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Illuminated Site of the Week
Halloween snuck up on us, but we're doing our traditional Game Day. We'll be playing games, eating way too much sugar, and trying to navigate the office with costumes on.
What that means for you, our loyal fans, is a slight delay on responses. We'll be checking email and dealing with burning emergencies, but most things we'll let slide until tomorrow.
I'll post costume photos ASAP.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Back In Black (And Orange)
The Call of Cthulhu: Hallow's Eve Cthulhu plush is just the sort of warm, comforting reminder that that we know you need: the Obsidian Forces of Soul-Eating Darkness can find anyone, anywhere, at any time, and They know your name. Happy Halloween!
October 31, 2007: Looking To Do Some Early Christmas Shopping?
Well, if you're looking to finish off your holiday shopping early, and you're giving a gift to a fan of GURPS Atlantis, GURPS CthulhuPunk, GURPS Alternate Earths, GURPS Japan, or GURPS Castle Falkenstein, your search just got a little easier. We've added the bibliographies for each of those books to our Bibliographies Page. Each lists an impressive array of related works, with convenient links to a bookseller for your internet purchasing pleasure.
Of course, our Bibliographies Page has many more GURPS biblios available, including GURPS Discworld -- recently updated to include the newest novel!
-- Paul Chapman
Extreme Pumpkins is always good for a chuckle this time of the year, but this one struck an "old-skool gamer" chord.
If your pumpkin happens to be Munchkin related (or piratey, or Kovalic-ish, or just darned cool), we'd love to see it!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Europe Won't Conquer Itself
So hop to, Knights of Charlemagne, and get to work! This Frankish gravy train you're on ain't no free ride. You've got plans to plan and actions to enact!
After getting five previews and reading the table of contents, you know that GURPS High-Tech is more than just a list of weapons. But today, we'll shine the Sneak Peek Spotlight on two favorites of the action genre: the Kalashnikov and the Sawed-Off Shotgun.
Decide to buy soon
The books are in the warehouse
On shelves in the fall.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Around Asia In . . . Just About A Week
Okay, so a fortnight isn't exactly an epic period of time, but it's enough time to bounce around and have yourself an Asian adventure. 10 Days in Asia: short but sweet.
With a week, more or less, left in my Sanity Break, I'm pleased to report some progress.
I haven't been able to get away completely; I'm spending about as much time in e-mail and chat as on a normal weekday. And I've found myself putting in a couple of eight-hour office days, but only eight hours, and only a couple. Nevertheless, I'm definitely feeling less fried.
I'm very grateful to the entire SJ Games staff for taking care of business. Really, things are going very well. Games are going to print. Bobblehead packages are getting assembled. The building has only caught fire once while I was out, and it was a little fire.
I'm learning more about what has really been stressing me, and what hasn't. I'm also making progress on shifting my biorhythm back to something more normal and less vampiric. I'm not getting up in the morning EVERY morning yet . . . but getting there.
I played some games. I spent a few days in Houston, art-show and museum crawling with a friend. And I read all the way through Harry Potter.
At the moment, I'd like nothing more than to take another month or so. Not going to happen, I think. Munchkin Quest is calling me . . . so are some other projects. So fear not . . . I won't make you go cold turkey on new games.
Warehouse 13
Thank you, everyone who has forwarded us the article. You can stop now :-) If and when we can comment, we will. As always, fnord.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Don't Stab Your Friend In The Back
Stab through his back and into the monster. After all, the monster is the "real" enemy. Your friend, who is somewhat less of an enemy, is needed to help splatter the monster. But you don't want him to get credit. Thus, it is in your best interest to kill two birds with one halberd. That's more or less the idea behind Cutthroat Caverns, a game where cooperation is paramount and alliances are short-lived.
October 27, 2007: Call To Playtest: Shell-Tech For Transhuman Space
Wanted: Playtesters for Transhuman Space: Shell-Tech!
