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Illuminated Site of the Week
This is the short version; there will be more later.
- I left my computer in the States when I flew last week - it went to Apple for warranty service - so I have pretty much NO IDEA what has happened in the office or the world since last week. Yes, that means I have not read your e-mail.
- I am therefore relieved to see the new building still standing.
- Warpcon was fantastic. I got to PLAY GAMES. Including some new ones that I'll talk about later.
- I seem to be hale and hearty despite a day of flights that started at 5am Monday in Europe, and is still going on at 10:30 Monday in Austin. I will get back into the swim of things as soon as I can.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: What Price Victory?
Nietzsche said that those who fight monsters should be wary that they themselves do not become monsters in the process. Nietzsche probably wasn't talking about Savage Worlds: Rippers, but we won't hold it against him.
Scott was a busy, busy editor last week, and the result is that we've got a pile of early GURPS books back "in print" on e23.
Now you too can thrill to these thrilling tales of yesteryear . . .
Could there be more classic reprints on the way? Keep watching e23 to find out!
-- Chris Aylott
Warehouse 23 News: Like Zombies!!!, Only Without All That Rotting Flesh
MidEvil proves, once and for all that, that the real Great American Pastime is beating up the undead. Well, think about it, which would you rather hit with a bat: a ball or an evil, shambling, skeleton warrior?
January 29, 2006: More Tidbits From GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars
Two more excerpts from GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars have been added to the book's site. This week, we look at two alien races significant to the Terrans: the Vegans, and the Nugiiri.
I bet that got some long-time Traveller fans' attention.
Watch this space for the next excerpt, a look at a Crockett-class picket ship. In glorious color!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Warehouse 23 Top Ten
Check out Warehouse 23's top selling items for January at the Warehouse 23 Top 10 page.
January 28, 2006: Illuminated Site of the Week: Nice Knowing You
No man can know the exact hour and manner of his death . . . you're kind of limited to the manner. The Death Psychic will tell you just how you'll meet your maker based on your name and age. Small wonder songstress Anne Murray adds an E to her first name - better to be sawed in half in a magic show than done in by a serial killer. And with strange eons (and stranger coding), even Death, Jesus, and Jimmy Hoffa may die. -- Suggested by Buzzardo
Warehouse 23 News: Mankind's Last Stand, Now On Your Dinner Table
So make sure to set a few hundred thousand extra places for the Mobile Infantry. Starship Troopers: The Miniatures Game has all the rules, templates, counters, and minis you need to make a heroic last stand at the Battle of Thanksgiving Turkey Hill.
Changing Times is a GM guide, campaign book, and GURPS Fourth Edition conversion for Transhuman Space, written by Phil Masters, scheduled to appear soon as a PDF at e23.
The Changing Times playtest will be a closed mailing list playtest. Participation in the playtest does not guarantee credit in the published book, and is limited to people with valid Pyramid subscriptions. (You can purchase a Pyramid subscription directly from e23.) A sizable but still limited number of playtesters will be chosen to participate based on a variety of criteria to represent the diverse GURPS player base; previous playtest experience is less important than an interest in the subject. Playtesters may be added in two or more groups to give everyone a chance to apply; the playtest is expected to run until February 20.
Some simple rules and posting guidelines, based on the usual playtest rules here:
www.sjgames.com/pyramid/playtest.html
www.sjgames.com/pyramid/login/playtest/playtest-rules.html
will be in effect during the playtest to help the authors and staff keep track of everyone's contributions, and will be provided as part of the playtest materials.
Interested parties willing to follow instructions should apply by sending an e-mail to the Lead Playtester, Jeff Wilson, at jwilson@io.com . The subject should say "CT Playtest" and the first line should have the applicant's real name followed by their e-mail address in brackets like so:
Jeff Wilson <jwilson@io.com>
Applicants may use as many additional lines as necessary to relate their relevant background and other qualifications for playtesting Changing Times. People with little or no particular background or experience in playtesting are equally sought and encouraged to apply, with spots reserved for first-timers.
Warehouse 23 News: Vile, Despicable, And Evil To Boot
No vigilante worth his combination automatic rifle/hockey stick would waste his time stopping jaywalkers or loiterers. They've got bigger fish to fry, and Dark Champions: Predators is a veritable Pike Place market of villains.
