exhausted rage.
All in all, players are likely to be more confused
than before. Wolfgang suggests that they take Bemil
to Beowulf, a powerful Garou shaman (thought to be
an Uktena) who lives in the area. Unfortunately,
nobody knows where to find him. J ust last week,
though, a mortal named Roland claimed that Bigfoot
had been tramping though his backyard nightly. This
was probably Beowulf, who prefers his Crinos form.
Rolands property might be a good place to visit (as
would the murder site, if for some reason players
decide to go there).
J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
their children: Klaus, Ursula, Dolf,
Bern, Bruno, Selene, and little Colin.
The store is effectively managed by
19-year-old Selene, who is attractive
despite her bleached-blond hair and
overuse of makeup. She is working
behind the counter when the charac-
ters arrive.
Depending on the characters,
friendly conversation is likely to
ensue. Selene is always curious about
strangers. She asks about what brings
the strangers to town, where they are
staying, and so on (but be careful not
to make the players edgy - Selene is
being friendly, not suspicious).
If the characters are Vampires,
after a few minutes of flirting with the
best-looking male Selene suddenly
stiffens. If the character in question
makes a Perception +Alertness roll
(difficulty 9), he notices a slight
flaring of Selenes nostrils and a
dilation of her pupils - as if she
suddenly smelled and saw something
of which she was previously unaware.
Characters who use Auspex on her
will notice a cold black aura rising up
from the base of her head, covering
over the mixed green and white aura
she possessed before. Under not
circumstances will she explain her
change in feeling, and will resist any
attempts to pry such information from
her via Disciplines (the characters
may think her to be a neutral).
For the rest of the conversation,
Selene is polite but distant. She will
reluctantly give directions to the
murder site, mostly out of desire to get
the characters out of the store (see
Scene Four: Rustic Waste). She will
also, with slightly less reluctance,
identify Roland as the local resident
from the newspaper account and
supply his address (as can everyone in
Tierburg) - see Scene Five: Childe
Roland.
The Vollmond family is actually
a pack of Lupines, and otherwise
unrelated. Their influence over the
inhabitants of Tierburg is tremendous
yet subtle. With her Gift of Sense
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Wyrm, Selene realizes that Vampires
are in their midst; when the characters
leave, she alerts her family. Scene
Three: Unsafe Haven deals with
further relations between the charac-
ters and the Vollmonds.
Scene Three: Unsafe Haven
The investigation will likely take
more than one night. Rather than
commute between their havens and
Tierburg each night, players may wish
to establish a temporary camp nearby.
(Of course, those with Earth Meld can
simply sink below the permafrost.)
Fortunately, the area is a summer
retreat for city slickers. Characters can
reside in one of the many cottages that
are vacant in winter. Some have
cement basements; virtually all have
some dark, cramped, and mice-
infested spaces beneath the rafters.
Allow players to take all the prepara-
tion and precaution they wish. During
their first day in this haven, a visitor
comes calling.
Selene Vollmond has become
impatient with her Lupine kin for their
delay in dealing with the Vampires.
That morning, she packs two gallons
of gasoline into her battered blue
Volkswagen and drives out to the
cottage retreat (using Heightened
Senses and Beast Speech to discover
the characters location). Sleeping
Kindred are allowed multiple rolls to
awaken, upon: 1) hearing Selene pull
up, poke around the outside of the
cottage, and attack any ghoul they
might have left on guard; 2) smelling
gasoline; 3) becoming aware of the
smoke and flames as the cottage
kindles; and 4) each round they burn
(the damage is equivalent to a
bonfire). For further guidelines, refer
to Awakenings on p. 143 of the
main rules.
Once awake, players must deal
with the fire, sunlight, and a Lupine.
The day is heavily overcast, so the
difficulty for resisting damage from
sunlight is only a 5 (see Sources of
Injury on pp. 120-121); the charac-
ters thus have a small amount of time
to either fight or get away. Selene
transforms to Crinos form and attacks
any Vampires who survive the flames.
If Selene is killed, the rest of her pack
will be strongly motivated to avenge
her, but they may not know about it
for some time if the characters hide
the evidence (such as her car). Such an
event should be orchestrated to occur
during the climax of the story.
Preferably, the players know of - or
are close to discovering - Beowulfs
haven.
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 41
4
Remember, this encounter is
meant to seriously threaten the
characters, but is not meant to be a
death trap. If the Kindred play it
smart, they should be able to escape
with their unlives. Though they are
facing a Lupine, they are up against
only one of the forest breed, and
through sheer numbers they should be
able to overwhelm her - despite the
increasingly deleterious effects of the
sun.
That night, as the characters
continue their investigation by the
light of a gibbous moon, a howl
echoes though the woods. It is soon
joined by others. Intermittent howling
continues all night. Allow Perception
+Alertness rolls (difficulty 3) to count
a dozen howlers and realize that they
are getting closer by the hour. When
the players nerves are completely
frayed (and their investigations are
nearing an end), the hunt begins. An
uncomfortable silence descends.
Characters feel they are being watched
and soon notice movement in the
shadows. The previous encounter with
Selene showed the danger posed by
one Lupine. Now, faced with several,
they had better run. Characters must
make a Courage roll (difficulty 4) to
resist terror, frenzy, and the urge to
flee. Those who pass the test or Ride
the Wave may choose a destination;
those who fail run blindly.
Follow the Pursuit guidelines
on p. 152 of Vampire: The Masquer-
ade. The characters begin with a 15-
success head start. Roll once for the
Lupines -they are sticking together.
Players each roll separately, but they
will probably move no faster than the
slowest character. They need 20
successes to lose their pursuers (this is
unlikely, since the Lupines Dexterity
t Celerity t Athletics add up to 11
Dice). Should the Lupines lose the
quarry, they begin to track with
Heightened Senses. They will
eventually catch up - it is only a
matter of time.
At one point, a pile of deadwood
blocks the path. A Dexterity t
Athletics roll (difficulty 6) is required
to climb the treacherous tangle.
Optionally, Strength t Athletics
(difficulty 3, five successes) enables
the character to jump over the pile. A
fall reduces the characters Health by
one level; a botch on the Soak roll
means the character is impaled on a
branch and unable to move without
assistance. Also, half the Lupines
carry shotguns and hunting rifles, so a
running gun battle may ensue.
The characters should reach
Beowulfs haven - assuming they
were running in this direction -just
before the Lupines catch up.
Garou characters are likely have
their own havens, or they can stay
with the Vollmonds. Unless you wish
otherwise, no significant events occur.
Scene Four: Rustic Waste
In Vampire, the urban environ-
ment is referred to as Gothic-Punk,
but North Americas wilderness is
best described as Rustic Waste -
combining rural life from the turn of
the century with an environmentalists
nightmare of open-pit mining and
clear-cut logging. The wilderness
around Tierburg is a notable example.
Logging has reduced much of the
forest to lumber stubble. Black oil
or rainbow-reflecting gasoline coats
numerous ponds and marshes. Beer
bottles and oil barrels line the ditches
on either side of the dirt road. The
bears and wildcats which once roamed
friend in a sand pit a few miles from
town. A dirt road (partially washed
out and poorly maintained at this time
of year) winds from Highway 41 to
the pit (roughly an hours walk or a
fifteen-minute drive in off-road
vehicles). The sand pit is quite large
- about 500 feet across and half as
deep. A pool of water lies beneath a
thin layer of ice at the lowest point.
Nearby, a patch of red dyes the frozen
sand. Police have cleaned up the mess
so few physical clues remain.
However, for someone with Level 3
Auspex, four or more successes on a
Perception t Empathy roll (difficulty
5) triggers the following psychic flash:
A photo negative. White sky,
black stars. Dusk. Two men struggle
in a ditch. Frothy breath and steam. A
spray of blood frozen in the air. Rifles
in the sand. A startled deer in mid-
bound. The bear crouched on the lip of
the pit.
The tramping of too many police,
reporters, and concerned residents
(i.e. rubbernecks) have obliterated any
tracks which might have existed in the
pit itself. However, a careful search
along the lip of the pit - and a
Perception t Survival roll (difficulty
8, or 4 with Heightened Senses) -
will reveal some broken twigs and
disturbed ground. Use the tracking
rules on p. 157. By following the
tracks for about 10 turns, the charac-
ters arrive at Rolands home (Scene
Five: Childe Roland); tracking about
the same distance in the other direc-
tion leads to Beowulfs haven (Scene
Six: Reunion).
this area have
disappeared; deer,
raccoon, rabbit, and
squirrel populations
shrink yearly due to
the deteriorating
environment and
hunting.
Through
inquiry, the
characters learn
Bemil murdered his
f l us t i c Waste
Garou may use Gifts in place of Auspex to
receive the psychic hint. Seeing the mysterious
bear may hint at a deeper mystery than they
first supposed. Garou who use conventional
tracking skills (i.e. Perception t Survival) have a
difficulty of 8 to follow the trail; Perception t
Primal-Urge lowers the difficulty to 4.
42 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
the option of returning to society.
Now he feels completely alienated,
his Sire exist. Characters approaching
as fellow Kindred have the best
chance of gaining his trust.
Scene Five: Childe Roland
in Tierburg can
not realizing that others like him and
Roland as the local resident from
the newspaper account. He lives a few
miles from Tierburg, just off Highway
41. His rustic home sits on a four-acre
lot, along with a crud
wake, so characters may have free run of his house.
and take them into his confidence (his Sire resembles
faithful German
barks at the slightest P
noise or strange
TFc+ -
scent, and growls at anyone who sets
foot in the yard. Durendal attacks the
strangers if they do not back off
quickly. Characters can make a
Charisma +Animal Ken roll (diffi-
culty 6) or use Animalism to gain the
dogs trust.
If Durendal has made any noise,
Roland soon pushes open the screen
door with the muzzle of his shotgun
and calls out in a grumpy voice:
Whos here? If asked about the
murder or his Bigfoot sightings,
Roland assumes the characters are
reporters and tells them to get off his
property (he didnt like the way he
was made to look by the last reporter
he talked too). A more neighborly
approach will simply receive a more
polite invitation to leave. A Perception
+Empathy roll (difficulty 6) hints that
Rolands gruff exterior conceals a
very lonely man. If the players
discover (e.g. through Auspex) or
somehow guess that Roland is a
Kindred, they may appeal to these
emotions. He has grown increasingly
lonely since his Becoming. With his
self-imposed isolation, he always had
Roland quickly war&<up and
becomes a gracious host. He offers his
visitors a drink (coffee or beer, or
somethin), and then realizes his
mistake (Heh, I guess not, eh?). So
long as the players remain friendly, he
tells them his story (see Rolands
description in Cast of Characters
below). Integrate this information into
a roleplaying session. If the characters
explain that they have come to return
Beowulfs Beast, Roland agrees to
lead them to his Sires haven.
Roland has turned his basement
into a haven of sorts. He has painted
the windows black and now sleeps in
an otherwise-empty freezer (un-
plugged, of course).
Scene Six: Reunion
Pine Rock Ridge is a tower of
-
red-brown sandstone jutting from the
black earth. The slopes are treacherous
due to a carpet of rotting pine needles,
but the huge, sap-sticky conifers offer
some handholds. One sheer cliff
overlooks Moon Lake. The top of the
ridge is clear of trees for a diameter of
about fifty feet. A Perception +
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4
I
i.
Survival roll (difficulty 4) allows
characters to realize that an artificial
dirt mound - like those common in
the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys
- covers the ridgetop.
Kindred characters probably
scramble up Pine Rock Ridge just
ahead of a pack of rabid Lupines.
Satisfied that their prey is trapped, the
Werewolves surround the ridge and
creep up the slopes. J ust then, a furry
arm sprouts from the ground and
begins clawing at the permafrost. By
the time Beowulf has pulled himself
from the grasping earth, the Lupines
have topped the ridge. The bestial
Vampire shakily stands and addresses
the hesitant half-wolves:
Leave the intruders to me. I shall
deal with them. Alone.
One frustrated Lupine lunges at
the characters ... Beowulf blurs ... and a
pine tree rocks with the impact of a
crumpled and bleeding Wolfman. The
Lupines - disappointed and not a
little frightened - back down the
ridge, dragging their wounded
comrade.
The Lupines gone, Beowulf
crouches, exhausted. His silence is
clearly an invitation to speak. He
himself has nothing to say. As an
elder, he owes no explanation,
especially to neonates (although he
might talk at the behest of Roland).
But you - as Storyteller - finally
deserve some background information.
Beowulf chose to Embrace
Roland, but each time he approached
the mortal, hunger threatened to
overpower his mind and cloud his
purpose. Then one night, he chanced
upon two hunters who were preparing
to slay a defenseless deer - one of his
Herd and a subject within his Domain.
J ust as the fury was about to wash
over him, Beowulf shunted his Beast
into one of the mortals ... and slipped
away as Edward Bemi
hunting buddy. Like h
encounter with the
Wyrm so long ago, th
chance event became
blessing in disguise.
Free from the Beast
and much of his
urge for mortal vitae,
Beowulf was able to
Sire Roland without
fear of accidentally
killing him. Growing
the Beast does not hesitate to enter a
less human and more powerful host.
Characters with Auspex detect an
insubstantial form leave Bemils (or
the current hosts) body and funnel
into Beowulfs forehead. The shaggy
Cainite arches his back and roars,
immediately entering Frenzy. As his
energy returns, he appears to grow in
stature, his fur becoming thick and
matted. Silver hackles rise. Claws
The events occur much as above (although
+Primal-Urge roll (Difficulty 6). Beowulf explains
increasingly lethargic
by the night, Beowulf
knew he had a limited time to educate
his replacement. Now satisfied that he
has done all he can for his Childe, he
agrees to take back the Beast: I broke
the Fifth Tradition and must do what
little I can to undo this wrong. But I
warn you, only a drop of Humanity
remains in my body, like mead in a
goblet after a long night of revelry.
Beowulf uses a point of Will-
power to reunite with his Beast - and
his mouth like those of a saber-toothed
tiger.
so fast he is almost invisible - the
creature which was once Beowulf
tears into the forest, spraying pine
needles and dirt into the air. He has
not left, as a Perception +Alertness
roll (difficulty 4) reveals, but is
stalking the characters from a dis-
tance. Unexpectedly, he launches
With blinding speed - moving
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W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 45
himself at his prey, making a Dexter-
ity t Stealth roll (the difficulty being
the highest Perception t Alertness
total in the group). He adds his
successes to (or subtracts his botches
from) the next initiative roll to
simulate the effect of his sudden
pounce. On a simple failure, roll
initiative normally. Typically, he
rends his opponents for one turn and
then disengages, continuing this hit-
and-run, hamstring tactic until they
weaken. He may also jump onto a
characters back, bearing down with
his weight and sinking in his huge
fangs. He drains the victims vitae
(three Blood Points per turn) until
beaten off. The players must destroy
this abomination.
Look over Beowulfs profile. If
you think your players characters
would not survive a battle with him -
because they are few in number or
noncombatants - allow Beowulf to
request that the characters bind him to
the cliff face before being reunited
with his Beast. This would prevent
himfrom unintentionally hurting
anyone and ensure his destruction by
morning.
Conclusion
Only a few loose ends need
binding. One is the existence of
Roland. If the other Vollmonds are
anything like Selene, Roland may not
be safe in Tierburg. Should the
characters introduce him to the Prince
of Chicago (and how will he react)?
Will they help him adjust to the
difficult years of Childehood? And, if
the characters slew Beowulf, did they
really have Princely support (as
Maureen OLeary suggested)? Your
group may answer these questions in
future stories.
Characters should leave this story
more aware of the danger of the Beast
and thus more confident in controlling
their own inner urges. For this reason,
they gain one point of Willpower
permanently. Rogue Kindred may also
Conclusion
The Vollmonds may not
like Cadavers, but how do the
characters feel? They may find
themselves protecting a Vampire
from fellow Garou.
Willpower, but Diablerie
obviously doesnt apply.
Instead, they may discover that
the mound on Pine Rock Ridge
is a caern waiting to be recov-
ered, or that an ancient fetish
lies buried in the earth. You
should define this mystic power
to suit your Chronicle.
Garou also gain a point of
reward themselves with Diablerie -
Beowulfs blood is volatile but potent.
