Inquirer Update and other thoughts...

Wanted to update everyone concerning the Eldritch Inquirer.  I received the first print proofs and overall they looked really good! Still, there were a few corrections to make and I am waiting on an answer from DTRPG on something specific. Once I hear back from them, I'll be able to upload again and get a second round of proofs ordered next week. I'm also going back and forth on whether to release the "Standard" version - seems kind of meh, but would be a cheaper option than the "Premium" format. The Premium is much cleaner, also note the trim difference between the two.

1/21/20 UPDATE ... Uploaded new files today and will be ordering new proofs as soon as the they clear!

Premium

Standard

Something else that has been on my mind lately is Sword & Sorcery. For...well at least a year and a half now, probably a bit longer, I have had it in my mind that I want to write my on S&S style game using White Box as a base to build on, while at the same time stepping away from that game. When writing Eldritch Tales, I made a number of concessions for the sake of compatibility and that led to me including elements that weren't my favorite. And worse making a game that I know is a bit wonky in places.

So, why is suddenly fore in my brain again? I recently heard (from John Large on the Purple Worm podcast) that James Spahn was rewriting and Kickstarting his excellent The Hero's Journey, also based on White Box. When I investigated, I found that James had been talking about his developments on his blog for quite some time (Halfling's Luck) and was voicing similar concerns. I thought, maybe now is the time to revisit this...?

(Find THJ 2e right now on Kickstarter!)

The first question that comes to mind - do we need another S&S game? Well, maybe not. Everyone knows that Inlove Astonishing Swordsmen and Sorcerers of Hyperborea, but there are many other great games out there - Conan 2d20, Savage Worlds Beasts & Barbarians and Solomon Kane, Barbarians of Lemuria, Crypts & Things, just to name a few. Still, I want a game that brings together all of the elements that I love, from many other games, but built into new package... so, yeah, maybe a "heartbreaker" game and probably not for everyone, but we'll try to work on that.

What are my goals with this game?

First, write a game that is somewhere between White Box and AS&SH in terms of rules weight. It will show clear inspiration from these games, as well as others like The Black Hack, DCC, 5E, and Conan, not to mention The Hero's Journey.

Next, write a game that could easily be adapted to "historical fantasy" or "alternate history" style games. And honestly the game may sit more closely in these genres than S&S anyway. For example, in the Berserker class that I've drafted, I have stripped out the polymorph ability found in many games, so that what is left is a less fantastic version of the archtype, something more akin to Egil Sallagrimsson than Beorn from The Hobbit.

Finally, step away from some of the traditional elements of fantasy RPGs. Vancian magic will be gone in favor of something more akin to what you see in Eldritch Tales; Armor Class completely changed to actually represent what armor does (it doesn't keep you from being hit, it keeps you from being injured when you are hit); that sort of thing. Still, much of the classic will remain like Classes, Saving Throws, and whatnot.

What do I have written? Quite a bit is drafted - Classes, much of the rules, sorcery, some of the spells, and equipment, have all been visited. Somewhere around 33,000 words (much of this is spells). 

How much has been playtested? Absolutely none of it! Not quite there yet. I'll run it with my home group first, and hope to have something stable by April, when I attend Roundtable Con.

What's this game called? I've no idea! My working title is "Ages Undreamed Of" but that may step on the toes of the Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of property. So, I'm working up other ideas.

Stay tuned for more updates and thanks for visiting!

The Eldritch Inquirer Update!

Greetings All,

Happy New Year & welcome back to the 20s! 

Dropping a quick update concerning the first supplement for Eldritch Tales - The Eldritch Inquirer! 

From the product description:

-‐---‐----------------------

The Eldritch Inquirer is the Official Magazine for the Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-Playing game! The pages of the Inquirer hold the secrets of Mythos Earth, history, inspiration, new game mechanisms, world-building material, and a full-length Mythos scenario!

In this inaugural issue, you will find:

• An historical chronology of the year of 1920. (10 pages)
• Manias to expand the Insanity tables in the core Eldritch Tales rules. (3 pages)
• Interesting and inspiring news articles & advertisements culled from the pages of the Arkham Advertiser, meant to be used as scenario seeds and world-building inspiration. (3 pages)
• A list of "American" names that offer 80,000 name combinations, all suitable for Eldritch Tales characters of the 1920s. (6 pages)
• The highlight of the issue, Return of the Windwalker, is a full-length scenario that takes the player characters to the remote mountains of New Hampshire to investigate a new archaeological site, but they are soon embroiled in a tale of Mythos madness and mystery! Can they stop the return of the Windwalker? (31 pages)

This issue is very art heavy, and contains both black and white and color art throughout. Much of the material is system-neutral and that which is written specifically for Eldritch Tales could be easily adapted to other Lovecraftian games.

Included are High Resolution and Low Resolution PDFs of the magazine, as well as Color and B&W PDFs of the handouts for the scenario.

The scenario handouts are also available on high quality cardstock through DTRPG's print-on-demand service! 

-----------------------------------

Inclusive of front matter, the OGL, and end pages, this issue clocks in at 59 pages in a perfect bound trade-sized format!

I've ordered the print proofs today of both Premium and Standard versions, I want to see the differences between the two and decide if they should both be offered. I've already received the proofs of the POD Handouts and they are quite nicely printed on heavy cardstock that will withstand your player's snack-smudged hands. 

I hope to release two issues each year. For the foreseeable future, issues will follow the same basic format - chronology of a year (issue #2 will be 1921), a name list of a particular nation or culture, articles and adverts, some game mechanics info, and a scenario. 

So that's it for now. Barring printing issues, I'll be back in the next week or so with images of the proofs and release information!

All the best!