A set of awards being voted on at Game Wyrd lists SJ as one of four nominees for "The Writer or Artist Most Likely to be in Communion with the Great Old Ones."
We're honored, we think.
Oh, and GURPS Banestorm is also nominated, for "The RPG or Supplement Most Likely to Improve Your Campaign." And that is definitely an honor.
Warehouse 23 News: Is It One Box Or Two Box Lids?
Such quandaries puzzle the eternals. You need not think about it so much, however. The White Game Box isn't just some metaphysical conundrum. It's an excellent place to keep little odds and ends for gaming.
January 25, 2006: Playtest Call: In Nomine Superiors: Asmodeus
This is a call for playtesters for In Nomine Superiors: Asmodeus, the latest in the successful e23 series. Those who desire to be in on the playtest must send email to In Nomine Line Editor Beth McCoy at arcangel@io.com with [ASMODEUS] in the subject line and the following information in the text:
- Pyramid username (see e23 to subscribe to Pyramid)
- e23 username (if it's different from the Pyramid one)
- The email address you want to use for the playtest
- The name you want to use for playtest credit, if any
- And finally, a brief explanation of why you should be on the list.
We would also like to know which of the following you prefer:
- HTML
- Word documents
- RTF
- Plain text
- More than one of the above
The Line Editor reserves the right to refuse playtest access at her evil, sadistic whim. (Though she usually has a reason for it, and hopes that it will not be necessary.) Failing to follow the instructions will attract the evil sadism.
The call for playtesters will remain open until Sunday, Jan. 29.
Warehouse 23 News: Boredom, Bolsheviks, And Bullets
Kablamo takes the time-honored tradition of shooting yourself in the head and turns it into a game the whole family can enjoy. (Note: The Secret Masters do not advocate suicide. If you all killed yourselves, they would have nobody to fnord.)
Do not apply if you are allergy prone . . . Austin's full of pollen, and that's what's taking Wil away from us. But yes, we have a job opening.
Warehouse 23 News: Round One . . . Fight!
Ever wanted a Hero System rulebook that just covers combat and leaves out all that boring character development and roleplaying stuff? The Hero System Combat Handbook takes you from stilettos to sniper rifles, wrapping up Hero System combat in one nice, tidy book.
On Saturday, February 11, I will be at OwlCon, a game convention at my alma mater, Rice University in Houston. If you're in the neighborhood, come see me! I'll be doing my usual dog and pony show, for moderate values of "dog" and "pony" - I'll have some new things to playtest, I'll babble about what's coming up, I'll answer some questions and avoid others fnord, and so on.
It's a three-day convention, but Saturday will be my only day there. However, that's ALL DAY Saturday, giving me lots of time to show off new stuff, talk, listen, play games . . . And oh, yes . . . Last time I was at Rice, I saw a Segway in one of the Engineering offices. I am SO hoping I'll get a chance to ride it . . . Feel free to point and laugh; that seems only fair.
-- Steve Jackson
PS - But NEXT weekend I'll be on the other side of the Atlantic . . . Thursday I'll be signing at Leisure Games in London, Friday through Sunday I'll be at Warpcon in Cork.
Warehouse 23 News: Redefining "Mass Destruction"
Long Tom artillery systems, Angel ECM suites, PPC capacitors, laser anti-missile systems, and ER Pulse Lasers . . . does life get any better? Not if Classic BattleTech: Maximum Tech has anything to say about it.
The UltraCorps test game India ended at 10pm Saturday night. It was a huge success; at no time was play interrupted by a crash or major bug. Various minor bugs were found and fixed, and various features were added even as play continued. And fun was had! We'll start another alpha game soon.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Intrigue! Romance! Action! Stuff!
Well, okay, it might not be quite that cool, but Wars: Incursion is pretty solid way for you to launch of a Wars campaign for a handful of newbie players.
Got somebody you want rubbed out? Suspense novelist Lisa Gardner can help, and all you have to do is fill out a web form! Visit her Kill A Friend, Maim A Buddy page.