Cybershells are everywhere in the world of Transhuman Space; Shell-Tech lets you fill your games with these robotic marvels and monstrosities. This book completes the job started by Changing Times of bringing existing templates up to date with GURPS Fourth Edition, covering everything from the Medusa cybernetic hairstyle to the deadly spacefaring Jump RATS and the gigantic Cetapod. It also provides more, detailing a whole range of new specialist devices, from the handy wrist-mounted Cybertool to the Zero-G Stevedore.
This will be a short and intense playtest - no more than two weeks, probably closer to one. Readers who can check the templates for accuracy and mathematical correctness will be greatly appreciated, but comments on the plausibility and interest value of the new shell designs are also invited. Some knowledge of the Transhuman Space setting is required, but new playtesters will, as ever, be very welcome.
Playtest will start soon (real soon), so please respond quickly. The deadline for applications is October 28, and we expect the playtest to run from October 29 through November 5 (with possibly an extra week, depending).
As customary, playtest participation is via a closed e-mail list limited to Pyramid subscribers. To apply, please e-mail the Lead Playtester, Andrew Hackard (hack.editor@gmail.com), with "[Shell-Tech]" in the subject, and include your name, Pyramid username, preferred e-mail address for the mailing list, and any qualifications you feel make you suited for the playtest.
-- Thomas Weigel
Warehouse 23 News: Three Heads, One Body, No Equal
Well, except Mecha King Ghidorah. He'd count as an equal. But, anyway, we're here to offer the Godzilla Origins: King Ghidorah Roaring Plush, not to argue semantics over silly taglines. We could do both, but that would distract from the whole "you spending money" thing.
October 26, 2007: Illuminated Site of the Week: Micro-Escalation
It's somehow poetic to see a cross-pollination of ideas when you're constructing mechanical insects. If you remember Berkeley's robofly, you'll be pleased to know their colleagues - like Professor Robert Wood - at Harvard have managed to develop their own fabrication process to solve some of the trickier problems involved. MIT's Technology Review has the story. Look for the results during a private meeting near you. -- Suggested by Loren Wiseman
And yet, despite how much it sucks, people always go gallivanting around trying to figure out just how far it sucks. You try to tell them "it's infinite," and they say "but how infinite?" Next time, just throw Bablyon 5: The Rim at 'em. If it doesn't make them happy, it will certainly make them quieter.
Edge Entertainment in Spain has been our translation partner for several years. They just released their version of Star Munchkin . . . and they created a pretty cool little Munchkin animation for their website.
-- Paul Chapman
Reach out and demolecularize someone! If you've ever wondered why you should never bring a super-strong fist to a laser fight, then perhaps a read through Hero System: The Ultimate Energy Projector is just what the doctor ordered.
For Sale: One slightly used missile silo . . .
About 3 hours east of Seattle, there's a little Titan missile base, with a cozy 57 acres and over 45,000 square feet underground. It could be yours for a couple million bucks, and the realtor has some creative ideas on living spaces.
I don't have a pile of money up to my chin, but this listing (and SiloWorld) have plenty of gaming potential. The maps alone are worth the time to click through, and as an adventure seed for Underground Labs? Priceless.
Yes, we did link to a similar auction, back in October of 2001. But that eBay listing has gone the way of the dodo. And yes, Penny Arcade did scoop us; but in our defense, this entry has been pushed back several times for more important stuff (like Munchkin Bobbleheads).
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Manly, Hairy, Man-Powered, Manhairness
RuneQuest: Sláine is the sort of game that puts hair on your chest. Even if you're female. In fact, the hair-generation potential of this book is so great that if it were ever to contact a bottle of Nair, you'd get a crater five miles wide from the reaction.
I've never liked Illuminati Y2K's packaging -- the blister-on-card works perfectly for miniatures, but for a card game, it left much to be desired.
This year's reprint, however, got an upgrade. Now Y2K is in a nifty tuckbox, just like its little brother Bavarian Fire Drill.
Yeah, imagining the Illuminati line as a family, with Illuminati: Crime Lords as the "cousin from Jersey," is more disturbing than it really should be. Guess I need to calibrate the Orbital Mind Control Satellite.