Cast of Characters
[statistics in the new Werewolf The
Apocalypse are listed in brackets]
Edward Bemil
His colleagues seehimas a dedicated
lawyer and supporter of justice. Deep
down, however, hesimply enjoys
intimidating witnesses, watching the
accused squirm, andprosecuting guilty and
innocent alike. Hunting ishis favorite
hobby: nothing can match the God-like
power found behind the trigger.
Nature: Bravo Demeanor: Director
Born: 1948 Apparent Age: 40s
Physical: Strength 3, Dexterity 3,
Stamina 2
Social: Charisma 1, Manipulation 3,
Appearance2
Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence3, Wits 4
Talents: Alertness 2, Athletics 1, Brawl 1,
Dodge1, Intimidation 5
Skills: Drive1, Firearms 3, Stealth 3,
Survival 1
Knowledges: Law 3
Backgrounds: Resources 3
Virtues: Conscience2, Self-control 3,
Courage3
Humanity: 6 Willpower: 5
Image: Bemil appears to bethe
archetypal JoeAverage. Hehas dark hair,
brown eyes, and is of averageheight and
build (although getting a bit flabby dueto
ageand lifestyle). Heis equally comfort-
ableina suit or hunting jacket. While
possessed, heis constantly wide-eyed and
flushed fromexertion.
Roleplaying Hints: Smileevilly.
Gnash your teeth and try to bite anyone
who gets close. To simulatetheBeast
within, lower your voiceuntil it hurts to
speak. When cured, takecontrol of the
confusing situation
-
and demand an
explanation.
To savespace, the
ninemembers of the
Vollmond family
sharethe sameprofile.
Youmay improvise
their personalities (and
customizetheprofile,
if youwish) on a case-
by-casebasis.
Breed: varies
Auspice: varies
Tribe: Fianna
Rank: 1 for
children, 3 for
Elders
Caern: Tierburg,
Indiana
Physical: Strength 3,
The Vollmonds
46 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
Dexterity 3, Stamina 3
Social: Charisma 2. Manipulation 2,
Appearance 2
Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence 2, Wits 2
Talents: Alertness 2, Athletics 3, Brawl 3,
Dodge 3, Intimidation 2, Primal-Urge 2,
Search 5
Skills: Animal Ken 1, Drive 2, Repair 2,
Stealth 2, Survival 2
Knowledge: Enigmas 2, Occult 3.
Rituals 2
Disciplines: Animalism 1, Auspex 2.
Celerity 2, Presence 1
[Gifts: variable; all children have
starting Gifts, while the two Elders each
have two Level 2 Gifts and one Level 3
Gift in addition.]
Backgrounds: Kinfolk 2, Resources 2,
Rites 2
Virtues: Conscience 3, Self-control 2,
Courage 5
Renown: Glory varies, Honor varies,
Wisdom varies
Humanity: 5 Willpower: 8
[Rage: 5, Gnosis: 51
For more information on Lupines. see page
192 of Vampire: The Masquerade or
refer to Werewolf: The Apocalypse.
Childe Roland
Roland was born in a farmhouse near
Tierburg. Although his father was of
German descent and his mother had French
blood in her ancestry, they were both
I American. His parents
did not believe in
formal education.
They taught him to
read and write English
but encouraged himto
learn through practical
experience. Indeed,
over the years Roland
has worked as
carpenter, construction
worker, farmhand. and
lumberjack. He has
seen much of Indiana
and Illinois. and
experienced a good
part of the 20th
century. But he has
always returned to
familiar Tierburg. In
his retirement. he
bought a small home
near town and began
hobby farming.
All his family and friends are dead.
He has never been very social and is now
afraid to invest his feelings in others. A
reputation for being a loner saves him the
trouble of dealing with people. Roland is
actually very emotional but feels trapped
by the traditional idea of masculinity. He
refuses to admit that he loves children, and
will not permit himself to cry. He bought a
dog to keep him
company, and
Durendal has since
been a faithful friend.
During his long
life. he has witnessed
some strange events,
most of which occurred
near Tierburg at night.
As a result, he readily
accepts the
unnatural. from
ghosts to the Loch
Ness monster. These
beliefs were reinforced
when, two weeks ago,
Bigfoot started to come
around his house at
night. At first,
Durendal would bark
and Roland would
hear noises coming
from the woodshed.
He was reluctant to let Durendal - his
only friend -outside, in case the skulking
creature was a wolf or bear. Then one night
the creature looked in his kitchen window.
It scared the hell out of him. He saw it for
but a second. but the furry man-like
creature could only be a Sasquatch!
Five nights ago, after about a week of
nightly visits from Bigfoot, Roland decided
to introduce the creature to his shotgun. He
hew the creature was nearby when
Durendal hid under the kitchen table and
started to whine. Stepping outside with
flashlight and shotgun. Roland though he
saw something up by the barn, but it
moved so quickly - could it have been his
imagination? Suddenly he was grabbed
from behind and felt a pain in his neck. The
shotgun went off. The flashlight rolled
around on the ground. stabbing the
darkness like a miniature lighthouse. As he
lay on his driveway, watching the stars
wink out as the life drained from his body,
he thought: Now theyll believe in
Bigfoot.
Roland woke with a stiff neck. But he
felt infinitely more alive and full ofenergy.
Even his eyesight seemed better than
before -he could almost see in the dark!
Forgetting the strange events of earlier that
night, Roland had a sudden urge to go
hiking. During this aimless walk he arrived
at an unused sand pit and discovered a
\\\\-
Childe Roland
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 47
horribly mangled corpse. He immediately
returned home and phoned the police. The
rest of the night passed while he answered
their questions. When his roosters
announced the coming dawn, Roland
realized he was exhausted and that the light
gave him a headache. Almost uncon-
sciously, he ended up sleeping in a
basement closet.
When "Bigfoot" returned the
following night, Roland was not afraid but
drawn to it. Since then, this creature and
Roland have spent every night together in
the wilderness, speaking of things which
no mortal should ever hear. When his Sire
became too tired to visit the house, Roland
would walk out to Pine Rock Ridge for the
night.
Roland is much more than he first
appears: he is an old man, and at the same
time still a Childe; yet he is stronger and
more knowledgeable than either. He claims
that good eating habits. regular exercise,
and the clean country air keep him healthy.
That may have been true when he was
mortal, but now it has more to do with the
potent vitae coursing though his veins. His
gruff exterior serves him well in this new
existence by keeping humans away. He
does not have to deal with certain urges,
but can survive as a farmer (in more ways
than one).
Clan: Gangrel Sire: Beowulf
Nature: Caregiver Demeanor: Loner
Generation: 8th
Embrace: Five days ago (born 1914)
Apparent Age: 60s
Physical: Strength 4, Dexterity 2.
Stamina 4
Social: Charisma 3, Manipulation 1,
Appearance 2
Mental: Perception 4, Intelligence 2, Wits 2
Talents: Alertness 2, Athletics 2. Brawl 2,
Dodge 1, Empathy 2, Intimidation 1
Skills: Animal Ken 4, Drive 2, Firearms 2,
Repair 3, Stealth 2, Survival 4
Knowledge: Medicine 2, Occult 3
Disciplines: Animalism 1, Fortitude 1,
Protean 1 [In Werewolf terms, Roland has
the ability to speak to animals, a t1 bonus
to Soak rolls, and night-sight.]
Background: Resources 1
Virtues: Conscience 5, Self-Control 4,
Courage 3
Humanity: 10 Willpower: 7
Blood Pool: 15
Max per Turn: 3
Image: An old,
wrinkled man with a
tanned and wiry body.
He has a full head of
white hair, a white-
stubbled chin, and
deep-set gray eyes. He
always wears green
coveralls, a red and
black checkered
jacket, and work
boots.
Roleplaying
Hints: Always appear
grumpy. Speak
bluntly, convey your
meaning in as few
words as possible, and
let others do most of
the talking. Tell
people to go away but at the same time
detain them for as long as possible - even
if it means complaining to them for not
leaving!
Haven: Farm house located a few
miles outside Tierburg.
Influence: None
Beowulf
Clan: Gangrel Sire: Grendel
Nature:Traditionalist Demeanor:Survivor
Generation: 7th
Embrace: 561 (born 534)
Apparent Age: can't tell
Physical: Strength 6, Dexterity 4,
Stamina 5
Social: Charisma 1, Manipulation 2,
Appearance 5
Mental: Perception 5, Intelligence 2, Wits 2
Talents: Alertness 5, Athletics 5, Brawl 5 ,
Dodge 5 , Empathy 3, Intimidation 3,
Primal-Urge 4
Skills: Animal Ken 5. Stealth 2, Survival 2,
Melee 4
Knowledge: Geography 1, History 2,
Occult 2, Linguistics 2
Disciplines: Animalism 5 , Celerity 2,
Protean 3, Fortitude 4 [Translated, Beowulf
possesses: all Gifts of the Lupus, Ahroun
and Get of Fenris you deem appropriate,
two additional actions per turn, night-sight,
claws which do Strength t 2 damage, and
the ability to Earth Meld.]
Background: Herd 5, Status 5, Allies 2
Virtues: Conscience 2, Self-Control 1,
Courage 5
Humanity: 3 Willpower: 9
Blood Pool: 20 Max per Turn: 5
to remember. Little is left of his mortal
form except bipedal movement. His
appearance combines the size of a grizzly,
the grace of a cougar, and the intelligent
eyes of a wolf. His fur moves from golden
on the face and chest towards dark brown
on the back, with a silver mane behind the
shoulders. He has a small tail and
prominent fangs. At 7' tall and 300 pounds,
he is both beautiful and frightening.
Awesome is probably the best adjective.
Roleplaying Hints: Appear sad and
weary. Take slow, deep breaths. Every
gesture is a visible effort. At the same time,
retain some nobility - remember, you
were once a hero from legend! Attempt to
keep your head up and look directly at
those you are talking with.
Image: Difficult to describe but easy
Haven: Pine Rock Ridge
Influence: The Lupines in the area
think he is a powerful shaman, and are
loosely allied to him. His Herd consists of
the forest animals. While Beowulf is an
Autarkis, the Elders of Chicago recognize
his power and respect his solitude. Prior to
the events in this story, Beowulf revealed
himself to every Kindred traveling though
his Domain (much of the wilderness south
of Chicago).
48 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
F E A T U R E R E V I E W
I must admit right away that I have not read any of the novels participate in live-action games. With the help of the sophisticated
computers and sensors, these live-action gamers can experience a
variety of adventures. They can become superheroes, wizards,
spacefarers, or, in fact, anything they can dream up. Once they have
a role, they participate in a Game devised by a Gamemaster of the
park (1.e. the Gamemaster of Dream Park). In essence, when
playing Dream Park, you play a character who is in turn playing a
about Dream Park. Perhaps this puts me at a disadvantage when
examining the game, but I doubt it. R. Talsorian has done a very
good of presenting this product in terms even the uninformed such
as myself can digest. The small sizeof the book (its only 128 pages)
certainly doesnt leave room for too many complications. And
DreamPark certainly doesnt have many complications.
isbased on a pre,
release copy of the
game, but R. Talsorian
assures me that Im
getting a good look at
what will eventually be
in the store (and
should be by the time
Also, this review 1 character at the real
Dream Park.
you read this). Bound
into the back of the
perfect,bound book
will be a number of
color characters cards.
These are extremely
attractive, and the
information is very
convenient and helpful
for use in the Quik
Start Game. The
layout of the game
itself is a bit disturbing.
The format varies from
three columns to two
wherein a player
portrays an actor with
a role in a film. I
personally dont find
this to be a very
appealing feature of
either of these games.
In the case of Dream
Park it allows you to
use the game with
other roleplaying
games - e.g. your
Cyberpunk characters
could visit Dream
1 Park for a vacation -
I
columns to one
column plus sidebal.
~ ~ . . ~ ~
While R.
Talsorian claims that
this is an innovative
concept in roleplaying
games, it has in fact
been done before by
Stellar Games in It
Came to the Late,
Late, Late Show,
The text is not uniformin size, and there seems to be a proliferation
of graphics that disrupt the flow of the text. This isall to say that
despite being a relatively short book, its not a painless read.
Park, the premise is a recreation park of the future where visitors
but in general I feel it detracts from the dramatic elements of
roleplaying.
park. Here welearn the basic layout of the park, cursory
information about the technology used, and information about
The rulebook opens with an interesting tour overview of the
For those unfamiliar with the concepts involved in Dream
50 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
some of the personalities involved
in the game as if they really
L.
worked in the reaFDream Park.
For instance, game designer Mike
Pondsmith isintroduced as a Systems
Designer at the park.
Then the rules introduce the Quik
Start systemof the game. Only 14 pages are
spent in this section, but the material does
serve to introduce DreamPark players to
the basic rules concepts of the game. What
this section fails to do is introduce players
to roleplaying games. Perhaps this game is
an attempt by R. Talsorian Games to reach
a broader market of players, but the Quik
Start systemis a woeful attempt to explain
to newcomers what these games are all
about.
are integral to the Quik Start, though they
also serve the convenient function of play
aids for the Gamemaster. (The front and
back of one of these cards isreproduced
nearby to give you an idea of the art and the around the mazepicking up magic items
that may each beused once; certainly the
game content on the back.) The game
systemthe Quik Start introduces is way in which you usethe devices will
exceedingly simple. For combat, the
partially determine your success), all of the
attacker rolls one six-sided die and adds his games On beating the bad guys*
skill in the attack formused. This is
compared to the defenders roll of one die
plus dodge. The higher total wins. Damage
is then calculated by simply the
strength of the attack to the quality of the
defense. Both of these range fromNone
(or Very Light Attack) to A to choose a characters
Cosmic. Cosmic Weapons

The characters cards mentioned above


Character Sheet the players is directed to
answer questions pertaining to the character
concerning motivation, personal problems
and other background establishing traits.
The meat of a character is then
established with Basic Skills. These are the
skills you find listed on the back of the
character cards - things like Athletics,
Knowledge and Willpower. While you can
create a character and his Basic Skills from
scratch, the easiest method is
profession (essentially one
of the cards). Each
professions has four Basic
Skills with value 1, three
while Cosmic
with value 2, two with
value 3, and one with
value 4. Each profession
defenses are
possessed only by
such things as
MegaHeavy 1 also has a formula for
Vehicles (Star - determining BaseWounds.
Destroyers and the A Fromthis base, a player
like).
rules primer are three short
scenarios, like The Crystal Maze.
Unfortunately, these scenarios consist
entirely of small-scale battles on a playing
field provided in the form of a square-grid
map printed in the rulebook, While
small strategies are involved in these mini-
games (e.g. in The Crystal Maze you run
These mini-games can admittedly be
fun, but there are better board games
involved in the scenarios, this is the only
Without a rolePhing aspect
- -- -
.
include things like 4
nuclear weapons, II
4
4
may customize his character
with three additional points that
may be used to add to the Basic Skills.
That seems like too little flexibility,
especially in a game systemthat uses these
Basic Skills in place of typical attributes like
Strength instead of in addition to such
attributes, but you do have the option to
create a new profession.
I
Following this brief
possible way this scenarios can be judged.
I looked for the game to redeemitself
in the sections which form the bulk of the
book, starting with Advanced Character.
Here wedo find some aspects of the game
that encourage roleplaying. On the The heart of the character generation
1
r
I
A
W H I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E
51
system, the game, and therefore
the rulebook isthe Options
section. It commands a full quarter
of the hook. Options are purchased with
Game Points, which are also the experience
point systemof the game, and each
character begins with 20 Game Points.
I
These points are used to purchase Optional
Skills, like Hunch and Streetwise; Clerical
Spells, like Invoke Gods and Purify;
Magical Spells, like Shapechange and
Thunderbolt; Psionic Powers, like Empathy
and PsiBolt; Superhero Powers, like Fast
Ground Speed and Invisibility; and finally
Gadgets and Gear, which includes
everything from handguns to Space
Cruisers.
Point costs, but all of the other skills and
powers have variable costs depending on
how good you want to he. This is a nice
systemthat works based on the premise that
harder skills are more difficult to learn. The
example given in the hook compares
driving a car to piloting a helicopter; while
a character can learn either of these skills,
because learning to pilot the copter is more
Gadgets and Gear have specific Game
difficult, it will take more Game Points to
earn an equal level of proficiency in
piloting as in driving. Skills are rated on a
i Send $1.00 for a years subscription to our catalog.
i REFUNDABLE on your first order.