Warehouse 23 News: Since When Do Kobolds Have Poisonous Stingers?
Since the GM got a copy of Book of Templates: Deluxe Edition. With it, old d20 critters can be made anew with all manner of unexpected abilities. Flying carrion crawlers! Giant gnolls! Undead vampires! Er, sorry, got carried away. . .
January 20, 2006: Illuminated Site of the Week: Retro Rockets
If you think all the really interesting space battles happened in the 1950s, , go retro - literally - with Atomic Rockets. Lots of discussion of various aspects of space war, as we used to think it would go and as we think now that it might . . . compared and contrasted with real military experience, and decorated with lots of great pulp SF covers. -- Suggested by Conrad Noche
Warehouse 23 News: The Most Foul, Cruel, And Bad-Tempered Rodent You Ever Set Eyes On
Sure, you could buy the Monty Python: Plush Death with Big Pointy Teeth Rabbit. Me? I'll be happy to safely view it from afar. Like from Jupiter.
We're pleased, on the whole, with the way the forums are going. While there are problem users from time to time, the level of discourse is on the whole quite civilized and informative, compared to many online communities. And some of the posts are darned interesting.
As I type this, at 11:30 at night, there are 282 users online, and 155,044 posts in the system.
The only thing that makes us really grumpy about the forums is that they are not well integrated into the rest of the SJ Games system . . . your forum account has nothing to do with your e23 account. Someday we'll deal with that, and in the meantime, everyone is invited to keep posting like mad!
-- Steve Jackson
Firefly got cancelled. A few people tried to fight it, among them myself. Got a movie out of it: Serenity. Now there's an RPG based on the film, called simply the Serenity Roleplaying Game. A GM's goal is simple: find some players, find an adventure, and keep flyin'.
January 18, 2006: This Is The Title Of This Story . . .
This little exercise in self-referentiality left me helpless with laughter the first time I read it, and it's still good for a grin. So I share.
Sentence fragment. Good device. Snicker.
-- Steve Jackson
The work of German physicist Burkhard Heim is incomprehensible even to most of his fellow researchers, but some take it seriously . . . and if his theories are correct, they could lead to faster-than-light travel. Cross your fingers.
Warehouse 23 News: Juice Not Included
No, not that kind of pulp. Pulp Hero is most definitely not about a delicious, vitamin C rich breakfast beverage. It's about heroes with two fists, damsels that are very distressing, and all their goofy hijinks.
I haven't been to a Worldcon for too long. Looks like I'll be going to the next one - which is in Los Angeles, and the L.A. group knows how to DO this stuff, so it'll be a good one even by the elevated standards of Worldcons . . . and I'll be taking the Chaos Machine with me.
Too much fun.
-- Steve Jackson
We trust that everyone has read about the green pigs from Taiwan.
If this makes you wist for the original Dr. Seuss classic, indulge yourself. They're not writing them like that any more.
If it just makes you hungry, that's covered too.
Warehouse 23 News: Would I Lie To You?
I mean, I could say that the Plastic Slotted Miniatures Bases (Diagonal) are a key ingredient in achieving inner peace, but that'd be a bald-faced lie. These are simply small, plastic bases for metal miniatures. Really. I promise. Put the magnifying glass down.
When I visited Japan late last year I was invited to add a bit to the "Huge Dungeon" map that was being created. This one might give the "World's Largest Dungeon" some competition . . . there was an awful lot of it. Here's a picture. Behind me on the floor you can see more . . . and it went on and on.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Some Say That Time Is Like A River
Others say that time is an excellent plot device used to achieve the maxiumum amount of humor possible for a superhero storyline. ps238 #12 illustrates this point rather nicely.
January 13, 2006: Illuminated Site of the Week: The Necronomicon Is Out Of Print For A Reason
Got a childhood memory of going to the library and reading a book about UFOs or werewolves? Do you wonder what became of those beloved volumes of high weirdness? They've all migrated to Veronica's Books, which claims to be the place to go for all those tomes of forgotten lore. From acupuncture to Wicca and all illuminated points in between, there's sure to be a gift for the enlightened on your shopping list.