-- Paul Chapman
They dropped the bomb, the virus spread, the zombies ate everyone, aliens invaded, the moon exploded, the mimes took over. Or something equally obnoxious happened. Either way, now that The World is dead, things are much more interesting. Now you just need a book like Hero System: Post-Apocalyptic Hero to point out all the sights worth seeing.
October 22, 2007: Blurring The Line Between Reality And Stick Figures
As previously noted, John Nephew of Atlas Games is running for Maplewood City Council. Someone opposing his bid for election has circulated fliers claiming John is an unworthy candidate because he publishes Let's Kill and Corruption. Twincities.com has the story.
I originally took a humorous approach to this issue, pointing out that Minnesota elected former pro wrestler Jesse Ventura governor in 1998. But the more I think on it, the less funny it seems. John Nephew is a smart, successful businessman; Atlas Games has been a notable brand for 15 years, in an industry known for its turnover. He's a concerned citizen. During the d20 craze, he frequently and openly discussed the hard numbers of publishing, guiding many d20 basement operations -- his competitors! -- away from bankruptcy. And he's a hard worker: he writes, he edits, he packs boxes in the warehouse, often all in the same day.
I don't care about his politics; he's the sort of guy a political race needs just to keep the other candidates honest. His opponents should welcome the opportunity to meet his challenges on real issues, as although you may disagree with him, your positions can only be strengthened by a thorough debate. And that's what John will give you.
All this just makes it more frustrating that someone, anyone would attempt to smear his character by pointing out that some of the games he publishes aren't suitable for some people. We should, as a civilization, be at the point where we can recognize that senses of humor are not universal, and that "games" don't automatically mean "for children."
I really hope this mudslinging is coming from a group unrelated to the opposing candidates; otherwise, Maplewood is in even more trouble than previously thought.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: The Man (Er, Men (Um, And Women)) Behind The Curtain
What's the point of a secret being secret if you tell everyone? It would seem that a book like Exalted: The Manual of Exalted Power - Sidereals laying bare the privileged information of Exalted's Secret Masters would sorta spoil their plans. Ah, but then you would be underestimating the power of misinformation. Wait, or would you? What if it's true and they just want you to think it isn't. But what if they anticipated that too . . .
October 21, 2007: Radiohead's Newest: It's Up To You
Radiohead, the band behind "Creep" and "Karma Police," have recorded a new album, titled In Rainbows. And they're doing something quite groundbreaking for the music industry.
For the first time, a major recording artist is offering its work for a price set directly by the consumer. Other than a small processing fee, fans can pay any amount, from "nothing" on up to whatever they wish, and instantly download the album from the website.
Reportedly, the band has sold more than a million downloads to date. Exact figures have not been released, but observers estimate the amount paid to be between two and eight US dollars per download.
What does this have to do with the hobby gaming industry? As digital distribution matures, it will become commonplace for the barriers between content creator and consumer to dissolve, a process we've seen in action with the rise of PDF download sites, such as e23, and PDF only publishers, like Ronin Arts.
Are we heading for the days when digital distribution will become the norm for mainstream entertainment? And how will the three-tier system currently in use in our industry change?
Food for thought.
-- Paul Chapman
While some deities may promise fire and brimstone, you can be certain that the Volcano God will always deliver. In fact, that's kind of the problem. We're all going to be enjoying the sun from under a protective layer of molten rock unless someone runs up (and subsequently jumps into) Tiki Mountain!
We love milestones around here (okay, I love them), and there have been some good ones recently:
- We have 1,900 products by a variety of publishers on sale now, and we're hoping to hit the big 2,000 by the end of this year!
- Two weeks ago, we hit 50 out-of-print GURPS books, and we are completing the (much smaller) remainder.
- GURPS Mysteries hit 1,000 sales.
- GURPS Spaceships made it into the
top ten . . . top five in the first two months of sales.
- Creatures of the Night, Volume 1
is about to make . . . made it onto the Top 20 Downloads, All Time list (by completely failing to slow down in sales over the last six months).
- And In Nomine PDFs recently exceeded 1,500 total sales.
