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December 31, 2008: Tonight's A Great Night To Play A Game
To join the chorus of "Celebrate Responsibly" and "Designate a Driver" messages, we'll remind everyone to stay safe this New Year's Eve.
And if you need something to do between the start of the party and midnight, may we suggest a game? Three to four hours would be perfect for Munchkin Quest, or a couple of games of Chez Geek.
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Your Own Personal Mini Yes Man
Munchkin: Bobblehead Edition is a reimagining of everyone's favorite game about stabbing people and taking their things. "Reimagining," as in "imagine what the game would be like if it came with a little bobblehead Super Munchkin." Well, imagine no more! We got our hands on some of the previously Barnes & Noble-only release (though the packaging on these copies is dinged and torn - caveat emptor), and are eagerly waiting for you to take them away from us. Our hands don't deserve to hold such nicery. They have done . . . unspeakable things.
Every so often, fans want to stop by and look around our warehouse. We tend to discourage this: There's no wacky factory, stacks of boxes aren't all that interesting, and tall shelves can be dangerous if you're not careful.
Other times, secret agencies send in operatives. This is a record of one of those times.
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: What You Do In Private Is Your Business
When someone like Kromm presents us with a book, we don't ask many questions. When it's called Dungeon Fantasy we ask even fewer. Fortunately, it was about swords & sorcery and not . . . sordid-ry.
If you're anything at all like me – and for the sake of your friends, I hope that you're not – then you spend a lot of time writing. E-mails, forum posts, blog posts, and memos – and even some game writing – fill my days with words. And with so many words pouring out of my head in a single day, it isn't that shocking when the dreaded cliché finds its way into an otherwise adequate block of text. But how can I keep that from happening?
Well, with the article "Clichés: Avoid Them Like the Plague" I've now got an ace in the hole and can, as luck would have it, dodge clichés with the best of them.
Wait, that last one doesn't actually appear on the list. Well, it should, because it's as old as time.
– Phil Reed
Warehouse 23 News: Now With 400% More Tree-Hugging
At first, there was Munchkin, and that was good enough. But soon, the rabid desire to kill things and take their stuff grew. So, we brought forth a sequel. And a sequel to that sequel. And so on down the line, bringing us to Munchkin 5 - De-Ranged. Surely this will satiate the previously unslakeable bloodlust of our rabid (though greatly appreciated) fans . . . Right?
Like the recently reprinted SPANC, Burn In Hell – our favorite game of burning souls – was a victim of "too many good games." It sold through the first print run just fine, but we couldn't find the spare moment to pull together the reprint. Until now.
And Phil's gone and changed stuff. I swear, that guy won't be happy until every game weighs 10 pounds and is virtually indestructible. For BiH, he was very moderate . . . he only added a score pad and a pencil.
That said, I'll admit the pad looks very nifty. Greg Hyland's caricatures are great, as always. And we even updated Saddam Hussein's history.
If you missed this game the first time 'round, pick it up when the reprint hits shelves in March. Your funny bone will be glad you did.
– Paul Chapman
He who dies with the most toys does not win. He who uses the most toys to kill the other guy wins. Patton said that, didn't he? Eh, in any case, GURPS High-Tech certainly has enough toys to dish out a heapin' helpin' of hostile hospitality.
As reported earlier, Chibithulhus grow on trees. And when cold weather strikes, the fruit is very small. The lack of size, however, seems to magnify the Cute Factor.
No, this isn't a product yet – this is just an idea. If you'd like it to become a product, though, then be sure to let us know.
– Paul Chapman
More than just a battle cry, it's a statement of the best thing we've come up with to keep track of your levels in Munchkin: a die! The Munchkin Dice are shiny, rather big, and precisely 10 sides short of being a 20-sided die. They also come with 14 new cards to use and abuse and use to abuse.
December 26, 2008: Don't Forget . . . The Great Unknown!
You've got your copy of Munchkin Quest. You've got a couple of extra days off for the holidays. Time to get your creativity flowing!
The Great Unknown is a MQ contest that seeks to answer one question: What kind of vaguely game-like thing can you do with your Dungeon Crawl Kit (a.k.a. Munchkin Quest)? The best answers will become products, with showers of praise and glory to the originators (as well as copies of the product).
The full details are here, but here are the vital bits:
- The deadline is January 5, 2009.
- All submissions become the property of Steve Jackson Games.
- Submissions should be in RTF format.
- Submissions should be emailed to greatunknown@sjgames.com.
- You don't need to use the title "The Great Unknown."
Have fun! We look forward to seeing those ideas!
(And to our friends around the world: Happy Boxing Day!)
– Paul Chapman
Got Munchkin Quest yet? 'Cause, y'know . . . we've still got a few copies. And, y'know, we heard . . . y'know, people might be, like . . . a teeny bit interested.
