I'm reaching the bottom of my review pile. I currently have two more products from Adventure Games Publishing to review and three more from Brave Halfling Publishing. Most of these products are fairly short and I'll probably finish them up this coming week.
With that in mind, does anyone have any suggestions for future products they'd like to see reviewed here?
If you're interested, I could send you the current issues of the Scribe of Orcus. They are short.
ReplyDeleteHmm. I suppose this might fall too far afield of Grognardia’s scope, but I think I’d really like to read your opinion of Mongoose’s adaption of Lankhmar/Nehwon for RuneQuest. (From the perspective of using it with any system.)
ReplyDeletePerhaps the Return to the Keep on the Borderlands?
ReplyDeleteI recently picked this up, but haven't had a chance to do a detailed read on it.
What about the D&D adventures? They always seemed great to me, but I would like to read more about them. I didnt have a chance to get my hands on most of them.
ReplyDeletehttp://home.flash.net/~brenfrow/dd/dd.htm
Why don't you share your opinion on T&T with us?
ReplyDeleteI suggest The Spider God's Bride and Other Tales of Sword and Sorcery, a massive adventure module. I have a hunch you might like it: http://xoth.net/publishing/xp1/index.htm
ReplyDeleteAnother potential candidate is this bad boy: http://mazesandminotaurs.free.fr/TOMB.html
Haven't read it yet, but it makes me quite curious.
"Perhaps the Return to the Keep on the Borderlands?"
ReplyDeleteI just picked up both of the Keep modules off RPGNow and I can easily see James "critiquing" the new one.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI am just going to jump in here and go off-topic for a few minutes and mention I just discovered this BLOG and I am slowly working my way through it.
I have been playing D&D since 1981 (so about 28 years). I skipped 2e but joined back during 3e and 3.5e. I have to say thanks to JM and other posters here who helped me finally put a word to my feeling of "something missing" with modern D&D - old school gaming, sandbox vs Adventure Path and Gygaxian Naturalism.
Thanks very much. I am currently re-tooling my 20 year old campaign setting to go back more to its roots. No more giant stat blocks and detailed histories of areas beyond those the various parties have created almost whole cloth over the years.
/tip my hat
Such timing...
ReplyDeleteI was getting ready to write a post in my blog asking about "all the other fantasy" that seems to be ignored when discussing early D&D. Most people are pretty conversant with the feedback loop between fantasy and D&D in the mid-80s on but there were lots of authors current at the founding whose work isn't epic Tolkien pastiche or weird fantasy descended. I'm thinking of things ranging from the early Xanth novels (the first was published in 1977) to Jo Clayton's works (first published in 1978 with "A Diadem of Stars") to Andre Norton's Witch World (first published 1963 and the majority in 1978 or earlier) to Kurtz's Deryni (first published 1970 and Kurtz was a member of SAGA) to Bradley's Darkover (science fantasy indeed). Some D&D influenced authors would go on to write books I consider outside of the modern fantasy epic Tolkien pastiche mainstream. Katherine Kerr's novels for example (although you could shoehorn her into "romantic fantasy" if you tried really, really hard).
Where was their influence, especially on the late Golden Age and Silver Age (when Kerr was writing for Dragon)? If there wasn't any, why not? Does it have to do with most of them being women?
The reason I ask is most of these books seem perfect examples of what the Silver age could/should have been. The plots do center on events with a much larger canvas than the typical S&S story and include many popular trappings such as prophecy, old troubles rising, etc. However, they lack the epic good versus evil in either the Tolkien (the long, twilight struggle) or post Tolkien (good triumphant) form and have many more everyman heroes and morally mixed heroes than modern epic fantasy does.
I guess that's not technically a review request but it's something I've been thinking about. These books constituted a good deal of my 80s reading and much of what I tried to bring to D&D and other fantasy gaming in that period.
(cough)...Otherworld Minis...(cough)!
ReplyDelete(cough)...Otherworld Minis...(cough)!
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me: I need to place an order with you soon for some more vermin. A pity the giant rats aren't available yet :)
Another thought: The original (as opposed to spoof) Hackmaster modules.
ReplyDeleteMore novels from Gygax's Appendix N.
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to learn more Lejandary Adventures from someone who's better versed at analyzing rules that I am. It seems like a large part of Gary Gygax's later life and I'd be interested to know how his ideas about gaming evolved.
ReplyDeleteI'd also really like to see more reviews of system neutral products. Modules are okay, but I enjoyed the Classic Monsters Revisited, Points of Light, and Random Esoteric Creature products you looked at. More of those please!
If you're interested, I could send you the current issues of the Scribe of Orcus. They are short.
ReplyDeleteAre there any beyond issue 4? If not, I have them all already, but I probably should review them, since several of them are very good indeed.