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.
scale of one to five, from Easy to Extremely
Hard, and while one Game Point buys one
point of Skill in an Easy ability, it takes five
Game Points to earn that one point of skill
in an Extremely Hard ability.
this scale, so the systemis a snap to use.
Thus, while the Conjuration Magic Spell
Move Earth is considered Simple (rating 2),
the Clerical Spell Resurrection is Extremely
Hard.
In general, this isa very nice system
that is used effectively. In my mind, its a
saving grace for the game, for each game a
player gets to spend his 20 Game Points on
totally new powers and skills. So if the
player wants to play a superhero during a
given game, then he can buy super powers.
Next time his character may wish to be a
holy man, so he can focus on Clerical
Spells. The systemdoesnt solve the basic
problems of the strange manner of play
where you play a character playing someone
else, hut it does at least make good useof
that concept.
Next is a section called Advanced
Rules. This section introduces a number of
nice modifications to a simple but otherwise
relatively dull system. Of special note is the
Special Effects Attack rules. By using this
system, a skilled characters can make use of
excess skill points not needed to win a roll-
off with his opponent to achieve special
effects like disarming or pulling a punch.
Every single skill and power israted on
A sample Game (adventure in
Dream Park lingo) called The Big Zombie
Pirate Game follows the Advanced Rules.
Here wesee roleplaying introduced on yet
another level - one where characters are
actually interacting with NPCs. However,
the Game is essentially an action story, and
it seems as if Dream Park encourages little
more than creating an interesting
environment and background in which a
great action adventure can take place.
Thats fine, but it seems that the best
aspects of roleplaying games are lost in this
story format; namely, the roleplaying is lost.
There can be little extended campaign play
and no character continuity; characters
merely move from one short term goal to
another.
pages of the book forms a section entitled
Writing Dream Park Games. This section
surprised me by presenting the game in a
way that actually made mefeel the format
of the game was indeed a blessing because it
offered the opportunity to play so many
different kinds of games. I believe that
playing DreamPark could be interesting,
but I feel that the format itself is too
limiting.
that does an admirable job of presenting a
concept flawed for roleplaying use. This
game isbest left to a live-action format. #d
The bulk of the remaining 20-plus
In essence, Dream Park is a solid game
52 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
r
L
I
t
I "
Feature Review
Wi th the emphasis of progressive game systems
(such as GURPS, Call of Cthulhu, and Vampire)
on relatively clear, straightforward prose, DJ reads
like a throwback to the days of Aftermath and other
wargame-style systems. For one thing, the book is
enormous (408+pages) and correspondingly priced
Psychogenics, Heka, STEEPS, PMSpd, Material
Subjects from Other Spheres (demons, for the
uninitiated), MPGs, Critical, Effect and Recovery
Levels, AP/Gs, SF points, FAC and Vril, I am forced
to conclude that it is not.
The sheer amount of rules in this book is stagger-
Heralded by an aclverti
4 hlitz of astronoinical
system from Dungeons &
almost comical.
highly-touted release of
ers Workshop, P.O. Box
1646, Bloomington, IL
through the basic rcilebook
61 702-1 646
least most of th
terms such as
armor class
and cure light
wounds made I
sense once one
an\/iewed by Robert Hatc
ing. The type is
tiny, and at
times there is no
art for 15 pages
at a time; the
overall effect of
opening the
book and
flipping through
page after page
of rules, cases,
subcases, charts,
tables, subtables,
and sub-
subtables is that
of a muted
groan. The
index to the
charts alone
takes up a full
page of minute
type. The best
example of the
priorities of this
game system is
the fact that the
chapter on
read through them. Gygax has ignored the standard
terminology of the roleplaying community to create
a parlance unique to DJ , which would be all right if
it were at all user-friendly. Unfortunately, after
losing myself i n a labyrinth of Heroic Personas,
56 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
combat takes up nearly / O pages, while the chapter
on campaigns and successful gamemastering takes up
only seven.
Character generation (characters, by the way,
are not called characters in this system; they are,
rather, Heroic Personas, or HPs for short) is rela-
tively straightforward in the basic game (known as
Mythus Prime), being handled by the simple divisio1
of 120 points among three attributes (Mental,
Physical, Spiritual); it is, however, an exercise in
number-crunching in the advanced system, where nc
fewer than 18 basic traits (with such evocative and
elegant names as physical neural capacity, spiritual
metaphysical power and mental mnemonic speed)
must be generated by individual dice rolls. Then, a
vocation (character class) must be chosen, based on
the Heroic Personas SEC (social class, which is
randomly rolled), and the STEEP levels for the
vocations K/S bundle must be calculated (i n En-
glish, that means figuring out how good the HP is
with her skills). Again, the terminology hurts this
section - while it doesnt take a rocket scientist to
figure out what physical neural power means, isnt
it easier to say dexterity? Or agility? Or re-
flexes? Or something? Furthermore, the idea that
every HP of the same vocation has a huge bundle of
the exact same skills rubs me the wrong way.
Granted, players may choose a few extra skills to
customize their HPs, but the overall effect is still
somewhat cookie-cutter.
A
P
ALSO FROM
FLYING BUFFALO:
L
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E
I
57
Although most Heroic Personas are human, this Hero, each new genre will also have the basic rules
reprinted in yet another $26.00 tome. Caveat
emptor.
Dangerous Journeys isnt a terrible game, if
one can wade through the verbal swamp. But quite
frankly, it isnt a good game either, particularly in
comparison to other multigenre systems such as
GURPS and the Hero System. There is nothing
new, innovative or exciting i n this volume, and it
certainly doesnt live up to the hype. What
Dangerous Journeys has essentially done is to take
a lot of standard FRPG fare, increase it to the Nth
degree in complexity, and market the resulting
mass at an inflated price. This is not a system for
beginning garners, and advanced players will most
likely find one of the aforementioned systems more
to their taste.&
is by no means the only option. Dwarfs, elves,
gnomes, alfen (near-human personas of short
stature - and hairy feet, perhaps?), and alfar
(Viking elves with attitudes) are other options. Very
little social or cultural information is given about
how to play these races, but I suppose that is unim-
portant, as they have been around since Basic D&D
anyway. The whole idea of standard races and
vocations in a supposedly multigenre system strikes
me as behind the times.
The magic system is based around spell points
known as Heka (which can be conveited into vril
at a 5: 1 ratio, and which is subdivided into Preter-
natural, Supernatural and Entital Heka, each of
which is 10 times more powerful than the one before
it. Confused? I was.). Each spell costs a certain
amount of Heka to cast, and spells are divided into
Casting Grades according to power and difficulty.
The spell list is skimpy and generic, but (of course)
the Mythus Magick complementary book will be o
soon with many more spells. Speaking of spells -
maybe Im missing something, but two of the skills
(Sorceror and Wi tch), while listed as spellcasting
abilities, have no spells given for them in the basic
book.
All of this is set on the world of Erth, which is
roughly analogous to our own world (except with
magic and monsters thrown in). Heroic Personas
can adventure in such realms as Egypt, Francia,
Nippon and Scand; if they tire of the surface world,
there are also the subterranean realms of (I kid you
not) Shallowshadow, Midgloom and Deepdark.
Intrepid HPs may also travel to the counter-realm
of Phaeree, where the nonhuman population is much
stronger and more numerous. The setting is de-
scribed in only a cursory fashion, but the Epic of
Brt h book, soon to be released, will fill in the rest of
the details.
The list of Monstrous Personages (bad guys) is
adequate but unexceptional; the standard sword
fodder such as dragons, vampires and demons is here,
but little else. This is not necessarily a bad thing
(monsters should be few and far between in most
cases), but with all the hype about this game, DJ
could have at least included a few cool monsters to
fight.
multigenre system, seem tied to the fantasy setting;
there are no rules for guns, space travel et al. Pre-
sumably these features will appear in later books, but
also presumably, instead of having one big basic
rulebook and supplement materials a la GURPS or
1
The DJ rules, despite being touted as a
58 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
by Mark Jason Dural1
How many times have you put down a comic or a book, or walked out of a movie theater,
and thought: Why isnt there a game about this? For hard-core roleplayers, this happens regularly.
Some of those garners are game designers, which explains why the field of roleplaying games has
recently become saturated with licensed products from almost all fields of interest - novels,
comics, cinema and others.
These games rangefromChaosiums excellent Call of Cthulhu,
based on the moody and evocative stories of H. P. Lovecraft, through
Palladiums runaway hit gamebased on the Teenage Ninja Mutant
Turtles comic series, to morerecent entries such as the Amber Diceless
Role-Playing game, which is based on the works of Roger Zelazny, and
the Aliens RPG, which enables characters to fight the nasty film
creatures with characters of their own. Through the phenomenon of
licensing, you can fight supervillains and defend the Earth alongsidethe
Justice LeagueInternational, cross swords with Fafnrd and the Grey
Mouser, smugglevital microfilmthrough the crumbling Union of
Sovereign States to London whereit can beprocessed by M.I.5 and
passedalong to a certain Mister Bond, or even manipulate the Forceto
aid the Rebel Alliance in their battle against the dreaded Empire.
While this vast array of licensed products is stimulating and useful
for the gamer, it should in no way deter gamemasters fromcreating their
own worlds. Trying to exalt licensed products over ones own imagina,
tion isnot the purposeof this article. The processes of world-building
and gamecreation have been covered extensively elsewhere, and this
article isintended to examine the rolethat licensing plays in the RPG
industry, and quite possibly in your gaming group. The focus of this
article ison licensing, and does not deal with gameaeated worlds such
as TSRs Krynn or Dark Sun, Chaosiumand Avalon Hills Glorantha, or
BardGames Talislanta. However, TSRs Dragonlance campaign world is
notable as the forerunner of games which have gone the other way -
licensed into other materials such asnovels, comic books, computer
games, etc.
mu J J l tMZ?
s ms 7YmmIS F@t? 3dtC233
Fromthe largest companies in the industry to the smallest, great
amounts of effort, time, and money are spent producing products based
on film, comic, and literary sources. There are many reasons that these
games have been and will continue to besuccessful, and whilethis list is
not complete, it touches on many of the malor points.
imagrnatlve scopethan settings wntten by gamedesigners I f you had a
choice, would you rather play in a world written by a nameless (which is
not to say untalented) gamedesigner, or would you rather romp and
adventure through worlds you know, meeting characters who have
proven their entertainment valuethrough their success in print or film!
In the context of TSRs Dragonlance games and novels, Raatlm is
considered to be a powerful and tragic figure But can his plight compare
with the truly epic passions and tragedies of Elric ofMelnibon6 (featured
in Chaosiums Stormbringer and based on Michael Moorcocks Eternal
Champion novels)
2 Many of these works are familiar to a widerangeof people, and are
easier for new garners to understand and visualize Almost every gamer has
had the experience of feeling lost in a gameworld, due to either a lack
of familiarity with the setting or incompleteness on the GMs part.
While this can sometimes beeffective for games like Call of Cthulhu,
where ignorance and fear are part and parcel of a campaign, it can be
frustrating for a new player in the Traveller or Cyberpunk universes
J Licensed gameworlds are often of higher quality andgreater
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 59
While a player can
becomefully
integrated into these
worlds with
experience, it is far
easier to visualizethe
cinematic universe
Commonwealth series of books, David Brins Uplift novels, Philip Jose
Farmers Riverworld books, The Prisoner television series, and Andre
Nortons Witch World series, as well as the current comic-inspired Wild
Cards anthologies and collaborative novels.)
6. You can experiencethethrill of playing a favorite character or
someonevery similar, or meeting that character in a gaming context.
Palladiums TNMT gameprovides proof of the first part of this
brought to lifethrough George Lucas Star Wars trilogy. The primary
motivation for gamepublishers to develop licensed materials is often the
fact that there isan established audience. Many authors or creators of
works will license their works for similar reasons, in hopes that they will
develop a crossover audience of gaming enthusiasts, which will have a
reciprocal effect on their original works if the gameproves to be
successful.
based on what haalready been witten. Recent trends in licensed games
take this to the extreme, such asPalladiums Teenage Ninja Mutant
Turtles, which, despite having extensive character creation rules, isat its
best when the players take on the roles of the four heroes themselves.
Gamemasters using the DC Heroes or Marvel Super Heroes rule
systems have a cornucopia of established villians, with their own motives
and methods; this allows the gamemaster to concentrate on the
adventure itself.
spent playing. If one agrees with this statement, then it can belogically
assumed that even moretime will be saved though the useof characters
and settings already familiar to the group through novels, films, or
comics. I amfairly certain that most people arefamiliar with the world of
Star Trek and therefore would not need extensive background material or
elaborate explanations as to why several different characters of vastly
different races and backgrounds are united in a single purpose.
Gamemasters who have had especially difficult times uniting groups of
characters who normally would have little to do with each other can
sympathise. While disparate backgrounds and goals can occasionally
create elements of enjoyable tension and conflict, many players feel let
down by campaigns which begin with all of the characters just happening
to bein a bar at the time that a wizard isin need of someassistants ...
Unimaginative beginnings likethat will often elicit groans, while the
opening You areall on the bridgeof the U.S.S. Reliant when sensors
pick up ...isexpected while playing the Star Trek RPG.
gamedesigners and other games. Why settlefm theimitation? It would be
ludicrous for the designers of games such as Top Secret and Mercenaries,
Spies, & Private Eyes to say that they werent influenced by the world,
spanning adventures of Ian Flemings debonaire master spy, and in the
first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, TSR admits that the
gamewasinfluenced by J . R. R. Tolkiens works, as well as those of
Robert E. Howard and Fritz Leiber. Thanks to such efforts as Victory
Games (now defunct) J ames Bond 007, Iron Crown Enterprises Middle
Earth Role Playing (and now The Lord of the Rings), Steve J ackson
Games GURPS Conan, and TSRs Nehwon campaign world, garners can
adventure in the lands of their favorite heroes frombooks or films.
(GURPS, incidentally, should get a special notice in this article for
being the undisputed mogul of licensed products, with sourcebooks for
Robert Adams Horseclans novels, Alan Dean Fosters interstellar
3. Its easier to create characters and settings, and to witeadventures,
4. Established settings save thegamemaster timewhich can bebetter
5 . These settings and characters are often thosewhich influenced other
statement, as do most games which feature statistics for literary
characters. Many of them are intimately connected to the NPCs
presented in the source material, and arealmost unplayable without
them. Most licensed games offer this as an option, and while it isnt the
sameasplaying a character youvecreated, it makes for excellent one,
shot or limited campaigns, aswell as exciting tournament or convention
play. Most of the superhero scenarios for DC Heroes or Marvel Super
Heroes are designed specifically for a particular hero or group of heroes.
The second part of the above statement is true for someof the same
reasons, as well asothers - in a Stormbringer campaign, for example,
the characters have only to hear a rumor that Elric iscoming to town
before theyll try to get out as quickly as possible. PhagePress Amber
Diceless Role-Playing, while not completely dependent upon the
characters created by Roger Zelazny, really shines when they are used as
incredibly powerful NPCs who occasionally interact with the fledgling
characters. It isthe thrill of meeting fictional characters in the gaming
environment which perhaps makes the field of licensed products the
most popular in the genre.
T@P @F rlh3 N2AP
Despite all these benefits, there are many licensed products that are
considerably less successful than gamedesigneraeated worlds. Many
projects are too obscure to warrant full roleplaying systems, such as
Chaosiums Ringworld, an out,of,print science fiction systembased
mainly upon two hooks by Larry Niven, or British television seriesebased
Doctor Who (from FASA). Has anyone heard of J ack Chalkers novel
Midnight at the Well of Souls? Well, theres an RPG based on it.
Sometimes games arebased on source material that isnt interesting to
roleplayers, such as Delta Force fromTask ForceGames. Perhaps the
scope of the source material istoo limiting, such asChaosiums Elfquest,
which nearly forces characters to take on the roles of Wolfriders in the
world created by Richard and Wendy Pini in their comic series, or Game
Workshops J udge Dredd, in which all players are assumed to be law
officers in MegaCity One. Perhaps one of the worst of this last typeof
RPG wasTSRs Indiana J ones, a gamein which players merely follow
Indiana Jones footsteps, taking the roles of his followers fromthe films.