The office is closed today. Really, no kidding, closed. We're home playing games.
Now, here's something that you probably didn't know unless you're one of our testers. We've been working on a couple of iPhone apps. They're not in the App Store, though, so all I have to say is that they're on the way.
But Kira, who's doing the coding, has written an app of her own, and I like it enough to plug it. It's called "Holiday Bells." For 99 cents you can turn your iPhone into a jingle-bell shaker, a handbell (with eight notes to choose from), or a whole little set of eight bells to play. And the bell sounds are not synth - they're actual recordings, so they sound like real bells. I got my 99 cents worth of fun from this one in the first five minutes, when I figured out "Jingle Bells," and I'm still playing with it.
Pretend this is a cool little Buy It Now button.
-- Steve Jackson
Warehouse 23 News: Crime Scene Instigation
Face it, an orc with a sword in his back, lying in a pool of his own blood, isn't even a third as interesting as a doddering old fool laying in a pool of his own blood. In the parlor. With a lead pipe nearby. GURPS Mysteries (now available in corporeal form) is the most generic and universal guide to accusing butlers and writing "murder" you will ever find. Ever. We promise.
I love cookies. And I love Munchkin. Therefore, I double-love the Munchkin Resurrection Cookie.
No, we're not selling these. They're holiday gifts for special friends in the industry, baked in very limited numbers. We've sent them all out, so no matter what bribes you send us, we don't have any more.
However, if you're facing one of these Cookies in a Munchkin (or Munchkin Quest) game: Eating it either prevents any Bad Stuff that involves "death" or flips all your hearts to red. For complete rules, see the Cookie's page.
– Paul Chapman
Spanish GURPS Lite
This file, so happily announced a couple of days ago, was not actually ready for prime time. If you have downloaded it, throw it away and give us a few days (we hope) to get things fixed. That's the beautiful thing about PDFs; it's so easy to distribute a correction. Of course, we shouldn't have fouled it up in the first place. Sorry - SJ
Illuminati is back! One might even say it's "better than ever." How? By way of the long-awaited, much-anticipated, and otherwise primo-keen Bavarian Fire Drill. It has 110 new ways to dominate and decimate, and introduces Artifacts to the mixed-up world of remixed conspiracy theories. Buy it today and get 23 fnords absolutely free!
December 23, 2008: Christmas Bonus Rule For The Munchkin Silver Piece
As glad as we are that you're reading the Daily Illuminator each morning (or evening, or whenever), we do occasionally have news that's a bit more specifically Munchkin-related. Sometimes we post about it in more detail on the Munchkin forums than we do here, and sometimes we announce something there a few days before we have space for it here. I know – how could there be that much to talk about, even for our favorite game? But it's true.
For instance, the Christmas bonus rule for the Munchkin Silver Piece . . .
Christmas Bonus Munchkin Silver Piece Rule
This rule is only valid right around Christmas (December 23-26).
Give the Munchkin Silver Piece to another player. The Munchkin Silver Piece now belongs to that player; you don't get it back. You may go up a level. This may not be the winning level, and you may not gain more than one level from Silver Pieces during this game – multiple levels through use of multiple Silver Pieces are not allowed.
We're being generous, so this rule does not replace the normal December rule. However, remember that each player can activate only one Munchkin Silver Piece per game, so it's either a level or bribing a monster.
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Would You Like Friiiiiiies With That?
Some in the fast food industry may seem, at times, a little brain-dead. In Lord of the Fries, this idea goes one step further. The employees are dead-dead. Which, when you think about it, is much more efficient than only being brain-dead. Now the whole dang body is involved! Of course, that really just means they're more efficient at getting your order desperately wrong . . . but, hey, some food is better than no food!
With the holidays, last Thursday marks the final e23 upload of the year. And it's a doozy!
The headliner is the second issue of the new, improved Pyramid. The title, Looks Like a Job for . . . Superheroes, conveys the four-color theme quite well, I think. And since this issue contains an interview with Steve Long (Hero System Fifth Edition), along with 40-odd pages of other super articles, the theme pretty much has to be supers!
Next up is the latest installment in the Cardboard Heroes series. This week: Dragons, from defenseless eggs to "Call the cleric – we're toast!" (a giant red elder).
The third release is perfectly priced for those overstretched holiday budgets: Free! GURPS Lite Spanish is a distillation of the basic GURPS Fourth Edition rules, translated into Spanish. Hm, you likely figured that bit out on your own, didn't you? Later note: This file has problems. We've taken it down. If you have already downloaded it, you'll want to get a new copy when we fix and repost it.
Last but oh so far from least, Ogre Scenario Book 1 is the final release for 2008. Six scenarios for Ogre, ready for your downloading delight, for only $4.95 – not even a Mark VII can beat that deal.