Warehouse 23 News: Workin' On Our Night . . . Gaunts
Few items scream "cuddly" in quite the same way as the Plush Night Gaunt. By an interesting coincidence, few victims scream quite as loudly as those of a night gaunt. Go figure.
January 12, 2006: GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars Art
GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars has shaped up to be a very good-looking book. We've just added the splash from Chapter 11: Campaigns to the Interstellar Wars page. Jesse DeGraff did some excellent pieces for the book; this is one of many.
Watch the Interstellar Wars page for more excerpts, leading up to its release in February!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: The Creature From The Creatures Book
Yeah, I'm having a hard time greenlighting the title with the studio. . . Anyway, in the meantime, you can enjoy the inspiration for the visionary (if somewhat flawed) title: D6 Adventure: Creatures. An A-Z of things that creep, stomp, flap, and make this weird sort of wubba-wubba noise.
Backups, as they say, are not mission critical. RESTORES are mission critical.
But you can't do a restore if you don't have a backup, and today's stress point was the failure of our office's backup server. We had just replaced the finicky and annoying Retrospect software with a new-to-us package called Bacula, and it turned out, after hours of poking, that Bacula was at fault; apparently it had been handed too many large files, and had choked and died and not even dropped a buoy to tell the sysadmins what was killing it.
Feh.
We have learned the hard way that what is not backed up WILL be lost, so this isn't a problem we can shrug off. But you'd think that since everyone needs backups, there would be some really bulletproof solutions out there. At home, I just copy everything onto a separate Seagate drive every couple of days. Even that is not bulletproof, but unless the drive goes bad without warning, at the same time that my internal hard drive dies, it's pretty safe. (I think. Said Steve with paranoia.)
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Warning: Choking Hazard
The ultimate deterrent against excessive yawning, the Alien Egg and Facehugger Plush Replica will keep those big mouths firmly clamped shut.
The University of Texas campus is dominated by a large tower, which is normally lit in white. On special occasions, though, the top is lit orange. For very special occasions (beating Texas A&M, for instance), the whole tower is orange. And for a national championship, they do this.
I had never seen it before, except in pictures, so after work today I took a little detour. Pretty . . . the orange is just the color of a glowing coal. Go team.
-- Steve Jackson
At the end of this month I'll be a guest at Warpcon in Cork, Ireland. For many of my readers that's not an easy trip . . . on the other hand, for the folks in Europe, it might be doable. So come see me. John Kovalic will be there too . . . Munchkin will definitely be played. Fun will be had. Alcoholic beverages will be consumed. New Munchkin cards will be created and illustrated, and perhaps we'll even remember in the morning what they mean.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Kill Monsters! Steal Treasure! Stab Buddies!
Heeey, waitaminnit. . . that sounds familiar. Hmm. Anyway, Runebound, 2nd Edition is a boardgame of high adventure in a world threatened by an evil (like there's any other kind) necromancer. You gain levels, you get cool stuff, and you can betray the other players if you like. Everything a fantasy game needs!
January 8, 2006: Illuminated Site of the Week: You've . . . Always . . . Been The Caretaker Here
Stephen King thought the original big-screen version of his novel The Shining was too over-the-top for its own good, and the folks at P.S. 260 agree with him. They've edited the film's trailer and made it what it was always meant to be: a romantic comedy. The rest of the site is something spiffy, too. -- Suggested by W. Blake Smith
Mjolnir in hand, Here Be Monsters: Plush Thor is ready to command the power of plush lightning. He's small, and kinda cute, but I wouldn't say that to his face if I were you. Plush lightning hurts a lot more than you'd think.
is a site for people who can do wonders . . . very peculiar wonders . . . that the hardware makers never intended. Even those of us who lack the skills to replicate these constructions can marvel at them.
Warehouse 23 News: Location, Location, Location
D6 Fantasy: Locations isn't just about locations for your fantasy campaigns, it's. . . . it's. . . well, maybe it is. But what locations!
I was interviewed recently by GamerGod. They were so complimentary in the introduction that I'm almost embarrassed to post it . . . but it does answer some questions that I'm often asked, and one or two that I should be asked more often . . . so here it is.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Warehouse 23 Top Ten
Check out Warehouse 23's top selling items for December at the Warehouse 23 Top 10 page.