Other failures in licensing areharder to explain, such as the fact
that TSR marketed a poorlysselling roleplaying gamebased on Robert E.
Howards Conan series long beforeSteve J ackson Games took over the
license (though this might have had moreto do with the rules system,
which lacked the grittiness one expects froma gamebased on the violent
barbarian hero). TSRs original release of Lankhmar (based on Fritz
Leibers Fafnrd and theGrey Mouser series of stories ) wasin 1985, and
only in the last few years has TSR given serious attention to the
property, which the company now supports with an excellent range of
modules, sourcebooks, and other materials.
All this considered, it iswith somecaution that a gamepublisher
will commit the money to purchase a license these days. Knowing which
60 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
literary or filmsettings warrant a unique and specific game systemand
which can be turned into a sourcebook for existing rules is a tricky
decision to make, and can turn into a windfall or a loss. The safest course
today seems to be the latter option; as a result, universal systems like
GURPS, Hero, and Rolemaster lead the field in licensed products.
Chaosium attempted this generic systemspecific world idea earlier than
most with their Basic Role Playing system(derived fromRunequest), but
took a loss with poorly selling games like Ringworld, Elfquest, and
Hawkmoon (also based on Michael Moorcocks Eternal Champion
novels).
CJJ@OSOhYG V$m%J W@LY58 T@ !@.z
Looking at the vast number of licensed products on the market
today, a prospective gamemaster or player has a pretty big choice to make
if he or she wishes to forego creating an entire world, and would rather
adventure in an pregenerated, familiar world fromanother medium.
Some simple guidelines:
1. Is this publisher one you can trust? Ask other customers or clerks at
the game store where you shop. Look at other products put out by that
company. Is the company involved devoted to producing a quality piece
of work, or isit just trying to make a buck off a current fad? Besure to
look for Mayfairs Batman in bargain bins everywhere.
gamesystem? Most companies are careful about labeling their games as
supplements, but be careful and check anyway. There are good and bad
points to this. You can feel ripped off if you get home and find out that
2. Is is a compkte gamein itself, ora licensed supplement for an existing
universal systems, however, you can publish the rulebook and have
access to a wider array of moreor-less compatible supplements, with the
option of creating your own world in the future using the system.
GURPS fans can play Conan one week, Riverworld the next, then go
straight into Camelot, Wild Cards, and J apan, while only having to
familiarize themselves with one set of rules.
3. Is the world completely covered in his volume, or will you be
committed to buying a lot of sourcebooks and companion volumes to play?
Some campaign worlds are too big for one book. Garners love lots of
volumes, and will generally buy anything available for favored systems,
but beginners might be reluctant to lay down so much cash just to try a
game out. Unfortunately, most game stores or libraries are a long way
away from lending roleplaying games out. While it has gotten a lot of
critical attention and praise fromgamers and designers alike, I have seen
more than a few gamers put off by the number of books which West End
puts out for Star Wars. True, you dont need all the books to play;
indeed, you only need a couple, but thats rarely obvious to novice
garners or people who havent bought the basic rulebook.
4. How much control doyou want over this world? How faithful an
adaptation are you looking for! Are you fond of crossing genres, or are
r
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WH I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 61
you strict about
sticking to the
guidelines set forth in
the gameworld? Both
of the major
superhero games
(Marvel Super
Heroes and DC Heroes) arewideopen for whatever the gamemaster
wantS to throw in: time travel, aliens, natural disasters, comedy, horror,
etc ..., but can you get away with a pulp superhero flying through Call of
Cthulhu! A vampire in J ames Bond 007! Conan as a would-be J edi
Knight! Youget the picture ...
playing in it as much 11s you enjoyed reading or seeing it, then go for it. Ignore
the rest of the rules if this isthe case, and have a great time.
5. If youre a bigfan of that world and feel that your players will enjoy
A Ul M l3osu: NZW P@sso~o&Ouo~s P@@
PUB&RSRZRS @R ~A ~J ~J ~~S F Z ~S
While you might say that theres already a glut of licensed material
on the market, becertain that there will bea lot more. In an effort to
broaden the field, and savegamedesigners sometime when looking for
ideas, here are suggestions for eight world or campaign settings fromfilm,
comics, or books which arejust aching to be developed into games or
sourcebooks.
listing isgiven in alphabetical order, based on the gamecompanies
which would beappropriate publishers of the suggested licenses. If the
suggestions makesense, and make you want to spend your hardeeamed
money on them, then writeto the companies and ask them (Why dont
youpublish , . . ?If yourea would-be bigtime gamewriter and designer,
send them a letter beginning Id like to . . . If yourea do-it-yourselfer
and arent after fameand fortune (or what substitutes for them in RPG
design), youshould pay a lot of attention to the last section of this
article.
As of this writing, these worlds have not appeared as either
roleplaying games or supplementary materials (as far as I know...). Some
might becompletely unsuitable for development, due to expensive or
unavailable licenses, a limited appeal, or similar products already on the
market. It isleft to the would-be gamedesigner, adaptor or publisher to
determine the status of these licenses if professional publication is
desired; of course, for peoplewho just want these settings for their own
gaming use, no permission is required. J ust dont sell it or call it your
own.
which I feel would make excellent roleplaying gameproducts and the
companies which might develop them.
Since companies generally have a certain feel to their work, this
And so, without further ado, here areeight settings or suggestions
383 4YAMh18Ild5 @AJNd t@JXPAhW
8Jl Tt J! ~~l R~@S @a85 T@ T&d@AMX%
by Douglas Adams.
This British radio showdtumed-book set BBC television series
standards in humorous science fiction and fantasy, motivating dozens of
writers to create books in the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy vein
and possibly inspiring roleplaying games like West End Games Paranoia
and Avalon Hills Tales of the Floating Vagabond. The setting: the
wideand wooly Universe after the destruction of Earth for a hyperspatial
express route. The cast: a bunch of no-accounts, leftover Earthlings, a
terminally depressive robot, and a perky, talking spaceship with the
personality of an Avon Lady. The four-part trilogy takes the main
characters (and other innocent hangerpod throughout the galaxy,
thumbing rides on assorted spaceships and dodging through randomtime
streams, to encounter the Big Bang, the end of the Universe, and a lot of
funny stuff in between.
Tying the whole series together isthe humorous and often
exasperating Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, a computerized
encyclopedia of misleading and often highly subjective entries aimed
towards the less-discrimating (i.e. cheap) starfarer. Sample entry: Earth:
Mostly hartnkss. The HGTTG offices employ thousands of reporters who
roamthe millions of known worlds in search of action, adventure, and
freedrinks in galactic press boxes.
Characters in a Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy RPG could be
roving reporters or others caught up in their travels, general riff,raff, or
even the very hitchhikers the book isaimed at. The gamesystemwould
have to bevery free-form- fast and loose, aimed at maximumhilarity
and minimumruleplaying. Players of Toon, Ghostbusters, Paranoia, and
Tales from the Floating Vagabond might enjoy this game, which would
have to beset upwith dozens of parenthetical entries in the Guide
designed to beread at appropriate (or just plain funny) moments.
Perhaps gamemodules would even bemarketed with recorded versions of
Guideentries for those who would enjoy hearing the matter,of,fact voice
reciting sheer lunacy. The gamehas already been adapted into a
computer game, which shows that author Adam is receptive to further
interpretations of his work.
Avalon Hill has produced the hilarious Tales from the Floating
Vagabond, and puts out a quality piece of merchandise. The other home
for this gameisWest End Games, creator of Paranoia and Ghostbusters.
The main reason that Avalon Hill waschosen isbecause West End
should bebusy with their Dune project (see below).
Source Material - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, &
Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Life, The Universe and
Everything, and So Lone and Thanks For All the Fish, by Douglas
Adams, as well asTheHitchhikers Guideto theGalaxy, a television series
by the BBC sometimes shown on public television. Records of the first
two books are available fromHannibal Records.
4HA@Sl@JXu iM*
Tfid n@RB @@8@8@Su
by E. R. Eddison.
Possibly the finest fantasy novel ever written, The Worm
Ouroboros surpasses even J . R. R. Tolkiens Lord of the Rines in scope,
heroism, style, and wonder. The WormOurorobos isa towering
achievement in the field of fantasy literature. It is the tale of a mighty
war between the forces of several great nations on a world called
Mercury, and each pagebreathes with vigor and wonder in an fabulously
ornate, often difficult-to-read languagethat has no equivalent in 20th
century literature. Reading OurobG isa supremely consuming task,
sometimes taking several tries, but isworth every iota of effort. Eddisons
62 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
namebelongs in the ranks of fantasy grand-masters, along with those of
C. S. Lewis, Tolkien, Lord Dunsany, and James Branch Cabell (another
great but sadly neglected fantasy author).
The warring nations of the book arenamed for creatures of Earths
mythology and folklore. Heroic Demons (blessed with milk,white skin
and small, oftendecorated or jeweled horns) ride into battle against the
degenerate and sneering Witches, their former allies in a great war
against the Ghouls. Other races include Goblins, Pixies, Imps; indeed,
most of the great fantasy monsters are present here, and the epic world,
spanning quest is nomde rigeur for this setting. What must bedone to set
Mercury apart fromstandard fantasy settings isto increase the richness of
the background and emphasizethe heroic and fantastic elements of
roleplaying. If a character wants to spend fiveminutes describing what
he iswearing, down to the last buckle on his boot, then let himas long
asit is interesting. The gamemaster should detail non,player characters
with equal care, creating foes and allies worthy of strong, broadly-painted
emotions. Heroismisto be respected and striven for, and treachery ranks
besideblack magick as an action unworthy of noble men. It isnot a
world for meaningless abstractions like Law and Chaos. However, Good
and Badare aseasily recognized as white and black hats in old Westerns.
What The WormOuroboros needs to betranslated successfully
into roleplaying terms is a gamesystemthat emphasizes heroism,
storytelling, passions, glory, honor, and the entire epic feel, without
getting bogged down into the gritty mechanics of armor class, saving
throws, encumbrance, weapons range, or other mainstays of most fantasy
systems. A basic,but,elegant systemlike Chaosiums Arthurian
roleplaying gamePendragon isthe perfect example of these principles,
with emphasis on character passions, glory, and the lonpterm campaign.
Chaosiumis perhaps the most literary publisher of licensed products,
with Call of Cthulhu, Pendragon, Ringworld, Stormbringer, and
Hawkmoon all based on novels, and Prince Valiant and Elfquest from
comics. This gamewould provide American gamers an invaluable
chance to really usesimply awful pseudwKing James Bible/
Shakespearean English, full of thees, thous, doths, and hasts, becausein
an Ouroboros game, it would bemandatoryto speak like that. Dost thou
agreeth?
Source Material - The WormOuroboros, by E. R. Eddison, recently
reprinted in an annotated version.
JMIY?&M? 3%11WS* Ma
a 2 m! d G J&l$PJlJ*
by J ack Vance.
Set in Earths 21st Aeon, a world wherethe sun isat its zenith,
hanging redand bloated in the sky, this series of stories chronicles the
adventures (and misadvantures) of a cast of characters such as Cugel the
Clever (a rogueentirely too smart for his own good), Iucounu the
Laughing Magician, and Rhialto the Marvelous, conjurer extraordinaire.
I t is a world of baroquemajesty, strange and magnificent enchantments,
fabulous creatures, and unlikely coincidences
The books greatest interest to roleplaying gamers (aside frombeing
simply marvellously written and inventive), however, is the magic system
Vance posits, with bizarreand imaginative enchantments such as The
Spell of Forlorn Encystment, TheGreen and PurplePostponement ofJ oy, The
Excellent Pnsmatlc Spray (sound familiar, AD&D fans), TheSpell of
Internal Effervescence,
Arnboult s
Sequesmous Digrtalia,
and many others,
equally original and
bizarre. Vances
magical systemisthe root of the AD&D systems spell memorization,
though the spells are far morepowerful (magicians therefore, are limited
to fewer, morepotent spells which always work) and there is no
equivalent to the level learning system. There areseveral species of
magical beings such as the sandestins and daihaks, extraplanar creatures
used by sorcerers to performsimple tasks or to power their spells. These
beings must Se bargained with, making for excellent roleplaying
possibilities.
The focus of this world ison the magicians, who are as diverse,
extravagant, and obnoxious a lot as can beexpected. Using their magic
for cosmetic effects and cultivating their own idiosyncratic styles, they
areas much showmen as sorcerers. An excellent campaign could involve
a group of these magicians, who are so common in the Dying Earth
(though not nearly so powerful asthey werein past millenia).
Mayfair Games publishes an excellent series of generic gamesupplements
called RoleA d, which has focused on specific fantasy races, presented
multiqstem gamemodules, and detailed characters and monsters from
myth and fiction. The setting would beideal as a multl-systemproduct
with stats for using it in a few appropriate gamesystems. The bi n2
could also makean excellent alternative Ars Magica setting, but
would bedifficult to adapt into other games rigid magic systems which
do not allow for the creation of new spells. Still, one pities the poor game
designer having to allocate spell cost points and determine effects for The
InsideOut and Ow, a spell which inverts the building or landscape
around the caster.
Source Materials -The bi ng Earth, The Eyes of the Ovenvorld,
Cupels Saga, and Rhialto the Marvellous, by J ack Vance. The Duest for
Simbilis, by Michael Shea. Vances Evocation of Arcane Delight, an
article by Simon Nicholson in White Dwarf (issue 93, September 1987).
&J g6@)@@@ gj&/jy&4yP
written by Earl Mac Rauch and directed by W.D. Richter.
The ultimate collision of particle physics, rock and roll, Zen
mysticism, and 50s sci-fi movies, Buckaroo Banzai is the tale of a group
of highly talented and diverse adventurers and musicians bound together
by one man (a postmodern Renaissance man named Buckaroo Banzai, a
sort of Doc Savagefor the %Os) , as they battle an alien menace that
threatens the Earth with nuclear destruction. Besides being a repository
for a surprising number of fine actors, the film(and novelization) set up a
world of hip, competent heroes prepared for everything, with special
vehicles and a helpful network of backup assistants.
Players in a Buckaroo Banzai roleplaying gamewould beable to
take on the roles of characters fromthe films or create their own Hong
Kong Cavaliers (Banzais musical band). The latter would befar more
enjoyable, letting the players create diverseand interesting dream
characters with few limitations, the only requirement being an ability to
play a musical instrument. This setting would lend itself well to most
W H I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 63
types of adventure,
allowing the
gamemeaster to cross
and combine genres
with impunity.
Why Palladium?
The Palladiumrules
systemiscompatible with almost all of their games, allowing Buckaroo
Banzai gamemasters access to mutant animals fromTeenage Ninja
Mutant Turtles, superheroes and gadgets fromHeroes Unlimited,
martial arts fromNinjas and Superspies, and even giant robots and
mega.technology with Robotech and Rifts. This gamesetting would
appeal primarily to players of Tors or Dark Conspiracy, and maybeeven
someTop Secret S.I. or Mercenaries, Spies, & Private Eyes fans, with
somepossibleconverts fromCall of Cthulhu and pulpadventure games
likeHEROS J ustice, Inc.
Source Material - Buckaroo Banzai, screenplay by Earl Mac Rauch
and directed by W. D. Richter. Buckaroo Banzai, filmnovelization by
Earl Mac Rauch.
T4&S@RlAN 64rnBp l NC
B@R@gRr@UNp
edited and created by
Terry Windling and Mark Alan Arnold.
In these collaborative anthologies, the premiseisan intriguing one
similar to the concepts explored in FASAs Shadowrun. Something
undefined has caused the return of the forces of Faerie to Earth,
manifesting itself in one or moremajor cities which have become mixing
places between the two planes. Elves walk the streets in gang colors and
mohawks, and the cities have becomemeccas for disenfranchised or
aliennated youth. Magic rules in the Bordertown, and the law is as
powerless and randomly effective as the technology it depends upon. The
punk scene reigns in Bordertown, mixing the haunting melodies of the
Elfin kindred with the earthly chords of rock and roll. It can bea violent
or beautiful place, depending on who yourun with, and the streets are
filled with a mix of runaway kids, street gangs, old residents, Elves and
other Faeriefolk, private eyes searching for lost kids, and musicians of all
styles.