I think I’d really like to read your opinion of Mongoose’s adaption of Lankhmar/Nehwon for RuneQuest. (From the perspective of using it with any system.)
ReplyDeleteI'd honestly love to do that, but, barring Mongoose's sending me a review copy, that's not likely, since I'm not likely to buy it "cold" the way I would with other more obviously old school products.
Perhaps the Return to the Keep on the Borderlands?
ReplyDeleteI don't presently own a copy of it. I'd heard from various sources that it wasn't very good, but perhaps I ought to check it out for myself.
What about the D&D adventures? They always seemed great to me, but I would like to read more about them. I didnt have a chance to get my hands on most of them.
ReplyDeleteI already do quasi-reviews of them in my weekly Retrospective feature.
Why don't you share your opinion on T&T with us?
ReplyDeleteOh, I certainly will do that. I'm waiting on a bunch of solo adventures I ordered before I start diving deeply into T&T. I'll post my thoughts on the game once I've had a chance to give it the attention it deserves.
I suggest The Spider God's Bride and Other Tales of Sword and Sorcery, a massive adventure module. I have a hunch you might like it: http://xoth.net/publishing/xp1/index.htm
ReplyDeleteThis was suggested to me recently. I may have to give it a look, although it is a 3e collection, so I'm a bit wary.
Another potential candidate is this bad boy: http://mazesandminotaurs.free.fr/TOMB.html
Haven't read it yet, but it makes me quite curious.
That's a good suggestion. I have read the game and think very highly of it. It probably deserves a full review, though.
I guess that's not technically a review request but it's something I've been thinking about. These books constituted a good deal of my 80s reading and much of what I tried to bring to D&D and other fantasy gaming in that period.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really good suggestion, but I'm not sure I'm the one to write it, mostly because my acquaintance with most of the authors you cite is limited. I didn't really read a lot of contemporary fantasy during the Silver Age, since it (mostly) wasn't my cup of tea and I just kept re-reading the stuff I did like.
But what you suggest is a very interesting project and someone ought to do it.
It seems like a large part of Gary Gygax's later life and I'd be interested to know how his ideas about gaming evolved.
ReplyDeleteI've never even seen a copy of the game, unfortunately. It doesn't appear to have been much of a hit round these parts.
I'd also really like to see more reviews of system neutral products. Modules are okay, but I enjoyed the Classic Monsters Revisited, Points of Light, and Random Esoteric Creature products you looked at. More of those please!
If more of these kinds of products exist, I'll certainly review them.
(cough)...Otherworld Minis...(cough)!
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me: I need to place an order with you soon for some more vermin. A pity the giant rats aren't available yet :)
The Giant Rats will be out on Wednesday 21st, and are available to order now. ;)
I wouldn't mind if you touched a bit more on the Forgotten Realms 1E boxed set. (The set itself as opposed to Greenwood or FR in general.)
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see some of Oone's products and maps reviewed. They're short, and many have a cool blueprint feel to them. Again,not sure if that's too far outside, but the price is right. Heck, I'll buy one and send it to you, just to get it started.
ReplyDeleteAC9: Creature Catalogue
ReplyDeleteI'd be curious to know your thoughts on Dragon Warriors, the recently reprinted 80s RPG that is sort of like a British answer to B/X D&D.
ReplyDeleteHave you covered the old Flying Buffalo systemless books, the "Catalyst" series including Maps, Grimtooth's and the Citybooks? The Citybooks, in particular, are wonderful material for any campaign and the list of authors is quite an old school "Who's Who".
ReplyDelete...Dragon Warriors...
ReplyDeleteWe should write Mongoose and tell them to send him review copies of everything. ^_^
I'd like to see some of Oone's products and maps reviewed.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't even aware of these. Which ones are you thinking about?
What about Barbarians of Lemuria? It seems to me that it has the best parts of the Old School and the New Wave.
ReplyDeleteI'll second Dragon Warriors. First of all, there are few to no reviews of the Mongoose edition, and secondly, the one (incomplete) review I could find (over on ENworld) contained a note on the cover art that I think you'd find interesting:
ReplyDelete"cover is done in color and depicts 4 adventurers (presumably a knight, barbarian, sorcerer and mystic) on guard as they descend cracked stone stairs into the unknown depths of some crumbling ruin. The art is old school in flavor but very evocative of a more dark and subdued adventurers than the wahoo style of more modern games...these adventurers look like they really don't want to be doing this and actually fear what lurks in the darkness before them."
And yes, if Mongoose knew what was good for them they'd send you a review copy post-haste! :D
And yes, if Mongoose knew what was good for them they'd send you a review copy post-haste! :D
ReplyDeleteI don't seek out review copies; I always feel a bit cheap doing that and goodness knows I already own more RPG stuff than I ought to. Still, I'm always grateful when people send stuff my way to look at and I'd be happy to review anything Mongoose might send me, but I'm not holding my breath.