Finally, this isn't properly a "milestone," but the first quarter of this year was e23's best ever . . . until the second quarter replaced it . . . until the third quarter replaced it. That's something you folks did, and we appreciate it.
-- Thomas Weigel
Yes, "stab." Also, "crush," "blast," and "eviscerate." Wicked Fantasy Factory #0: Temple of Blood doesn't offer these as polite suggestions. Oh no. No, friends, these may as well be commandments from the Gods of Smackdown.
October 19, 2007: Illuminated Site of the Week: I Can Haz Internet Hitz?
If you're one of those sorts who, confronted with the darling kitty memes of Lolcats, thinks cat fanciers need to get a life, Lolthulhu is the outlet for your geek superiority complex. Risk your sanity and you may find some amusement in their growing library of photoshopped freak exhibits. Some of the stuff is funny, and some brushes close to adult material, so get permission from your Mythos investigator before entering that address. -- From multiple suggestions
Warehouse 23 News: Megalomania: Now With 50% More "Mega"
China Rails is a game about China, the rails one might build there, and the crayons one will use to form a railroad empire the likes of which will bring the world to its knees, shake the heavens, and unite All That Is under your glorious banner so that you might rule Creation with a colored-wax fist! Or, uh, something like that.
For your Halloween candy-gathering pleasure, we present: The Mask of the Munchkin!
It's free, it's fun, and it includes a rule for Munchkin.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Evil, And The Evil Things It Does
Not "evil," like "hey, you jerk, that was the last slice." Rather, we're talking about "Evil," like "hey, you jerk, you just ate my grandmother." That's the sort of evil waiting in Bleeding Edge Adventures: Dark Wings Over Freeport and it needs a good slayin'. Needs. Unless you just really have something against people's grandmas.
It snuck up on us, but the truth came out eventually: GURPS Mysteries hit 1,000 sales last week!
Written by Lisa Steele (author of GURPS Cops), Mysteries has been one of our best-sellers for over a year now, and is now the first PDF to hit 1,000 copies (and it is also available in print now).
It's such a lovely month for a murder, don't you think?
-- Thomas Weigel
"Sleepy" rural towns, indeed. Sure, they always seem to pleasant and innocent. At first. Then some megalomaniacal alien hive-mind descends upon the town and makes the hapless denizens sing show tunes from Rodgers and Hammerstein productions. Mutants and Masterminds: A More Perfect Union will let you run helpful simulations of what to do if you take a wrong turn and end up in Stepford. Kinda like a fire drill, only with more baked goods.
While The Good, the Bad, and the Munchkin is still a few weeks away from the shelves of your favorite game store, we've got a couple copies here in the office, and we're unusually geeked about this Munchkin release.
Yes, we love cowboys as much as the next guy, but The Good, the Bad, and the Munchkin has the rare distinction of meeting virtually every deadline we set for it. No disasters befell either the designer nor the illustrator, no nigh-fatal computer crashes require extensive re-working of the files, no floods at the printer. We didn't even move the ship date.
In short, this is a product that has been very smooth to create, went out the door on time, and will hit the stores when we announced it would. And that's rather rare in this industry.
So, Phil gives this game a solid thumb's-up, recreated here for your viewing pleasure.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: And I'll Form The Head
Gigantic robots don't typically feature prominently in Tolkien-esque high fantasy. Typically. Wicked Fantasy Factory #2: Against the Iron Giant has decided to screw with the metric just a bit.
October 15, 2007: GURPS Creatures Of The Night, Volume 2
GURPS Creatures of the Night is a new PDF series by Scott Maykrantz and Jason Levine for e23. We released Volume 1 back in May . . . and Volume 2 just last week!
The theme is much the same as the original Creatures of the Night: a collection of completely horrible things to fill the dark places in your campaign.
Your players are entirely too complacent with their easy existence. Help them with a choice selection of grave-eating slugs (Vol. 1), demon pregnancies (Vol. 2), legless ghouls (Vol. 2), invisible pods that tell secrets (Vol. 1), and more!