The roleplaying gamewould have to take into account the sporadic
effectiveness of technology and the magic utilized to take its place -
enchanted spellboxes to run motorcycles, arcane amplifiers, and gremlin-
run computers. The setting isone of a city in waste, with treasures to be
had for lucky scavengers, and magical curses or death for those who steal
fromthe wrong gangs turf. The tension of the gangs infiltrates all levels
of life, making this fantasy milieu one which has a real-world counterpart
in New York or LosAngeles, possiblesites for the unnamed Bordertown.
Worthy of a systemin its own right, Bordertown would work for R.
Talsorian, who have shown that they have the edge needed to pull off
this game. Wild enough to publish Teenagers from Outer Space, they
arealso the creators of the grimand sleek Cyberpunk. Bordertown might
lure players away fromShadowrun, offering a less science-fiction based
version of the samepremise. It would bridge the gap between those who
like high fantasy and those who enjoy films likeEscapefromNew
York.
Source Material - Borderland, Bordertown, and Lifeon the Border,
anthologies edited by Terry Windling and featuring Bellamy Bach, Ellen
Kushner, Craig Shaw Gardner, and many of the waut hor s.
l3l4Vaffl
edited by Will Shetterly and Emma Bull.
Actually based on a roleplaying campaign, this series of anthologies
issimilar to Robert Asprins Thieves World (which has been adapted
into a multi-systemgamesupplement by Chaosium) though more
imaginative, far morestylish, and moreinternally consistent. Stories are
set mostly in the city of Liavek, city of luck and mystery, an Arabian
Nights-influenced city on the the edgeof a great desert.
Bedouins, or members of the Green Church, an order of suicides.
Characters may steal, lead caravans across the wasteland or merchant
ships across the Sea of Luck, or engagein high society pistol and sword
duels. Useful appendices in the first book in the series of fivedetail the
city, the monetary system, races, culture, religions, weapons, history, and
a unique and interesting magic systemwhich isfree and powerful, yet
with somesignificant and logical limitations. All of the books are shot
through with elements of poetry and legends or folktales fromthe land,
suitable for inclusion as atmosphere and possiblescenario ideas, and the
surrounding lands areoften the settings for stories, making it less
claustrophobic than the Thieves World collections. w s cast is
wonderfully drawn, and the world isopen for intrigue and adventure.
GURPS is flexible enough to cover this world, which might not work for
a full system, but which deserves a place alongside their Witch World,
Wild Cards, and Horseclans supplements.
Source Material - m, Liavek: The Players of Luck, Liavek: Wizards
Row, Liavek: %ells of Binding, and Liavek: Festival Week, anthologies
edited by Will Shetterly and EmmaBull, featuring stories by noted
authors like Gene Wolfe, J ane Yolen, Steven Brust, Alan Moore,
Charles de Lint, and Walter J on Williams, in addition to the editors and
a host of other authors.
Players can become one of the Scarlet Guard, fledgling artists,
@%sr PJv@ 6&m!S
@u@g
by Frank Herbert
A science fiction epic based on themes of ecology, genetics,
religion, and Machaivellian plotting, Duns follows the story of a religious
leader in the far future who unites a galaxy under his name. The fact that
the only attempt to translate the immensely popular Dune into a game
wasAvalon Hills strategy and card gameisstunning. Six novels, a film,
a comic adaptation, toys, and a Dune Encyclopedia have left the setting
well documented, with alien and future human languages and cultures
well developed.
The series spans thousands of years, encompasses dozens of worlds,
and features alien races as diverse as Tleilaxu FaceDancers, technologi.
cally advanced Ixians, and once-human Guild Navigators capable of
folding space. This vast sweep of setting gives roleplayers a rich
environment for plotting with the great Houses of the Lansraad and
shaking the control of the Bene Gesserit, a religious order of women
64 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1992
possessing superhuman powers of body and mind. Technology is
reasonably devoped and even provides for the possibility of resurrecting
dead characters (who becomeTleilaxu gholas, apparently limitless clones
of a deceased individual). Character classes likeMentat, Suk Doctor, and
Swordmaster add flair to the campaign setting.
The late Frank Herbert seemed to belaying the ground for such an
adaptation, with a dictionary of terms, history, and essays on the
environment and technology in the appendices of the first book of the
series. West End Games, with their proven winner Star Wars, would be
a natural to releasesuch a game, though GURPS or Rolemaster would
also beappropriate using the sourcebook format. West End Games is able
to put out a product that looks incredible -hardcover, fullTcolor
photographs, etc. .. and would makea Dune RPG which would bewell
worth the cost and a fitting tribute to Frank Herbert.
Source material- Dune, Dune Messiah Children of Dune, God Emperor
of Dune, Heretics of Dune, and Chapterhouse: Dune by Frank Herbert.
The DuneEncyclopedia. Dune, a motion picture directed by David
Lynch.
a film written and directed by Clive Barker.
This isa film about Boone, a man framed for murder and chased by
both the law and his own dreams into Midian, a strange city inhabited by
halfahuman creatures of the night. There he becomes Cabal, their savior,
leading the armies of the night into the world, where they must hide
fromthe sight of man and the light of the sun. Though hardly a classic of
modem cinema, the film is original and imaginative, and would makean
excellent setting for a horror,based RPG.
The original novella, a beautifully assembled photobook, and an
ongoing comic book series fromEpic Comics all complement the world
set forth in the film. Players would relish the opportunity to play these
strange, frightening, yet sympathetic creatures of the night, lending
mood and tragedy to gaming sessions. While the rules would almost
certainly emphasizeroleplaying and storytelling over dice rolling and
gamemechanics, the character creation systemwould have to be
designed to handle almost anything! While the Nightbreed in the film
end with a mission, this does not limit the gaming possibilities to merely
fulfilling that goal. The film isripe for a sequel, which makes it quite
suitable for a roleplaying campaign. While not listed asan influence for
White Wolfs Vampire: The Masquerade, its portrayal of monsters as
heroes isvery similar, and would makean excellent supplement or game
using the samerules. White Wolf, with Vampire: The Masquerade,
defines modemhorror in roleplaying, and would bethe proper home for
this product.
(This choice wasa bit of a toss,up, as The bi ne Earth seemed
moreappropriate for the publishers of Ars Magica, the definitive magic-
based RPG, and "Nightbreed" might breathe somelifeinto the lackluster
Chill gamefromMayfair.)
Source Material - Nightbreed, written and directed by Clive Barker.
Cabal, written by Clive Barker. Clive Barker's "The Nightbreed"
Chronicles, written by Clive Barker and photographed by Murray Close.
Nightbreed, published by Epic Comics; various writers and artists.
source material and the games themselves, was Lawrence Schick's
This primary source of reference for this article, besides the listed
Heroic Worlds
(Prometheus Books,
1991), an invaluable
guideto roleplaying
games. It charts their
history, catalogues
them by genre, and reviews thousands of RPG products. It isa reference
tool no serious roleplaying enthusiast should bewithout, and was
indespensable in preparing this article.
something elsethat I didn't mention) and youdon't feel likewaiting for
someone elseto do it for you, then do it yourself. Go through the source
material with a fine-toothed comb, listing every detail that might have
somegaming application. Decide how the gamemight beplayed. What
arethe strong points of the world you want to gamein! Choose a game
systemthat will help youbring out the features which makethe world
worth the effort - don't subjugate them to the rules. If the gamesystem
can't be"bent" enough to fit into your idea of what it should be, then
makeupyour own rules. They don't have to beofficial; hundreds of
gaming groups have been using their own house rules for campaigns for
years.
In the end, the choice to play within a licensed gameworld or a
world created specifically for a roleplaying gameisyours to make. This
article contends that the originals are probably moresatisfying than the
diluted creations within the industry, but licensed games are risky
propositions, so don't expect worlds unique to the roleplaying industry to
suddenly disappear.
If any of the ideas here appeal to you (or you can think of
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WH I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E 65
F
The 3rd in The Storyteller System-
4598B Stonegate Ind. Blvd. Stone Mtn. GA 30083
1
LL
cover, with richly detailed information. However,
this points out one serious flaw: there isno index
and only a very simpletable of contents Thats a
Black Death
shame becausetheres so much useful material here,
Rating =4
if only the Storyguide can find it. And since Black
Publisher. White
Death uses a very free-formplot structure, youwill
Wolf, 4598-B
probably find yourself constantly flipping through
Stonegate Industrial
the book looking up stuff.
Blvd., Stone
However, the wealth of Storyguide characters
Mountain, GA 30083
(NPCs), locales, and subplots makes up for any
Author Thomas M.
organizational weakness. Quite simply, the theme is
Kane
thought-provoking, the plot is original, and the
Price: $12.95
roleplaying is challenging. All in all, Black Death
Reviewed by Matthew
is one supplement you should tty to catch
Gabbert
one of my favorite aspects of White wol fs Mythic places
Ars Magicafantasy RPG is its authentic medieval Rating =3
flavor. Now one of the biggest influences on the Publisher: White Wolf,
Middle Ages, the Black Death, is the subject of a 4598-8 Stonegate
new story supplement
Industrial Blvd, Stone
The story begins when word reaches the Mountain, GA 30083
players Covenant that a plaguehas struck the not- Author Carl Schnurr
too-distant town of Montrouge Even worsenews Price: $9.95
arrives: a Covenant near the town has fallen, Reviewed by Matthew
apparently as a result of the sameplague The player Gabbert
characters receivea pleafor help fromthe survivors Mythic Places
of the devastated Covenant and must decide isthe first in a new
whether to send help to their brethren or to descend Series of supplements for White Wolfs Ars Magics
like vultures on the us-rich remains. fantasy RPG that develops the regio concept first
Once they arrive at the stricken area, the introduced in Faeries A regio isa multi-layered
players discover that there are
powers, both areathat extends fromthe mundane world into a
magical and mundane, battling for control of the placedominated by one of the four supernatural
region. Between terrorized peasants, scheming magi, powers. Provided in this first installment aretwo
Isolated ambitious bandit leaders, the Faerieregio and one for each of the other realms:
Inquisition and shadowy demonic influences, the Magical, Divine, and Infernal,
player characters will definitely have their hands
full, no matter what coursethey choose. regio rules for those new to the concept, the
supplement gets to work and presents the mythic
the players do manageto put things right in places fromwhence I t derives I ts title. Each area
Montrouge, they will heembroiled in the areas description chapter a standard, Wlnnlnger sectlons on how to roleplay the
reconStructlon and redevelopment for many years to format, starting with an overview, then progressing
come. The supplement is jam-packed, cover-to,
Special notes on mechanics for the regio,
aswell asplacement suggestions and
story ideas for incorporating it into
your Saga, conclude each chapter.
As an example, the Battlefield is an
Ars Magica
Infernal regio - a playground for demons who
torment the lost souls of the warriors who fought in
a long-forgotten battle and who occasionally seek
out living recruits for their evil sport.
I enjoyed Mythic Places and look forward to
seeing moresupplements likeit. Each regio could be
easily dropped into an ongoing Story or just as easily
expanded to bethe focus of a new Story. No matter
how they get there, your players will find that being
in a mythic place ismorethan half the fun.
DC Heroes
Games, lnc , P.O. Box
-
one of those
characters who seems to beconslstent~y popular, but
in a low-key kind of way.
sourcebook and
and
comic on the shelf and the series on the air.
Author Ray Winninger guides the reader and
player through the history of the Swamp Thing from
his through his later convoluted
adventures through time. Following the history,
Swamp Thing, his friends and lovers, enemies/
has produced a
adventure for those loyal
fans who have kept the Swamp nlng
After a brief introduction and a review of the
Black Death IS almost a mlnl-saga. Even if
a Secrion On each succeeding level Of the regio
opponents, and a brief data sheet on the swamp
WH I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 67
itself. Following the sourcebook isa very playable
solitaire adventure, something Mayfair does so well.
As usual, Winninger follows the comics well,
and provides the reader with information on various
creatures, NPCs, gadgets, and powers in their
appropriate sections. For example, the very first
group of characters weare introduced to are Alec
Holland and both the Len Wein/Berni Wrightson
and Alan Mooreincarnations of the Swamp Thing.
The history isnot exhaustive, but it is
interesting and well-written. It flows well into the
second section on roleplaying the Swamp Thing.
This section is perhaps the best in the book. Major
questions about Swamp Things attitudes and
descriptions of his abilities arepresented and dealt
with in-depth.
The following sections on friends and enemies
isalso well-done. The last section on the areaitself
includes information about the swamp and a map of
the town of Houma, the home of Alec Holland.
The title of the solitaire adventure isRacing
With the Rats, and Swamp Thing, infected with
toxic wasteand trapped in a delusion, must keep
fromgoing crazy and bring himself or itself back to
reality. One of the differences between this
adventure and earlier solitaires is that when certain
choices aremade, conditions areput into effect
which will also influence the results of your actions.
There are15different conditions, but how they
influence the gameisnever madeclear, which
actually helps the user feel a senseof wonder or
curiosity about what will happen later. A number of
conditions can beactive at once, and at times
conditions areremoved.
usual high Winninger standards, and I enjoyed
reading it. The texts on friends and enemies do not,
however, provide descriptions of the NPCs, and
there are only a few illustrations of them, so the GM
is on hisher own for a description. I have mentioned
this beforein earlier reviews, but 1 feel illustrations,
especially in games likeDC Heroes and its Marvel
equivalent, areessential. The games are, after all,
based on a graphic medium, and description of
individuals or creatures is every bit asimportant as
the description of places.
any individual or group using the Swamp Thing
character, or even interested in doing so. They will
learn a lot, and have fun as well.
Overall, 1 found the writing to beup to the
I do recommend this as an important work for
Herr rlames
Fantasy Hero
Companion I1
Rating =3
Publisher: Hero
Games/Iron Crown
Enterprises, P. O. Box
1605, Charlottesville,
VA 22902
Authors: Mark
Bennett, et al.
Price: $16.00
Reviewed bySean I
Holland
I
The Fantasy Hero Companion I I is a 160-
The first section, Playing Fantasy Hero,
pagesourcehook for Fantasy Hero.
starts with a new racecalled the Winged People, 11
new character archetypes, rules for ships and naval
combat, and rules for barding and jousting.
The second section is Locations, with four
new mapped locations: a dwarven mine, a mosque, a
jail, and a stable. None of these are exceptional hut
they could bequite useful for certain adventures.
one-and-one-half pagediscussion of the different
types of magic and isfollowed by optional magic
rules with someinteresting ideas, tables for the quick
construction of magic items, and almost 40 ready-
made magic items.
Following the Magic section isthe Spell Book
with 19new magic colleges including Kleptomancy,
the magic of stealing magic; Chaos Magic; Dragon
Magic; and two new sets of priestly magic spells for
the Church of Order and the Sun Priests, for a total
of morethan 300new spells.
Closing the book are the Guilds of the
Western Shores, ten organizations to add to your
campaign such as the Ashirashin (drug-using
assassins, based on the historical Middle Eastern
Assassins), the Brotherhood of the Holy Inquisitors,
and the Wolf Cult.
Overall, the second Fantasy Hero Companion
isuseful for both players and GMs, but most helpful
for the GM; if you play or GM Fantasy Hero, then
it is worth a look.
The Magic section opens with a fairly useful
TWI N ENGINE GAMING PRESENTS: ~
Out Time Days
a game of Time Tmvel in an alternate dimension
THE EXPERIENCE: OTD is a game of life on a
strange world. Although populated by a variety of
semi-humanoid races, it is nothing like the Earth
that your character left behind. Gone is theindustri-
al might of large nations. The multi-talented worker
is a thing of thepast. Even your famed Time J ump
ing skills have been cnecked to a certain degree.
However, you do happen to be one of the few Tim
Jumpers on this world, and that in itself is a major strength.
Youll choose one of several sects to work with, or attempt to
create your own from scratch, which will help set your general meth-
od of operation. As each new time opens, there are new discoveries to
1 make, new lands to chart, and new pzople to meet. The world awaits
change. and you are the catalyst.
O W TIME DAYS is a highly interactive role-playing Play-By-Mail
game with turns processed weekly. It has received excellent reviews,
Flagship and Paper Mayhem. Turn cost
game is open ended and 99% computer
The rulebook may be obtained for $5.00
le with startup). A special startup is
able that gives you therulebook. the startup
I
1
, and five turns for only $15.00.
