A regular reader asked for assistance in finding more information about an obscure, self-published fantasy adventure scenario entitled Shrine of the Sword, written by Paul Mercer and Kevin Conklin, with illustrations by the latter. Here's its cover:
Aside from the fact that it's for "higher level characters," Shrine of the Sword is interesting, because it includes eight illustrations intended to be shown to players as an aid to visualizing items and locations within the scenario, much like the illustration booklets included with Tomb of Horrors and Expedition to the Barrier Peaks. Here's an example of one of them:
It's a long shot that anyone reading this post knows anything more about it, but I know quite a few of you have been in the hobby for far longer than I and have good memories for historical curiosities like this, so I thought it worth a try. Please share your wisdom in the comments. Thanks!
Those look like Tolkien’s Angerthas (Dwarven runes) at a glance. At least some of them are identical.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised if that were so. I knew lots of people who used Tolkien's alphabets as ciphers for their D&D campaigns.
DeleteDefinitely inspired by the treasure map in The Hobbit!
Deletethis is pure awesome. where/when was it distributed? (no area code, lol)
ReplyDeleteI know almost nothing about its creation or distribution.
DeleteRemember when long distance calls cost extra? :)
Delete"No one will ever call me from outside my area code, that's crazy talk."
A Paul Mercer ran Crazy Egor’s, a game shop in Rochester, NY could be the same guy?
ReplyDeleteDo you recall when? I've got a moderately solid trace on a Paul Mercer who worked for Apple in 1987 and founded a couple of software businesses later, and would be 56 years old here in 2024. Seems to have lived in Syracuse NY at some point. If it's the same guy he's got his name on several software patents (but not the card-shuffler gadget, that's a search artifact) over at this url:
Deletehttps://patents.justia.com/inventor/paul-mercer
Not that you couldn't simultaneously work at Crazy Egor's/Millennium Games, help write a few things for White Wolf and do software design all at the same time, of course. Gig economy isn't the new concept people seem to think it is.
That was Paul Meyer who ran Crazy Egor's. Though coincidentally, he lived in Hilton, NY, where I went to high school with Paul Mercer and Kevin Conklin.
DeleteRPGGeek has a listing, although there isn't much there.
ReplyDeletehttps://rpggeek.com/rpgitem/83627/shrine-of-the-sword
To quote the bulk of the listing:
From the History:
Ava-Terrel, the father of this great kingdom who vanished a millennium ago, was a great warrior (and a wizard although not many know of it). He was reputed to have fought off a whole band of evil orcs armed with only his famed sword, the Myrmidon. His past is dark and shrouded in mystery but under his wise rule the people prospered and did not ask many questions.
On the fateful night of his bicentenial, he mysteriously vanished, never to be seen by his people again.
The legendary Myrmidon, the glowing symbol of this great kingdom, was lost with Ava-Terrel. Its malevolent beauty is now but a memory.
Hmmm. Conklin is credited on RPGGeek as co-author and artist for this but nothing else. Mercer (if it's the same person) has credits for three White Wolf books, with designer credits on the Mage: Sons of Ether tradition book, Mage Traditions Gathered Book 1: Songs of Science (which may just be a compilation and update of the Sons of Ether book among others) and the Wraith Players' Guide (which has about thirty designer credits).
ReplyDeleteA quick poke around the net indicates that there's a Paul Mercer who did quite of work for Apple starting in 1987 and has a fandom page at this url:
https://apple.fandom.com/wiki/Paul_Mercer
I'll leave to someone else to see if they can contact him through any of the sources linked there, or perhaps through Linked In or somesuch. If it is the same Paul, I'm sure he'd be somewhat bemused to discover there are people talking about Shrine of teh Sword here in 2024.
If he is found, I would adore an interview blog post by James with the author about the game's moment in history.
DeletePaul and Kevin are old friends of mine! I well remember them creating this module when we were in high school - sometime between 1981 and 1984, most likely 82-3. We all attended Hilton High School in the Rochester, NY area. Paul Mercer is indeed the guy who worked at Apple. Among other things, he worked on the Newton, which wasn't a commercial success but paved the way for the iPhone; Paul's photo was secretly embedded in the MacOS for many years, though I think it's gone now. Kevin lived in L.A. for a number of years hoping to make it as a guitarist, but the last I knew he'd moved back to the Rochester area and was working as a system administrator in a nursing home.
ReplyDeleteWe all gamed together a lot in our high school/ post high school years - good times. As I recall, they got a table to sell this module at a local con at the University of Rochester. Probably SimCon, though it could have been URCon, a SF con. They also had a magazine ad somewhere - probably The Dragon or Space Gamer. The rest of our friend group gave them a little good-natured grief because the "h" on the cover somehow looks a bit like a K, so we referred to this as "Skrine of the Sword".
It's been some years since I talked to either of them, but I have contact info so I will send them both a link to this discussion. I'm sure they'll be pleased to see this remembered. I certainly am!
That's amazing. Thanks for sharing all of this. We now know more about the adventure than we did before. If Paul and/or Kevin should show up, that would be even more amazing.
DeletePaul owned Crazy Egors originally from his home in Hilton NY. I gamed with him a few times back in early 80s. I purchased the adventure from him back then. I’ve reached out to him years ago about it but he did not recognize it.
ReplyDelete