-- Thomas Weigel
Nine out of ten podiatrists agree that games with umlauts in the title are twice as Cool as their non-umlauted equivalents. Don't believe us? Ask your doctor about Tannhäuser today.
GURPS High-Tech has left the printer, and is on the boat. We're now just weeks away from pallets arriving at our warehouse, which means we're "weeks, plus another week" from the book being on the shelves of your local game store.
To tide you over until then, we present two new excerpts. First, exotic bullets are a "must-have" for modern monster hunters. This page puts garlic-filled silver hollow-points into the clip, so your next encounter with Count Fangsalot ends a bit better than last time. Buffy makes it look so easy.
Next, a section on artillery tackles using really, really big guns. Will lobbing shells at The Squishy Goop That's Eating Milwaukee save Corporal Knox? Now you can find out!
GURPS High-Tech includes these pages, and 254 more, all for $37.95. Watch for it in late November 2007.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Hitting Zombies With A Crowbar
That's how we plan to spend our Last Night on Earth. You?
Steve Jackson Games announces for release in February, 2008:
Munchkin Bobblehead
Munchkin
has sold hundreds of thousands of copies, with more
than a dozen different Munchkin
sequels and supplements, covering fantasy, sci-fi,
chop-socky, horror, and more. With each set, the
monsters get bigger, the curses stronger, and your party members no more
trustworthy.
It's dangerous out there. You need a buddy.
The Munchkin
Bobblehead will watch your back during your
adventures, nodding encouragement to help you through the tough patches, and
congratulating you on your treasure. Keep
him on your desk at the office for inspiration -- after all, what's
the office but a dungeon with cubicles? The classic Munchkin
figure, complete with horned helm, bag of loot, and
enormous hammer (and his latest victim!) is a great way to spot your fellow
Munchkin
players.
But most of all, keep him around during your Munchkin
games. Not only is he nifty in his own right . . . he
gives you an advantage in play. And in Munchkin
, you need every bonus you can get.
Munchkin
Bobblehead -- your nodding, bonus-giving,
classic Munchkin
buddy, 100% guaranteed to not stab you in the
back.
Warehouse 23 News: Hit The Road, Jack
Murder has come to Whitechapel! And now, Murder is trying to vacate Whitechapel in short order. Eight investigators search the streets for the killer, unaware that one amongst them is actually Mr. Jack. And it'll stay that way, if you have enough cunning and guile to maneuver the mad murderer through London's dark streets. (Unless you play the investigators. In which case, go hose that scum-sucker!)
October 12, 2007: Illuminated Site of the Week: . . . Lest We Look Like Tookish Fools
Dungeons & Dragons and The Lord of the Rings: They just go together. Actually, when you look at Shamus Young's Twenty Sided, you realize nothing could be further from the truth. It's been too long, and the bloodlines have become corrupted. -- Suggested by Niels Ull HarremoÄs
If you build it, they will cower in terror before your awesome Awesome (AWS-8Q, that is). But you can't just slap any old thing together and call it a 50-foot tall 80-ton Bringer of Fire and Judgement. No, sir! You'll need a plan, and for that you'll need the Classic BattleTech: TechManual.
Just a few more weeks and it will be that magical day of the year. The day when everyone in the office stops working and we play games all day long! The last few times I've been a part of the Steve Jackson Games Halloween Game Day I wasn't smart enough to plan ahead. This year, though, I've actually put together a list of the games that I want to play.
To make it interesting, I want everyone out there to suggest a game that you think we should play. On October 29th I'll sort through the suggestions and choose a game to buy so that we'll have it for our Halloween Game Day.
-- Phil Reed
Warehouse 23 News: The Battle Of The (Product) Line
Understanding is a three-edged sword. Your side, our side, and the errata. Fret not, though, for the second edition of Babylon 5: A Call To Arms (along with its good friend Babylon 5: A Call To Arms - Fleet Lists) should clear things up nicely.
He grins, he nods, he watches your back. He's the Super Munchkin Bobblehead!
This cute little guy will be available as part of an special "Bobblehead Edition" of Munchkin, available only through Barnes & Noble beginning in November. Individual bobbleheads will be available for the holidays on a limited basis through your local game store, with wider availability opening up in February.
