Friday, 9 March 2012

Illustrations in Tunnels&Trolls UK1st ed / 4th ed

I'm sure this cover has
it's fans.  I have
really mixed feelings
about it.  I think the letters
(as well as being frighteningly
1970's-modern) are abstracted
maze tunnels.  On the back,
there is nothing, no text,
just torchless black darkness.
Ooh, goodies.  Goodies in the post!  On the advise of some nice folks over at the Trollbridge forum I pointed my browser at Noble Knight Games - where out of print games are normally "sold out", but huzzah!  a copy of Tunnels & Trolls UK 1st edition (T&T4, 1977) was sitting there, no bidding or sniping required.  I just had to lie to myself about the USD to GBP exchange rate and "click" it was mine!

My partner was generally supportive, expecting me to have bought something with a large box and dice.  So when the rulebook arrived, she was pretty amazed that I'd spent $*cough* on a slender A5-sized "pamphlet" (her words).

But now it's mine! 

And who knows, I might be able to offset the purchase against tax ....

It's 48 pages are dotted with illustrations which is the main reason for this post - I wanted to share some of this rare art by Polly Wilson.  I'm a big Liz Danforth fan, so I was surprised at how much I was enjoying this earlier edition artist's work (according to some of my random searches, she may have illustrations in AD&D Fiend Folio - and I'm guessing, White Dwarf, - I may have to investigate further).  I adore freehand inked line art from the games of yore (don't let me start drooling over Russ Nicolson ...)

Okay, here's some pictures:
Above the Foreword by Selwyn Ward on the inside cover you meet these lovely guys... "Welcome!"
It's a Tunnel & those are definitely Trolls   -See what they did there? :)








Some of the spells have
some very cute mnemonic
/archetypal images which
may have influenced John Blanche's
spell pictures in SJ's Sorcery! gamebooks.
Maybe, but hey, who knows?


This illustration reminds us of
the heretical levity that used to make
T&T hard to defend to D&D players.
I like my T&T played very straight
... but I might be in a minority here.


Check out that stippling!  I'm loving Polly Wilson's black and white line art. 
There's more than a few skeletons in this rule book
- reminders of the short lifespan of greedy delvers when faced with the just hand of fair Games Masters


I thought I should scan a whole page to show off those lovely
art noveau borders which now reminds me of the cover of that later
guide to role-playing, Dicing with Dragons.  
Also, the rules on this page are very different from the missile rules in T&T5





Hopefully, I haven't broken too many laws here.
Over the years different flavours of T&T have been published originally  by Flying Buffalo. For up to the minute news see tunnelsandtrolls.com
Assorted titles, old and new, in PDF and book form by numerous writers and publishers can be found on the DriveThru website (T&T search on DTRPG).

(Also click on the Tunnels & Trolls label tag, below this post)

Thanks for browsing, and never be frightened of a high MR!
Actually, no, that's bad advice, high Monster Ratings are never to be taken taken lightly...

Thursday, 8 March 2012

Planets of Peril / Temple of the Fool God / Faith&Demons Quick Start Guide

Raaarrgh!! BOOM!! Yaaargh!
http://bit.ly/PoPeril
I'm tempted to blame John Carter of Mars for this, but browsing through this game, one can tell that this has been a few years in the making, by someone of lot better read than I am.  Keith Vaugn's Planets of Peril appears to be a complete game in a refreshing campaign setting way brute force, mental will, alien technologies, survivalism, explorer skills and even sexuality, pave the way to riches and power.   Edgar Rice Burroughs's Martian and Venus stories are listed in the comprehensive list of books of inspiration, along with many authors who were smashing up and mashing genre long before "post-modernity" became the catch-all for the confused.  If you like "sci-fantasy" then Planets of Peril may just be your thing.

You've got to love any game which has a section called "Book 4 - Zardoon: Moon of Mysteries" followed by map entitled "The Island-Continent of Hoshovareka (The Refuge of Mankind)."

I'm especially fond of all-the-rules-you-need sets, in the cynical age of collector-range marketing.  The oil art has a charm of it's own.   In fact the whole publication feels very much like a much older game, perhaps from the 1970s.  The premise and setting does remind me a little of Empire of the Petal Throne, i.e. tribes of mankind displaced on an alien world, but the similarities end with the basic idea.  Planets of Peril owes a lot more to pulp fantasy, fringed with table-powered exotic social-political events and themes.  If you're looking for something different, if you're fond of older games and pulp sci-fantasy then it's definitely worth a look.
(DriveThruRPG)

Temple of the Fool God
T&T Solo
http://bit.ly/FoolGod
(They're all a bit odd)
I want to give a very quick mention to a solo game that's making me giggling a bit this week.  Generally I have mixed feelings about the idea that Tunnels & Trolls games should often be light and humorous, but Stuart Lloyd provides a feasible background for such japes.  By taking on the patron god of fools (who's name in short form takes up most of a silly paragraph) you are forced to put part of your sensibilities aside.  Chaos truly reigns.  Like with many T&T solos, some sections are sub-games in their own right, where the player can choose to raise the stakes for higher gains - random treasure tables also provide a bet like dice rolling flutter.  Sections can be revisited and considerable ground can be covered and replayed - giving Temple of the Fool God a lasting game life.  The Monty Python-esque humour might be a little much for some, but for others it's a jolly evening in.  'Fool God is written for the T&T 7.5 edition, which is good, because dedicated solos for that edition are still thin on the ground, compared to mighty back catalogue of published and amateur adventures written for 5/5.5.  Fool God is about a dollar more than I would expect to pay for a PDF T&T solo (but I'm getting really spoilt these days, and $4.73 is a pittance really after OBS take their share etc.EDIT: Now reduced -see comments below the post- ), but it's still a packed read with 190 sections. All of the sections are properly hotlinked which means you get straight the right section when using an on-screen reader or a touch-tablet.  It is ideal for both new players and veterans (for 1st level characters - with equipment provided in the text).  Judging by his blogs and video reviews, Mr Lloyd is a state of the art expert when in comes to the studying and playing of gamebooks, so this is a real pleasure to see this knowledge come through in his writing. (Check out: Virtual Fantasies / Lloyd of Gamebooks and Lone Tiger Gamebook Reviews)
Challenging nonsense! ;)


Appetite whetting time ...

http://bit.ly/FDquickstart
Mr. A.T. Huss of Mystical Throne Entertainment tells me that the launch of their new Savage Worlds, Dark Ages Fantasy Horror setting, Faith & Demons: The Rising, is immanent.  

For now all we have to chew gingerly on is this free primer quick-start download.  Yummy, yummy, crunchy post-Roman-decadence-chaotic-Dark-Ages-Cults-n-Swords-neoapocalyptic juiciness...


Faith & Demons: The Rising - Quick Start Guide (Free!)
http://bit.ly/FDquickstart
 (DriveThruRPG)




Enough for now.  Must sleep.  Have day-job which must be kept ...


Thanks for scrolling this far! :) 

Sunday, 4 March 2012

Inked Adventures Savage Cellar Floor Plan Tile (PDF)

Cross posted from my other bloggies, in shameless self-promotion.  ;)

The Savage Cellar Floor Plan Tile  is now available on all good Onebookshelf sites (DriveThru, RPGNow etc.)

Suitable for fantasy and horror, this two-level room will be ideal for those interdimensional  encounters!




Incidentally this old-style plan was originally designed for an encounter using the Savage Worlds system in a forthcoming issue of Savage Insider Premium published by MTE.


On DriveThru:
http://bit.ly/IAcellar
(Going for a song!)