We are finally, completely, thoroughly moved out of the old building. They'll probably knock it down in a week or so. Sadly, I didn't find anybody to buy the metal warehouse. Too bad; it could have lasted another hundred years or so.
I am delighted to report that after some optimization, the UltraCorps tick finished in 7 minutes instead of the previous 20. And there was much rejoicing.
The weather in Austin is simply ridiculous. It's actually HOT in the daytime . . .
We reviewed our schedule today. While it has a couple of holes in it, we do have a pretty good idea what we intend to bring you over the next 12 months - and having spotted the holes, we can make sure they get filled.
-- Steve Jackson
January 4, 2006: I'm From The Government. I'm Here To Help You.
How would you like it if you had a controllable mental condition . . . and the drug that let you control it was taken off the market with no substitute?
It can happen. It can happen in this country. It can happen completely without warning; the first you know that your life is about to fall apart is when your pharmacist tells you "Sorry, can't fill this prescription!"
This is what is happening to Teresa Nielsen Hayden, who for many years has been a prominent science fiction editor . . . and for long years before that, an active SF fan. And it's happening to everyone else who uses the drug Cylert to control narcolepsy or ADHD. (And if you are one of those people, I'm very sorry, but the FDA has a plan for your life . . . it involves dozing so much that you can't hold a job.)
You can read more on her blog. It's not a pretty story. If you, or anyone you love, depends on a prescription drug to stay sane, happy, or productive, you'll see how Ralph Nader - bless his headline-grabbing little heart - and pliable bureaucrats at the FDA could quickly turn a normal life into a hopeless one.
If reading more inspires you to write to your Senator and Congressman, good.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: We Ain't In Kansas Anymore, Chummer
You should get away from Seattle. Maybe go east for a while, see Russia or Japan or something. It's a whole 'nother world there, chummer. I mean, here we got the sprawl, but over there they got. . . well they got a sprawl, too. . . Um, here, Shadowrun: Shadows of Asia can lay it out better'n I can.
Last night, at 10pm, the UltraCorps playtest ticked for the first time. Some of us were on the edges of our seats . . . this is by FAR the biggest game we've tried with the new codebase.
It seems to have run all right. Whew!
The tick took 20 minutes, which is too long . . . this was only the first turn, and later turns will be far more complex. So we have optimizing to do. Nevertheless: it worked! Yay.
-- Steve Jackson
Aliens are out there. You just have to know which books to buy. For example, D6 Space: Aliens I is chock full of sentients from all over the galaxy. There are other such books. . . but I have said too much already.
January 2, 2006: GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars Table Of Contents
As has become our custom, the Table of Contents for GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars is our first sneak peek. Of course, we've also tossed in the Index and a sweet image of the Indomitable for extra holiday goodness.
Watch this space over the next several weeks for more previews of Jesse DeGraff's awesome art, samples of Traveller's future history, and much more.
GURPS Traveller: Interstellar Wars is scheduled to ship in February 2006.
And In Our OTHER Interstellar Wars . . .
The UltraCorps alpha-test game, India, is full; it hit 393 players about 10:45 pm Saturday night. If you missed out, we're sorry, and we'll try to give you another chance soon.
Gods, demons, and (as usual) the human race stuck in the middle. Life was bad enough on Onara, but now that the Godswall can no longer keep the dark legions at bay . . . Well, let's just say the picture Arcanis: Legacy of Damnation paints ain't pretty.
January 1, 2006: Happy New Year! Wanna Play A Game?
As 2005 entered its closing hours, we hit a big milestone for UltraCorps. The first big, open alpha-test with the new codebase is starting now. India is a circular galaxy with spaces for 393 players. It will lock when it's full, or after the first tick (10 pm Jan. 2). There will be 20 turns, ticking nightly at 10pm.
To join the game, go here. (If you aren't already registered on our website, you'll need to register first.)
Warehouse 23 News: Not To Be Confused With Scaly Or Bald Knights
Fuzzy Knights: Tails from the Table #2 is sure to delight any gamer whose heart is not a shriveled, black lump of vile sludge.
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