(Retailers: if you'd like more information on the holiday promotion, or have questions about the Bobblehead Edition, please contact Ross or Paul.)
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: The Evolution Revolution
Never before has so much thought gone into a mindless, furious, blood-crazed slaughter-fest-o-thon. With its teeth that bite, claws that catch, and big honkin' arms that squish, Hordes: Evolution really puts the "war" in "wargame." (Psst! There's also a hardcover version!)
We had a minor smoke-related incident last Friday. A ballast in one of the lights burned out, smoldering some nearby plastic. No real damage to anything, but it did clear the building for a half-hour or so.
Major kudos to the Austin Fire Department, especially the guys of Station 35. While it wasn't a serious incident this time, they treated it professionally and, equally importantly, within minutes.
While I didn't get a chance to chat with the crew, I believe they're the same guys who helped us out back in 2005.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Warehouse 23 Top Ten
Warehouse 23 has posted an updated Top 10 page for July. Check it out, and see what all the cool kids are buying . . .
October 8, 2007: Does "More Bounce" Equal "More Random?"
If so, these are the most random dice around.
Great for 1:1 scale Frag games!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: And Now A Word From Our Sponser
Buy more things! Any things! We're not picky! Like, uh - here! Buy Advanced Adventures: The Red Mausoleum! Buy, buy, buy! Things! Buy them! Wooo! And now back to our website.
Some said it would never happen, but we have, indeed, released Bavarian Fire Drill upon the world! We have actual copies of it in the office, and your local game store should very soon as well (if they don't already).
Phil's pretty excited about it as well, as you can see.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: When They Raise The Stakes . .
. . . just get a stepladder! Scion: Demigod is more complex than that, to be sure, but that's really all it comes down to. Cosmically speaking.
I've gone a long time with an average of one real vacation a decade. I love conventions, but they don't exactly count as relaxation. The last time I really got away, if I remember correctly, was an accident . . . I was visiting friends in the Midwest and got snowed in. The liquor cabinet was much depleted by the time things melted, and much mighty Starcraft was played. That wasn't a planned break, but it restored a couple of points of sanity, all the same.
This time, though, I was working on a report, I looked back at a couple of earlier reports, I thought about what I'd put in writing to Senior Staff about my productivity and my general mood and energy level . . . and I said "This employee needs some time off NOW." And since this employee happens to be me, I got him to listen.
So for the next few weeks, not only will I not be in the office much, but I won't have my nose to the grindstone at home. Some things will get done, but it will be "Work Lite" . . . things I just feel like doing at the moment, with no deadline.
So I may be just a little bit slow to answer e-mails and so on. We'll see if we can't get me back to merely manageably crazy before I get back to Munchkin Quest and Munchkin Booty.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Stupid Level Playing Field . . .
Wouldn't it be great if you could dispatch all those obnoxious high school bullies with your heat vision? Who hasn't fantasized about using superhuman powers on the Antagonists of the Awkward Age. Well, with Mutants & Masterminds: Hero High, you can! (Note: the bullies can now teleport, hurl boulders, read minds, and so on. So, uh, yeah, you might still be up a creek. Guess you should be more careful what you wish for, huh?)
October 5, 2007: Illuminated Site of the Week: Mad Science Is In The Genes
Want kids to join you in your love of all things geek? Get the tykes started with their own magnetic gauss gun. Still have time left in your Saturday afternoon? The mother site, Science Toys, offers them the chance to build solar-powered hotdog grills and stuff. The site isn't all weapons and military domination (just the good parts). Wait . . . a magnetic ring launcher? That's even better than the rocket. Well, almost. -- Suggested by John Guin
That head. That one over there. It's . . . look, see that thing? Left of it. It's right there. No, not that head, that head. Yes, there! Well, we see it. Hrm. This must be The Curse of the Witch Head we heard so much about. Huh? "Advanced Adventures?" What are you . . . oh, uh, nevermind.