II
Dependable, weekly, error-6ree tnrns since 1984
Space Combat
in a rather uniclue environment
a game of pure tactical combat ...
oull br fighting in an cdgelcss contest zonc aboard liv-
g crcaturcs. Spacc Combat is almost all combat, with
,me room for diplomacy. OKcnsivc actions includc
e creatures Psychic Screams to mentally disrupt
hers. launching Inverse Mincs that will implode
tar your enemy. freeing Spores to destroy inter-
ds , using Nerve Pulscs to prurrlyzc pesky scouts.
id Virally Infecting your opponcnt in the hops of
king over their alien. Each turn comes with a special full-page graphic
printout of your cnding position to aid

,
you in planning.
:pa= Combat was dcsigned to be
s y to learn, but difficult to master.
very game starts with ten playen,
nd as each is climinatcd, thc chanccs
f the gamc cnding will incrcasc.
urnsheets are custom made on a lmcr
rinter to aid you in tilling out your
cxt turn. Thegamcs run about 12- 18
~m. Cost is $3.20 per turn. A rule-
ook (rcquircd before you can join) is
1 .OO (frcc if you mention this ad!).
(e Twi n Engine Gaming; Dept 145; 3254 Mapl e Leaf Ct.; San Jose, CR 95121 @
68 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
Heroes Unlimited
Villains Unlimited
Rating =3
Publisher: PalladiumBooks, 5926 Lonyo Ave,
Detroit, MI 48210
Author: Kevin Long 6. Kevin Siembieda (6. several
others)
Price: $19.95
Reviewed by Charles Peirce
Villains Unlimited is the first product
released for the revised Heroes Unlimited. Though
earlier supplements are easily adaptable to the game,
none werecreated with Heroes Unlimited
specifically in mind.
Villains Unlimited presents new powers,
technology, rules, adventures and villains (and a few
heroes, too). Also scattered throughout are clues to
the origin of certain organizations in Rifts.
characters range fromthe traditional to the silly to
the horrific. Some arevery interesting, while some
areutterly forgetable. There ate approximately 100
characters in the book; these characters are roughly
divided into three categories: organizations, groups
and individuals. Some of the morememorableand/
or interesting characters and groups are:
9 The Masters of Speed - a group of villains
who all have somedegreeof control over the power
of superspeed. FromHellbent (the parasitic leader)
to Whiplash (who can run at superspeed and stop on
With eight writers sharing the credits, the
a dime (with deadly effects)) to Slo-Mo (who slows
down others), this isone of the most interesting
groups in the hook.
who has complete mastery over the frightening
ability of static electricity.
a Triple Threat - three diabolical villains (a
psionicist, a wizard and a hunter) all trapped in and
vying for control over one body.
expand existing campaigns. I t is a fair product, with
someinteresting ideas.
The Mighty Static Man - a comical villain
Villains Unlimited is a hook which should
Paranoia
The Paranoia
Sourcebook
Rating =2
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 box
2345, Honesdale PA,
18431
Author: Ed Bolme
Price: $18.00
Reviewed byS. john
Ross
This is a 128-page Alpha Update, the
official word on whats transpired in Alpha Complex
since the BigCrash a couple of years ago. The
Computer is back (not really), order isrestored
(nope), and the intelligent, sharp, dark BraveNew
World humor isrolling strong once again (not even
vaguely).
End have created a new roleplaying gameout of the
ashes of Paranoia. It has the samename, but fans of
the old Alpha should heware. This is not Paranoiaas
weknow it. The Computer isback, but broken down
into weak, easy-to-dupe simplexes. Much of Alpha
isin anarchy, without clearance levels, and playing
out likeyet another cyberpunk game(and not even
a comedy cyberpunk game, it seems). The Paranoia
writers have instructions to givethe players the
spiky, almost-punk trappings they seemto crave, a la
X-Men, Cyberpunk 2020,40K, etc.
Like1 said. A new game.
But isit a good game? To becertain, it is less
To beperfectly honest, the creators at West
intelligent than the old Paranoia. West End is
clearly aiming for a much younger and moregeneral
market. They seemwilling to sacrificea lot of smart
comedy to acquire that market. Their justifications
fell on deaf ears with me- Ive always used
Paranoiaas a campaign game. Personally, 1 was
insulted. I found the styleto becondescending
(another first for Paranoia). Those less enamored of
the old gamemay likeit. Cyberpunk 2020 fans
might get a big kick out of it. I strongly recommend
that any Paranoiafan or interested party browse
through it. Get a friend to buy it so youmay do so.
Do not, however, buy it yourself until youveread it.
Afer years of design eflort and playtesting, Maelstrom Games presents n
LORDS OF DESTINY
a game where individual characters control the fate of the galaxy!
Lords of Destiny is a 100 96 computer-moderated play-by-mail game
where many players compete in a galaxy packed with features such as:
- planetary defense shields composed of individual ground units
- many different ship types; economic and military technology levels
- ancient alien artifacts with special powers known only to the owner
- neutral empires ranging from primitive cave men to extremely advanced
elder races; possessing their own military forces, characters, and artifacts
- special galactic locations to utilize such as black holes, secret societies,
training academies, worm holes, and the fabled seven wonders of the universe
- hundreds of named characters with abilities such as exploring, leading troops,
spying, researching, assassination, governing, diplomacy, using psionics, . . .
U
I
FREE RULES FREE SETUP GREAT VALUE
I
m
Turn fees are only $3.75 per turn; no double turns, no extra or hidden fees ever
Games last about 27 turns with 14 days per turn - 7 and 21 day options available
A basic version is available which provides an easy to learn introductory game.
I A A - a detailed combat system with free. battle reports for every conflict
L
- population, factories, industrial complexes, crew types, plundering, alliances, power plays
- complete galactic map included with every turn showing every sector that you have knowledge of
- customized fill-in-the-blank turn sheets save time and guarantee. you dont overlook something
- long range scanners, random galactic events, multi-class characters, and much more!
Maelstrom Games; P. 0. Box 5461; Oxnard, CA 93031 Ask for free rules and setup
E f A Y
70 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
I I
I
..I-
!
ADVENTURES ON
Return to the World of the
An entirely new Character Generation System
$10.95 (V.S.1
Available in better Game and Hobby stores
or write to:
United Kingdom
E S D W GAMES
6 Wellington St.
Aldershot, Hank
Gul l 1DZ
United States
THEATREOFTHEMIND
ERI SES, INC.
POBOX60668
King of kussia, PA
19406-0668
PA residents please add 6% sales tax
IMY
STRATELII3RI S.RL.
vi a Paisiello No4
20131 Mano
Spain
CENTRAL DE JOCS
08029-Barcelona
Germany
BAUERHEIDE 5
Postfach 2143
4670 Liinen
C/Numancia 112-116
TEK-1001
Realms of the Unknown
RealmControllers Manual
Players Manual
Rating =4
Publisher. The
Walnut Group, PO
Box 631, Itasca, IL
60143
Authors: Timothv A.
Dohrer and Gerry
Evenwell I I I
Price (Realm
Controllers $15),
(Players $8)
Reviewed bk Stewart W ieck
J ust as there are a variety of roleplaying game
genres, so are there many different roleplaying
formats Theres traditional roleplaying, storytelling,
live-action and now a new one as well The Walnut
Group presents aformat of roleplaying that a few ot
youmay have developed on your own during some
time in your gaming evolution when it began to be
difficult to get everyone together on a Friddy night
Those of you not yet of this agearelucky, for
authors Dohrer and Evenwell hdvepresented in
Realms of the Unknown (ROTU) an exciting
alternative way to roleplay
ROTU, a player actually directs the activities and
plans of an entire civilization This could bea feudal
kingdom, ahorde of barbarians, a fleet of seafaring
merchants, or whatever fits into the scheme the
Instead of controlling a singlecharacter in
RealmController (RC), or Gamemaster, has
devised. A player still has one main character, the
leader of the culture he has created, but by extension
the player is responsible for the welfareand actions
of the entire populace.
Each player population is rated in anumber of
different ways. These arethe strengths and
weaknesses a player must consider when determining
the best courseof action for his people. If your food
stores arelow, for example, its probably time to
direct moreof your people to hunting and/or
farming. These ratings include an inventory of the
goods possessed by the people, likewarships and
weapons, but they also rate natural resources and
other raw materials.
The gamedoesnt require all the players to be
present around a table in order for the action of the
gameto progress, so ROTU puts an interesting
social spin on normal roleplaying games. The game
progresses bymeans of sheets of orders a player
submits to the RC. Each turn of the game, every
player submits orders for his people. Unlike other
roleplaying games where the input of the GM drives
the gameforward, ROTU requires the input of the
players through these orders to advance the game.
reduce the gameto astrategy or hoardgame, the
rules of the gamearetoo looseto warrant this
interpretation. In fact, rules dont have much a place
at all in this gamebeyond the inclusion of various
formulas and methods to resolvemilitary conflict.
Also, the interactive aspects of rhegameareboth
undirected and strong. These elements combine to
While the concept of such orders may seemto
leave the gamelargely in the hands of the players,
but as the person who controls the world with even
moreintimacy than in a standard roleplaying game,
the RC has the ability to introduce story elements to
spark the lifeof the game.
Some aspects of the gameareperhaps a hit
unrealistic when considering that the mishmash of
player cultures are supposed to have developed on
the sameworld in about the sameregion, hut this
can be rationalized. After all, this forces the players
to discover the world just as anormal roleplying
character must. Also, the inclusion of Gateways,
portals that movepeople fromRealmto Realmand
region to region, is completely out place.
format has been very positive. Becauseit does not
require arelaxed environment in order to play (you
can hand your orders to the RC between classes at
school and maybehave something back fromhim
the next day) and becausethe format of the game
often puts players at odds with one another, ROTU
has the potential to bethoroughly engaging.
Onthe other hand, not all players will
respond to such a format despite its advantages. And
even if they do become comfortable with the format,
theres no guarantee that players will heableto
create situations in the gamethat will not only
entertain themselves but others aswell.
The RCs Manual is pricey at $15 for 84 pages,
but your group only requires one copy of it. The
publisher obviously priced the Players Manual at $8
to encourage every player to purchase it. Theres not
a lot in the books 24 pages, hut at that pricewhy
not take the advice of the publisher!
My personal experience with games of this
72 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
Shadowrun
Elven Fire
Rating =4
Publisher: FASA
Corporation, P.O. Box
6930, Chicago, IL,
60680
Authors: TomDowd
and James Reichstadt
Price: $8.00
Reviewed by Matthew
Gabbert
Likethe
1
multinational megacorps and crimesyndicates that
constantly viefor control over the world of the
2050s, their smaller cousins, the street gangs, are an
integral part of the cyberpunk genre. Elven Fire,
the latest adventure for Shadowrun, goes beyond
the typical table-generated gang encounter and
allows the player characters to delvealittle deeper
into the violent lifeof one of Seattles most
dangerous gangs: the infamous Ancients.
dramatically, causing even once safeareas to
resemblewar zones. LoneStar forces arebeing
stretched to the limit and the city government is
preparing to mobilizethe Metroplex Guard. They
hopethat the imposition of martial law will be
enough to restoreorder, but somefear that such
action will only fan the flames of unrest and incite
another Night of Rage.
madness isthe powerful elven street gang, the
As the story opens, gang violenceis increasing
Caught in the center of this maelstromof
Ancients. The evidenceseems to indicate that they
areinstigating the current troubles, but there are
thosewho believethemto be, if not innocent, at
least the victims of an outsideconspiracy. Somehow,
the runners must uncover proof of this conspiracy
beforethe tanks start to roll and the city starts to
bum.
characters arewell-developed and intelligent, with
clear motivations and objectives. The plot, while
refreshingly intricate, isnt so convoluted as to be
absurd. It usesa freeformstructure that allows
players freedomof action, but keeps themmoving by
imposing atimelimit. The artwork and player
handouts areup to FASAs usual good standards,
whilemost of the maps areatypically freeof errors.
This ones definitely worth the priceof
admission.
Elven Fire isan excellent scenario. The
Star Wars
Planets of the Galaxy
Volume One
Rating =3
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 Box
2345, Honesdale, PA
1843 1
Authors: Grant S.
Boucher, J ulie Bouchr
and Bill Smith
Price: $13.00
Reviewed byChris
Hind
The first (and best) 20 pagesof this 80-page
product present a systemfor planet generation.
Basically, you roll on (or choosefrom) a series of
tables to definethe planet-to-be. A tableexists for
practically every aspect: planet function (is it an
abandoned colony or a tradeworld?); government;
planet type, such as terrestrial, satellite (e.g. the
moon of Endor), asteroid belt, or artificial (e.g. a
spacestation); terrain; temperature; gravity;
atmosphere; hydrosphere; length of day and year;
starports; population; tech level; and more! The
tables themselves areextensivebut still havespace
for your own ideas.
The systemdescribes the effects of things like
non-standard gravity and poor atmospherein rule
terms. Sidebars discuss regulated environments,
seasonal changes, tidelocks, and elliptical orbits.
The back of the book contains awellcorganized and
attractive planet log on which to record planetary
data.
The Planet Generation Systemisexcellent.
J ust by looking over the tables I cameupwith ideas
for dozens of interesting planets. The rest of the
book presents ten new worlds. Each follows roughly
the sameformat, describing the planets geography,
notable locations, flora, fauna, and sentient race(s).
Each also provides a planet log and someadventure
ideas.
and agriculture-based Celanon, Gamib and its
strangecrystal sculptures, and the Void Demon
pirate baseof Isen IV. I liked that sidebars discussing
underseaaction, hostile atmosphere, and navigating
The most interesting planets arethe trade-
WRTlNlUM combine. hiatoricd. conventional and futuristic techdogie3 to create an
unparalleled fsntaay world where time-travel ia commonplsce. To aasiat you in
achieving your wdr. you will bedn with a character. city. espionage e m! t a d t wo
diviaiom in esoh of the four a m on the planet Uacleria. Aayera may compete in all
time periods aimultaneomly. Technology from esch age ia readily available and can
be implemented in other age. through scientific reaearch. The struggle to become a
dominant player and Participate in the Gathering of the Four createa an unpre-
cedented chdlenge.
*
*
*
*
No hidden coau
100% computer moderated play-bymdl game
Average of 40 doubledded pagea of quality laser graphica per turn
Time-travel avdlsble at w e atart
Over 24,000 aectora to explore in four ager
Scientiau provide reaearch and development capabilities
Over 300 attack and defenae weapon. avdlsbla
More than 160 life forms create over 4000 indigenous banda
No wizard.. maglc, apells. sorcerer. or demons
WRTlNlUM is alm avdlsMe In two amdler version.; WRTlNlUM Lo-Tech and Hi-
Tech. Srndl games employ only one ape using 1 character, 1 city and 4 diviaiom.
(Espionage unit% mini-game. and time-travel not available1 Average of 12 double-
aided pages of output per turn.
Gome turns: WRTINIUM; $20.00 per turn (4-week turnaround)
Lo-Tech and Cli-Tech; $8.00 per turn (2-week and 4-week turnarounda available1
Initial Start-up kit: $26.00. Id-. High-glma Playera Guide, start-up packet for
player poaitiona. free atart-up turn, plua one free turn, and subacription to game
newsletter.
Write or call for free brochure
P.O. Box 9897 Spokane, WA 99209-9897 (509) 325-6941
WH I T E W O L F M A G A Z I N E 73
i
\
life in a dramatically different diceless
role-playing system!
-256 Pages, beautifully illustrated!
*Stephen Hickman cover!
- A Complete System, with every
rule and power needed for creating the
next generation of Amber. Plus, three
versions of each elder character, and
three scenarios!
=The Attribute Auction lets you
create characters in a totally new way!
*Ambeni ne covers the Amber role-
playing world with 160 pages, in a 6 by
9 paperback book. Limited to 1,000
copies per issue, and available only by
mail. $10 for issue #1 or #2, or send $40
for a five-issue subscription.
*Free Information and a sample
character sheet, just mail a stamp to:
Phage Press
P.O. Box 519
Detroit*MI.48231-051!
74
asteroids supplemented someof the strange, new
worlds.