October 4, 2007: High-Tech: Lots And Lots Of Guns
GURPS High-Tech covers equipment from the 18th century through the modern age. But everyone knows that the most popular piece of adventuring gear is a weapon. How else can you kill monsters and take their stuff?
(Wait, that's Munchkin. Well, it works here too.)
Today we have two, count 'em, two new excerpts for GURPS High-Tech. The first covers one of the most popular submachine guns in the world; the other has a few items you'd need if caught on the wrong side of said submachine gun.
GURPS High-Tech is currently at the printer, and is scheduled for November release.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: One Hell Of A Book
Y'see, because it's Rifts: Hades, Pits of Hell. Sure, shake your head. You should have heard the jokes we threw out in favor of that one.
From now until October 31st, Warehouse 23 will be accepting entries into the Great Cthulhu Giveaway. Having grown tired of R'lyeh, everyone's favorite Elder God is seeking a new home . . . and it just might be yours.
Any customer purchasing product with a total retail value of over $10 may enter the contest. Every full $10 spent in your order qualifies you for an additional entry in the drawing.
To enter:
- Place an order with Warehouse 23 between now and Midnight (CST) on October 31st, 2007.
- In the "Special Shipping Instructions" field, include the following code to be automatically entered in the contest: giveaway
- Our system will automatically assign the appropriate amount of drawing entries based on the total product value of your order.
For more information on this promotion, please visit this page.
-- Shadlyn
Warehouse 23 News: Yet More BattleLore
One expansion is never enough! That's why we're offering two, yes two expansions for the price of two! That's right, if you purchase BattleLore: The Hundred Years' War, you'll also receive an opportunity to purchase a copy of BattleLore: Goblin Marauders! It's a deal too obvious to pass up!
My copy of Hobby Games: The 100 Best arrived yesterday which automatically meant that last night was devoted to reading. If you're unfamiliar with the book, it's a recent release from Green Ronin Publishing, edited by James Lowder, in which 100 game designers talk about 100 different games.
Why do I have a copy, you ask? Besides the obvious answer - it's a book about games - there's also the simple reason that I contributed to the book (I wrote about Battletech). After reading some of the entries in the book, though, I feel like I completely snuck in when no one was looking. I mean, I'm in the same book as such well-known designers as Reiner Knizia, Richard Berg, Jeff Grubb, and even a couple of guys named Steve Jackson. I'm definitely not worthy.
I can honestly say that even if I hadn't been given the opportunity to add my own rambling insanity to the book I would have shelled out the $24.95 for a copy. After all, where else am I going to get the chance to hear what Mike Pondsmith has to say about Traveller? This is definitely my only chance to sit back and smile as Matt Forbeck tells me all about Space Hulk. And I would hate to ask Vegas what the odds are of me sitting down with Alan Moon and listening quietly as he discusses Descent.
If you're a fan of games, and I'm talking about everything from Acquire to D&D to Naval War* to Paranoia, you owe it to yourself to add the book to your reading list. It's enjoyable, informative, and one of the only books published this year that every gamer should own.
I'm holding out hope for a second volume.
-- Phil Reed
* John Tynes' essay makes me want to track down a copy of this old game (it has now been a decade since I last played Naval War).
Warehouse 23 News: What's Black And White And The Punchline For This Joke?
A Penguin!
We're fast approaching Warehouse 23's very favorite holiday - the ever-creepy, ever-entertaining Halloween.
One day each year, Steve Jackson Games pays its staff to play games - any games!
Join us in this noble endeavor, gathering your geeky groups for grotesque gaming this Halloween holiday. To aid you in your quest for horrific, eerie, and disturbing content to fit the season, Warehouse 23 has put together a Halloween Browse Page. Give it a gander.
-- Shadlyn
Warehouse 23 News: The Best Forty Years In Gaming!
Forty years. That's how long Gen Con has been around. That's a lot of time. Time enough for gaming dynasties to rise and fall. Time enough for two whole generations of gamers to pop into existence. Not quite time enough to play a game of Diplomacy. It's a perfect amount of time to write a book about Gen Con called, ever so appropriately, 40 Years of Gen Con.
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