While each planet isdifferent and in some
way interesting, for the most part they are good-but-
not-great. Where areall the neat ideas fromthe
Planet Generation System? How about a space
station? A planet covered with city-sprawls? Or a
death-world like our Venus! These planet types may
becovered in a future volume, but that is for
another review.
System, you might consider buying this first volume
of Planets of the Galaxy just for that - and the rest
of the material is not bad either.
If youlike the ideaof a Planet Generation
Tales of the Floating
Vagabond
Adventure With No
Name
Rating =5
Publisher: The Avalon
Hill Game Company,
4517 Harford Rd.,
Baltimore, MD 21214
Author: Craig Sheelv
J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
-
I; Price 13 95
Reviewed by Steve
Crow
Adventure With No Name isa 92-page
adventure for Avalon Hills comedy roleplaying
gameTales of the Floating Vagabond No Name
has a particularly funny J im Halloway cover, and
such goodies as handouts, a four-page cast of
characters, and a registration card
travel through time Their goal to prevent the
widespread useof light beer and pretzels at the
Floating Vagabond bar Of course, only the Evil
Geniuses for a Better Tomorrow could bebehind
this plot The Patrons must travel through the Game
Zone, Atlantis, Newfoundland, 1870s London,
1970s Washington, and into the very heart of the
Evil Geniuses stronghold to defeat this evil scheme
funniest RPG adventures I have ever read Author
Craig Sheely has put his finger on how to write
funny adventures First, relate it to Earth
Originally, Floating Vagabond relied on funny
aliens and funny skill names Humor works best
when your audience can relate to it The ideaof
Floating Vagabond adventures taking place on
Earth may seemtrite, but it works
After all, which would you rather makefun of
Aliens, or Earths homegrown collection of
Victorians, spies, California governors, rules lawyers,
and gameconvention attendees? And the author is
dead on target with his estimation of the average
intelligence and gaming strategy of players and
gamemasters alike
little sparseby the standards of previous releases
The columns tend to blend a bit, with only the
occasional bluesubheading to find your place
However, this is good in a way If you loseyour
place, you have to goback and reread In the process
youusually uncover yet another in-joke
adventure and the complaints are minor I really
cant find anything negative to say about
In No Name, the Patrons ( I e , players) must
Adventure With No Name isone of the
The layout is a hit tedious, and the artwork a
Overall, No Name is an excellent comedy
Adventure With No Name. For the first time
since Ive read Tales of the Floating Vagabond, I
amlooking forward to future Floating Vagabond
releases.
The Reich Stuff 1 - -
Rating =1
Publisher: The Avalon
Hill Game Company
(Address - 45 1 7
Harford Rd.,
Baltimore, MD
21214)
Author: LeeGarvin
Price: 13.95
Reviewed bySteve
Crow
Avalon Hills comedy role-playing game, Tales of
the Floating Vagabond. Reich also has a wrap-
around cover/map, handouts, apage-pagecast of
characters, and a registration card. The map has
such locations as YouAre Here, OK, Youre
Here, and finally I Guess YouWere Here the
Whole Time. A bizarreJ im Halloway drawing
adorns the cover.
The plot, such asit is, has the players
travelling through time to defeat a Nazi plan to set
up a floating space platformand rule the world in
1936.
Upon reading Adventure With No Name, 1
had high hopes for this game. Finally, Avalon Hill
had published a high-quality, high-humor adventure
for Floating Vagabond. Would Reich Stuff prove
that No Name wasthe pattern for the future, or
merely a quirk! No such luck. Youknow yourein
trouble when the registration card isthe funniest
part of the adventure.
funny. Character quotes are funny. The airplane
flight with Rick N. Backer isfunny. The dreaded
chicken curse isfunny. Hitlers shtick is funny.
Oppenheimer, Einstein, and von Braun are funny.
Why isnt Reich Stuff funny!
lmnot sure. The adventure takes place
primarily on Earth, which negates my argument
about why Avalon Hill should stick to humor its
audience can relate to. I thought about it, and came
up with fiveitems:
1) A lot of the funny bits areaimed at the
reader, not the players. This isa problemwith
Paranoia, and it isrepeated here. This isnot the
casewith Adventure With No Name.
his teeth and pleading, This isfunny. Really.
Really, really, funny. Honest. Somehow the
comedy just doesnt flow naturally. Often wereleft
waiting for the rim-shot.
3) Too many gamemechanics. Theres a
couple of paragraphs of humorous stuff, then a
paragraph of stuff likeThe door isdetectable by a
Very Hard Notice Detail test, or a Hard Track With
Unnerving Accuracy test. Yawn.
4) The NPCs (particularly the Nazis) are
awaretheyresupposed to befunny.
5) The Hogans Hero Syndrome. Humor
about Nazis just isnt that funny. See Charles
Duming in Me1Brooks movieTo Beor Not To Be
for another good example.
wait for other supplements for this game.
The Reich Stuff is an 80-pageadventure for
Thats not to say that Reich Stuff isnt
2) One can almost imagine the author gritting
Buy Adventure With No Name and then
City of Demons
Rating =3
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 Box
2345, Honesdale PA,
18431
Author: Christopher
Kubasik
Price: $12
Reviewed by S. J ohn
Ross
Torg
A 64-page adventure supplement set in
Tharkold-occupied Los Angeles, City of Demons IS
an action-packed and vaguely exprimental adventure
designed to put aparty of Storm Knights into
temporary allegiance with Thratchen himself!
Thratchen, still Regent of Orrorsh, fears the
eventual return of the Gaunt Man, and so seeks to
join the newly-established Tharkoldu presence in
L.A.. He has been secretly and carefully observing
J ezrael, the current Tharkold High Lord, and has
decided to win aplace in her power structure. The
plan: the delivery of a rebellious demon lord to J ezrael
asapeace offering, and the accquisition of the lords
pride of demons in the bargain. The method: hire
some Storm Knights to help.
The logic of Thratchens plans are detailed and,
as far asI can tell, sound. This isa mark above
previous Torg adventures, which have often relied on
players and GM alike turning ablind eyeto weak
scenario justification. His deal with the Storm
Knights is afair one, and the resulting adventure
looks exciting - he proposes arace.
Lord approach isnot the experiment I have
referred to, as West End has released two adventures
in a row with this theme. The Temple of Rec Stalek
likewiseputs the Knights in alesser of High Lords
position. In fact, some similarities in theme are
embarassing - it isnt recommended that you run
both adventures with the same group.
The adventure isaseries of interesting fight
scenes and genuinely dramatic roleplaying encounters
that build toward a fantastic climax. However, just at
the climactic scene, the adventure switches froma
dramatic narrative and becomes almost a simplistic
boardgame as the actual race commences. This is
achieved through aseries of Battle Computer
Screens and agrid map of the area of the city the
race takes place in. Frankly, 1 think the approach mars
an otherwise gripping adventure, and wastes agreat
buildup. However, play styles may vary, and I have
not yet had the opportunity to playtest the adventure.
1 suspect that anyone running it would rate it at 2 or
4, depending on the success of the race sequence.
Youmay want to giveit atry.
The get-Storm-Knightsdied,with-a.High-
Space Gods
Rating =4
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 Box
2345, Honesdale PA,
18431
Authors: Greg Farshtey
Greg Gorden, EdStark
and J im Bambra
Price: $18
Reviewed by S. J ohn
Ross
I must admit aweakness for the ancient
astronauts concept. Its a cliche of adventure fiction
that has been largely ignored in games. Did
advanced cultures from outer space visit the Mayans
and Aztecs? Sure they did! It says so right here in
the Space Gods sourcebook.
This is the sourcebook for the Akashans, an
advanced, ancient race of aliens returning to earth
after centuries of absence. In their earlier visits, they
assisted the Mayans, Aztecs, etc. in building up their
cultures. When they left, they left a beacon that the
humans could useonce they had reached a preset
level of development. This beacon was the signal
fire lit by the Possibility Chalice.
Unfortunately for all concerned, the
Akashans existence has been anything but idyllic in
the passing centuries. The horror of the Comaghaz, a
powerful psionic hive-mind virus, threatens their
very existence. When they saw the signal flare lit,
they hoped that wemight have reached a stage
where wecould help them - they never counted on
the Possibility Wars.
This is the setting as the Akashans return.
They like humanity, and may bewilling to help us,
but they want OUT help to fight the Comaghaz (and
yes, theyve brought the plague-mind with them).
They are anon-invasive reality, and without the
deadly plague would certainly peacefully end the
Wars. They carry with them powerful biotechnol.
ogy, psionic powers, and reality-shaping technolo-
gies (the strange Reality Trees) that can end the
Wars with minimal loss of life. Whether they are
willing to share the technology with us under
present circumstances remains to he seen.
features (new character templates, axioms and world
laws, etc.), in addition to the very interesting
Psionics and biotechnology rules. The culture of the
Akashans is outlined, as are the Comaghaz (and its
creator), the Star Sphere, and various alien
creatures. The nominvasive theme is refreshing, and
would offer a lot of depth to any active Torg
campaign. I recommended this book to any Torg
GM, and 1 recommend it without reservation to
Torg GMs fond of science fiction and/or horror.
Space Gods includes all the standard Torg
The Temple of Rec
Stalek
rating =3
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 box
2345, Honesdale PA,
18431
. . . . - . , - -
r
Author: Shane
Hensley
Price: $12
Reviewed by S. J ohn
Ross
A 64-page adventure supplement which
takes place i n the Living Land, The Temple of
Rec Stalek is an adventure i n four acts. The
Storm Knights must confront a growing cult of
death-worshipping Edeinos i n their temple in
northern Illinois. Failure will bring dire
consequences, as the Living Land would gain a
new, darker, more battle-competent High Lord.
pantheons of the Edeinos, a remnant of the days
before their present sensation-worshipping faith
(the worship of Lanala). Stalek translates as
Stalek is an all-but-forgotten god in the
...the intensity of the Amber game
indicates Wujcik is on to something.
When success in every action depends on
the role and not the roll, players develop
a sense of both control and urgency,
along with creativity that borders on
mania.
Allen Varney, Dragon Magazine #Z8;
While I would not recommend Amber
to novices, it is a must buy for
experienced gamemasters and players
looking for new challenges.
Steve Crow, White WolfMagazine #31
.
If you want to see what roleplaying
might someday become, read Amber.
Mark Rein-Hagen, Vampire TMdesigne~
.
As a sourcebook, Amber is bnlliant.
Everything you could ever want to know
ibout Amber and its inhabitants is in
.here. I would recommend Amber to
Zelazny fans on that merit alone ...
Robert Hatch, White Wolf Magazine
...the game would be less with dice.
Theopen format of the game would be
uined with complicated calculations and
ables of numbers.
Steward Wieck, White Wolf publisher
.
The Amber game is absorbing. The
rery first time I ran it was magic al...
Lester V. Smith (Dark Conspiraciesm,
lend us a stamp, and well send you
nore information. Or plunk down
22.95 at your favorite store. By mail
imber is $25. Amberzine is $10 an
ssue, or $40 for a 5-issue subscription.
.
Phage Press
P.O. Box 519
~etroit*MI~48231-0519
WH I T E WOL F M A GA ZI N E
75
death, and this adventure centers on Staleks
attempt, through a devoted servants cult, to
eliminate Baruk Kaah and the (more or less)
benevolent faith of the Edeinos. In other words,
the Storm Knights suceed in the adventure if they
help the Saar. Its a question of the lesser of
evils.
The Storm Knights enter the scene in the
small resistance community of Cicero, Illinois.
Stalek warriors - violent Edienos garbed in bone
armor - attack the town, and the PCsare drawn
into the plot. Thrakmoss (the leader of the Stalek
cult) has crossed over to Earth and built a temple
in an abandoned shopping mall.
The adventure takes the Storm Knights
through the wilderness of Illinois, to the burned
town of Great Neck, through a hellish swamp,
into the templelshopping mall complex, and
finally across a dimthread to Staleks own
domain, where they must face the dark god
himself. The adventure isa tough one, and I
wouldnt recommend it for novice play groups.
The Temple of Rec Stalek, for those GMs
who keep track of such things, ispart of the major
campaign game. The last page of the book
includes a Response Form.
adventure supplement. It has a nice mix of
combat, roleplaying opportunities, and
investigation. It also has the distinction of being a
major challenge for your group of Storm Knights.
Overall, this isa well-paced and exciting
Tharkold
rating =4
Publisher: West End
Games, RD 3 box
2345, Honesdale PA,
18431
Author: Paul Hume
and Greg Gorden
Price: $18
Reviewed by S. J ohn
Ross
Tharkold isThe Sourcebook of I echno-
Horror Reality. The Tharkoldu, among the original
invading realities (they weredefeated in Russia),
have turned the LosAngeles area into a small realm
of living hell. This 144-page realmsourcebook
details the Cosmand Realmof the Tharkoldu, as
well as the techno-demons magic, Tharkold
cyberwarerules, and more. The authors arePaul
Hume, co.designer of games such asShadowrun and
Bushido, and Greg Gorden, the primary Torg
designer. As might be expected, Tharkold does not
disappoint.
peopleof the invading cosmare described in detail,
along with axioms, world laws, spells, character
templates, and so on - the usual mix. The
Tharkold Cosmisa world where an ancient war is
wagedbetween demons (the Tharkoldu) and
humankind (The Race). The descriptions of the
Tharkoldu culture, motivation and religion (and
such arcana as demonic sexual practices) givethe
home cosmmorelifeand atmosphere than most
The format isnothing new. The history and
previous sourcebooks can claim. The politics of the
demonic High Lord and his deal with The Gaunt
Man are described, and the week-by-week history of
Los Angeles invasion is superbly detailed. Each
section includes many interesting adventure hooks.
The Techno-Horror angle isderived from
the Cosmhistory, where a decline in the magical
axiomthreatened to destroy the demons. LifeCyber,
demonic cyber-implants, weredeveloped to allow
demons to survive in an atmosphere of declining
magic. As technology increased, the demons became
techno-demons, defined as much by their
technology as their magical natures.
My favorite section isthe material on the Los
Angeles area. Reasonably detailed maps, and lots of
local color (local names for highways, brief histories
of someof the suburbs, etc), will allow any GM to
recreate a believable LosAngeles without much
extra research.
grid are essentially the sameas those in The
Cyberpapacy sourcebook. The spells described are
specifically demonic magic. One of the largest
sections of the book is the creatures section, which
is, according to the adcopy, the largest creature
section yet. Included are the fearsomeTharkoldu
Ghuls, J ackwraiths (ghosts in the Grid), and the
demons themselves, up to and including the terrible
Techno-Demon Lords.
While not (strictly speaking) essential, this
book is bound to satisfy any gamer who enjoys Torg.
Playing a member of the militaristic Race or even
one of the milder Techno-Demons promises to offer
The sections on cyberwareand the computer
Reich Star RPG . . . . . . . . . . $19.95
Plus $3.00 S t H
(246 Pages, Softbound)
Available at your local game supplier, or order direct from
Creative Encounters.
SCI-FI ROLE-PLAYING IN A TERRIFYING
FUTURE THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
1943: German V-4 Atomic Missles devestate
London and New York ending the War of
Unijlcation.
2134: The Revolution begins. . .
In the dark, repressed future of an alternate reality,
the victorious Axis Powers have spread their evil
to the st ar s. Only a brave handful of outlaw idealists
stand in their way. The revolution needs You!
CREATIVE ENCOUNTERS
P.O. Box 12401 15 Uxbridge Rd.
Gastonia, N.C. 28053 Hanwell, London
U.S.A. w73PX
Voice: (704) 866-7833
I
Service: (704) 853-1809
MemberASGC
76 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
Dar k Magus Product i on Inc.
P.O. Box 956005

~
new roleplaying challenges. The book, while very
long, is a good read nonetheless. The writing is a
step above previous Torg sourcebooks, and both the
atmosphere and humor have a mark of intelligence
that other Torg products havesometimes lacked.
Vampire:
Darz k magus D ~ ~ ~ b ~ ~ 2 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ i ~ ~ 5
Modem (404) 923- 9733
The Masquerade
Alien Hunger
rating =4
Publisher: White
Stonegate Industrial
Blvd., Stone
Mountain, GA 30083
Author: Jeff Berry
Price: $10
Reviewed by Steve
Crow
Wolf, 4598-B
. _.
Alien Hunger isa 64-pagemix of essentially
two different products. it is primarily a jump-start
adventure for Vampire. However, it also isa mini-
sourcebook for the city of Denver.
Alien Hunger allows characters with little or
no experience playing Vampire to immediately start
a Chronicle. Most novice players will probably find
it hard to grasp all of Vampires gamemechanics.
However, the adventure jump-starts theminto a
Chronicle set in Denver. The situation issuch that
they have just becomevampires, and have little idea
of what is going on. They do not even remember
their change to a vampiric state.
Six fairly interesting pregenerated starting
characters come in this package. Alternately, the
players can create their own. Of course, if players are
going to create their owncharacters, the gamemaster
probably will not beusing this adventure asa jump
start anyway.
Storytellers can usethis adventure asthe
beginning of a new Chronicle. The characters have
to explore Denver to discover the reasons behind
their transformation. They get to meet most of
Denvers important Kindred characters and
eventually discover the causeof their new status.
Alien Hunger is also a mini-sourcebook of
Denver. it does not deal with the citys geography or
history in any great detail (except a few specific
locations), but it does detail most of Denvers
Kindred characters. Most of the characters,
particularly Prince Edward, are much more
sympathetic and easygoing than those who appear in
Chicago byNight. However, this may bebecause
of the Kindred politics of the Windy City.
has lots of suggestions to the Storyteller on how to
set the mood and get novice players into the
personal horror aspects of Vampire. Alien
Hunger is mostly investigation and negotiation,
although somecombat can arise. The denouement,
with its explanation for the player characters
vampiric origins, is a good semi-science fiction
touch, and much morebelievable than the vampire
plague in the Succubus Club adventure Deaths
Alien Hunger LS an excellent adventure. I t
Sweet S W.
E4 b
TROLL FREE ORDER LINE
118001112818628
1699 HAMLIN HENR I ETA
PARMA TL RD. TOWNUNE PLAZA
HILTON NY 14468-971 5
71 6-427-21 90
FAX 71 6-427-81 82
3047 W. HENRIETTA RD.
THRUWAY EXIT 46
ROCHESTER NY
Overall, Alien Hunger isa well-detailed
adventure that does an excellent job of setting up
the personal horror aspects of Vampire. Denver
makes a better starting localethan Chicago for
beginning characters, although a little more
information on Denver would beuseful. Becauseof
the unique means of vampirecreation used here, i t
would bedifficult to use Alien Hunger with more
established characters, although an enterprising
Storyteller could usebits and pieces of this
adventure in other stories. Alien Hunger works
best as exactly what it says it is: a jump-start
adventure that gets new Storytellers and players into
the spirit of the game.
Awakening:
Diablerie Mexico
rating =3
Publisher: White
I
I
Wolf, 4598-B
Stonegate Industrial
Blvd., Stone
Mountain, GA
encounters are psychological rather than physical.
lower levels, they must fight the Elder Kindred and
his attendants. If they can somehow succeed at this,
Mictantecles blood istheirs. A final chapter deals
with the consequences of the players actions.
After reading this scenario, my primary
question waswhy bother! The basic effects of
Diablerie aresuch that it doesnt really matter what
generation the victimis, as long asit is of an earlier
generation. Mictantecle isa powerful Vampire.
However, the benefits of feeding on his blood arent
great enough for the risks the characters undertake
in this adventure. Mictantecle would bemuch more
interesting alive than killed for his blood. Also,
modern-day punk vampires in the Yucatan didnt
work for me.
for the Diablerie information and NPC background
than for the adventure itself.
Once the characters have penetrated to the
Overall, I recommend Awakening, but more
30083
Author: Nigel
Findley
Price: $10
Reviewed by Steve Crow
Awakening is a 56-page adventure for
Vampire. It is primarily an adventure dealing with
the characters quest for the blood of an Elder
Vampire. The Introduction tells how to usethis
book, and suggests how to tie it in. One mistake: it
states the Vampirehas lain in torpor since before
the time of Christ. We later find out this figureis
off by about 600 years.
Chapter Two deals with the practice of
Diablerie: the feeding on the blood of a Vampire of
earlier generation. This section expands on the brief
description in the basic rules. It also provides a ritual
to allow morethan one character to feed on the
Vampires blood. Finally, it provides rules for
detecting Diablerieand the punishments that
Vampires inflict on those who practice it.
Chapter Three details the background of
Mictantecle, the Vampirewhoseblood the player
characters areseeking. The information isextensive
and welLdeveloped. However, it does not have any
real impact on the adventure.
characters to become drawn into the quest for
Mictantecles blood. Awakening assumes that the
Chapter Four provides waysfor the player
players baseof operation isVampires campaign
setting of Chicago. This chapter isadequate.
However, it rather optimistically assumes that the
characters receivea necessary map based on trust
they may or may not have earned.
whereMictantecles pyramid tomb is located. 1 find
this the weakest part of Awakening. The
adventure assumes the Vampires aretravelling about
during daytime(!), thanks to a convenient Ritual.
Many rules aregiven for daytime travel, but
absolutely nothing is said about what to do if the
characters travel by night.
The trip through the pyramid is essentially a
dungeon crawl. The pyramid has traps, although
many can beavoided if the characters simply avoid
going along sidebranches of their main route. As
with many Vampire adventures, someof these
Chapter Fiveinvolves a trip to the Yucatan,
Milwaukee by Night
rating =3
Publisher: White
Stonegate Industrial
Blvd., Stone
Mountain, GA 30083
Author: Dustin
Browder
Wolf, 4598.8
Price: $12
Reviewed by Steve
Crow
78 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1 9 9 2
Milwaukee by Night is a 128-page city
sourcebook and story set in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Milwaukeeisa city under siege, beleaguered by
Werewolves fromwithout and a dangerously erratic
Prince within.
pages of Milwaukee by Night. LikeChicago by
Night, it has three basic sections: a Historical
Overview, a Geography piece, and a description of
the major Kindred of the city. The first two sections
are adequate, and the third section isup to the high
standards of Chicago by Night. The NPCs arean
interesting, individualized batch, each with their
own history (some spanning millennia), skills and
disciplines. A new addition isthat the characters
history istold in the first person by the character
herself. Another handy itemthat wasused in
Chicago by Night ishere aswell: flowcharts
detailing the relationship between the NPCs.
Finally, a chapter on Politics details the various
goals and schemes of the citys Kindred and Lupine
factions.
The sourcebook material is interesting. The
information about Werewolves islimited, but the
Kindred background isintriguing. The Brothers
War isparticularly fascinating.
twenty-five Scene adventure, Psychomachia, that
takes placein Milwaukee. While this adventure
doesnt have to befor beginning characters, it is
intended to introduce characters who have recently
come to Milwaukeeto the local political situation.
Prince Merik, the Kindred ruler of the
metropolis, needs them to hunt down someone
committing a bizarreseries of highly publicized
Vampire Murders. The person responsiblemay
also havebeen behind the disappearance of the
The sourcebook section takes upthe first 73
The second part of the book isa five-Chapter,
Princes wife. As with most Vampire adventures,
very little is what it appears. The player characters
must investigate the bizarrekillings. Eventually the
characters become involved with a determined
Witch Hunter and the Lupine tribes that roam the
outskirts of Milwaukee. They also get to interact
with Milwaukees major NPCs. In the last Chapter,
the player characters have to cope with a bizarremix
of drug-induced dreams and reality, and have a final
battle with the Vampire Killer.
Milwaukee by Night isan excellent
sourcebook and an above-average adventure. The
only reason I giveit a 3 is because, despite the heavy
promotion of werewolves and their rolein the city,
the Lupines are poorly detailed, and their rolevaries
wildly. Often, the werewolves are relatively
insignificant to the events in Milwaukee. On the
other hand, they seemto violate the Masquerade
which both vampires and werewolves supposedly
undertake to conceal their existence. I t isalso
unclear how the werewolves have so effectively
trapped the vampires in Milwaukee.
In short, werewolves aretreated moreas a p~
device then asan active enemy. Milwaukeeby
Night would have benefited by being released after
White Wolfs upcoming Werewolf: The
Apocalypse. Potential buyers who hope to obtain
information on werewolves should beware.
b I I
From the
Letters From Ou
Please send all letters to:
Pack
Readers
White Wolf, 4598.B Stonegate Industrial Blvd.
Stone Mountain, GA 30083
We received a number of letters of
praise for the previous issue of WHITE
WOLF Magazine and while wewould like
to print them all (just one sample is
printed below), wedoubt that you readers
are as interested in the compliments
extended by others as weare. This has
always presented a small quandary where
the letters page is concerned. We
definitely want to run such a page, but to
your eyes one compliment is probably the
same as another (its a whole different
story for us; each ones a gem, so please
keep them coming). However, unless we
print letters, few people will write as they
believe their letters receive no attention.
The best catalyst for a letters column,
of course, is controversy, and past From
the Pack columns have benefited from
things like people taking exception to my
advice for beginning games, attacks from
Kevin Siembieda, and my warning to
publishers of new games. Alternately, we
can simply provide this column as a
platform for discussing roleplaying in
general or this magazine specifically. For
example, wewould love continuous
feedback on what you think of our
Mission Statement, as well as what kind
of job weare doing moving toward it. Do
you agree or disagree with our Feature
Reviews? Did an interesting event occur
while playing a LivedAction scenario
printed in the magazine? Let ushear
about how and why you roleplay and
youll help us fulfill our Mission State-
ment.
Dear White Wolf,
I have
just received
issue 3 1, and I
must say
WOW! This
issue is not
just an
incredible
Improvement,
it isa near
impossible
one to
actually believe. I thumbed through the
magazine more times than I care to count,
and read many of the articles three or four
times. Your use of color, especially in the
Shadowrun supplement, was gifted. You
held true to the feel of Shadowrun
products, and I felt as if I could pull this
thing out and use it as a normal purchased
product, and all that was missing a
laminated cover. Your use of graphics,
especially in the Amber review, your
RUNES column and the Capsule Reviews
(Star Wars and Stormbringer in
particular) was a far cry from the previous
issue, and from the earlier issues (like #9-
12 especially). The table of contents
pages were similarly stunning, and though
it seemed a bit sparse as to what was
where, it was still graphically pleasing.
The segment on live roleplaying [was]
well written, though it went more along
the lines of a Murder Mystery Party than
common Live Action fare (which is great
cause it will introduce the former types of
players to the latter). The Top Twenty on
the last page issomething I hope will stay,
as will the Artists Spotlight (however, I
think that might be a little too expen-
sive). Yet another amazing idea you guys
came up with is no advertisements
cluttering up the main articles, and that
was a great refresher to see. You guys have
really done the best I think a magazine
can do, much better than Dragon or such
magazines have done in the past. I am
curious to see if issue 32 will beas colorful
and well thought-out as this issue, and I
hope you guys do your best to make every
issue just as good as this one.
However (this is where I take out the
pin and deflate those inflated heads of
yours), there are a few things that are
missing and one unforgivable typo in your
editorial. I am sad to see that the list of
advertisers is missing (I couldnt find it
anywhere), and that issomething I look
forward to seeing in case I missed a
favorite advertiser or new company. I
hope it returns in issue 32 and on. I also
enjoy hearing about 35 Pack and wish
they have a bigger installment whenever
you get information on them. While you
guys have done wonders with your colors,
I hope to see more color artwork, such as
the type that graced the Shadowrun
installment. Your graphic layout in the
Silicon Dungeon left something to be
desired also, for you placed one of the
Pools of Darkness screens right next to
the great red print of Eye of the Beholder
11. This caused a small amount of
confusion on my part, as well as most of
my friends that perused the issue. I t would
be helpful if you put the screen next to
the reviewed game or somewhere off to
the side instead of deep in the heart of
another review. As to the unforgivable
misspelling of a very favored authors
name, I fervently hope that such
oversights never happen again.
All in all, your magazine has vastly
improved over your previous issues, and
over other gaming magazines I collect. I
will continue to subscribe to White Wolf
as long as it shows such remarkable
improvement and depth. You are
definitely the leader of the pack (to coin a
cliche).
Ian Boyd
Albuquerque, NM
WH I T E WO L F M A G A Z I N E
79
TOp2OSellingGaanes
1. TSR: Auroras Realms Catalog
2. TSR: Greyhawk Treasures
3. GDW: Mythus
4. FASA: Never Trust an Elf
5. R. Talsorian Games: Dream Park
6. TSR: Tales of the Lance
7. TSR: Players Handbook
8. Task Force Games: Module R2
9. White Wolf: Storytellers Handbook
10. FASA: Battletech Readout 3055
11. TSR: Character Record Sheets
12. TSR: Magic Encyclopedia Vol. 1
13. Atlas Games: Chasing the Dragon
14. White Wolf: Ars Magica
15. Task Force Games: Module R3
16. TSR: Dungeon Masters Guide
17. (tie) Flying Buffalo: Grimtooths Traps Lite
17. (tie) Milton Bradley: Battle Masters
18. TSR: Goblins Lair
19. West End Games: Heir to the Empire
Sourcebook
20. White Wolf: Vampire: The Masquerade
Commentary: We have decided to list only actual gameproducts onthis list, so game,related items like TSRs Collector Cards will not be
included on futurelists TSRs stranglehold on thetop of the list isnt as strong this month Two newgames, Mythus and DreamPark (both
reviewed in this issue), push their way into the top five In total, the products of 10 companies are listed this month, as opposedto only s1x in
May
* This list is based on numbers of units sold in the month ofJ uly Thanks to Hobby Game Dismbutors (3710 W Touhy Ave , Skokie, IL 60076) f m

~ provding this list


unknown victim.
promised in this Stewart Wieck
will catch a game
section last issue, we
did change our minds
designer whos had
one drink too
on several of the
many at a Gen
i Con party and pry
features. Many of the
articles slated for this
issue will actually
until he knows
every secret
thought.
appear in WW33
(maybe. . .). Heres a
look at what we have
5. The
coming. Scope of Magic
features Space Age
of Liosalfar is a
magic for
fantasy adventure for GURPS. Cross-
characters ready to
genre games are
undertake their first adventure. For use with any fantasy
game system, but with statistics provided for GURPS,
MERP and Ars Magica, the story sets the characters
searching for a lost miller. Theyd best be careful, though,
for hes wandered into a faerie forest.
2. The third installment of five for Shadows Across
the Big Easy is an adventure set in New Orleans. The
characters are hired by a certain Mr. J ohnson to extract a
corp exec, but they have to get her off a party boat in the
Mississippi River.
3. Creature Feature will be our first Battletech
article for some time. The giant movie monsters (Godzilla
and the other poor imitations!) spawned giant robots that
have become even more popular. Well, its time to go
back to the roots, and this article will help you stage
As practically
1. The Legend
hot right now, and Since GURPS 1sthe Premelre univer-
sal game system, magic and space are an easy mix.
6. Our Feature Review will spotlight Werewo1f:The
Apocalypsel the second game in the Storyteller (hme
System, which began with Vampire:The Masquerade last
year. Capsule Reviews will include more supplements for
Your favorite games, including a look at the new 2nd
edition Shadowrun.
7. A bunch of other great features, possibly including
some of the following: an article about historical magic in
Ars Magica, an encounter for Star Wars, new careers for
Dark Conspiracy, and a PeoPle of the Land Cohmn
PresentW a non*?-olklen view ofdwarves. Otherwise,
these will appear in other future issues.
battles between Mechs and rampaging creatures. -
4. Out of Character will feature . . . some as yet
80 J U L Y / A U G U S T , 1992
Its simply a degree to many. A
digital degree that numbs your
brain and toes in the dead of
winter, somehow making you
colder than normal.
To others its an entirely
different degree . . . a degree
of terror that grips your heart
e
I game tl
I
-iorroi
inger
Mayfair
5@ Eme s
youll quake deciding the
degree of excitement needed
to overcome such terrifying
individuals and concepts.
Experienced game masters
and players alike will be
challenged by the realism
inherent in this award-winning
.- fl .
Ir??any others. Youii
sh&e when--yau ekpldre the
origins of voodoo, cannibalism
and other phenomena. And
In June, Woodoo comes to Chill. A 128-page
sourcebookkenario detailing the little
understood practice of voodoo. Dolls and
needles not included.
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