Yes, four releases in one week – it may be the last upload of the year, but we're going out with a bang! (We're also trying to make Fox's head explode, but don't tell him that.)
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: What Is Halloween?
Halloween is sea shanties. Halloween is swinging from the rigging. Halloween is hoisting the Jolly Roger, setting sail, and stabbing anyone who has something you want. Wait . . . no, that's Munchkin Booty. What is Munchkin Booty? Something you can buy, right now, from Warehouse 23. It's also a great excuse to run around the house screaming "Arrrrrr!" And isn't that what Halloween is all about?
Bibliographies can give the reader insight into what works influenced the author, as well as further reading on the topic. For GURPS books, these lists can include anything from reference tomes to comic books. And with the online versions, you can go from "interested" to "owner" in just a few clicks.
Most Fourth Edition books have online bibliographies, and we're updating the older releases as time allows. Most recently, we added pages for Tales of the Solar Patrol, Celtic Myth, Mars, Age of Napoleon, GURPS In Nomine, and Low-Tech. The complete listing of every bibliography we have online is here.
Of course, this isn't just altruism. Steve Jackson Games does get a percentage from Amazon if you buy through our links. But if you're like me, the holidays have snuck up and your shopping options are shrinking rapidly. Overnight shipping, here I come!
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: How Now, Foul Cow?
We enjoy milking the Munchkin franchise for all it's worth, so it probably won't come as an udder surprise that we released another expansion. Munchkin Cthulhu 2 - Call of Cowthulhu will beef up your Munchkin Cthulhu decks, so hoof it to our order page, lest you be forced to cow before the haynous barnyard demons of Arkham!
You need to decorate your tree and we've got these ornaments. Convenient, isn't it?
Not convinced? How about this: If the Munchkin Christmas Ornament is hanging on a tree in a room where you're playing Munchkin (any of 'em) on the 24th or 25th of any month, you get a present (a.k.a. a face-up Treasure) every time you hit fifth level.
How's that for "have a merry Christmas," eh?
– Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: No News? Good News!
Since nobody will be here to write anything, these little Warehouse 23 ads are going into reruns for the break. It's a lot like getting to catch episodes you missed from one of your favorite TV shows . . . If you stripped out the show and just left the commercials. Um . . . Happy Holidays!
Holiday Shipping
The holidays are fast approaching, and will be upon us quicker than you can say "Surprise Round." As you might expect, we are getting a lot of questions about shipping deadlines. Seems people are concerned about when their order needs to ship in order for their presently purchases to arrive in time for National Gift-Giving Day. Well, your friendly neighborhood me is here to break it down for you. The following list is the cut-off dates for each shipping method. If you use the method listed, then the date listed is the absolute last day you can place the order by and have it arrive in time.
- FedEx 2 Day: Sunday, December 21st
- FedEx Overnight: Monday, December 22nd
Keep in mind, however, that this assumes we have every item in your order in stock. If you order something we don't have (or if someone else snatches up the last of a given item before you do), your order will be delayed.
Today
Today (Friday, December 19) is our Winter Game Day. We are playing games, which may introduce some mild delays in responses. Orders will be shipped, however, so don't worry on that front.
Store Closures
As long as we're talking about special days, here's a little heads-up on our holiday schedule. Warehouse 23 will be closed on December 25th, 26th, and 31st. We'll also be closed on January 1st. On those days, nobody will be here to write e-mails, answer calls, or process orders. Also, on December 24th, we will only be putting in a half day. Orders will be processed that morning, but we won't be available much for customer servicey stuff. We'll be too busy driving home quickly to nog some eggs and prove to our parents that we're still alive.
And on that note, have a great holiday season!
-- Fox
Android is a beefy game. The box? Big. The rulebook? Substantial. The components? Legion and multifarious. So sure, it's not cheap. It's also not cheap, if you catch our drift. At over five-and-a-half pounds you're not so much getting a board game as you are an experience. And a very pretty one, to boot!
The Ogres added another entry to their annual Christmas list, this time giving us their suggestions for a dozen boxed games. I'm happy to report that Munchkin Quest made it onto the list.
If you already happen to own a copy of Munchkin Quest -- which you should, if you love dungeon crawls -- then I'll leave you with this thought: Go buy Dominion today. I encountered the game at BGG Con last month and it's fast becoming my favorite new release of the year. It's a card game, sure, but the repeat play value is off the charts. The game is a little difficult to locate, since stores didn't order enough copies when it was released, but I promise you that tracking down a copy of Dominion -- if you like the idea of taking the deck building phase of CCGs and turning it into a game of its own -- is worth the trouble.
-- Phil Reed
Warehouse 23 News: Of The Third Kind?
Third or fourth. Really, there've been quite a few incarnations of Cosmic Encounter. And why is that? We figure it's part of the So Good We Did It Twice Principle.
This Friday (December 19) is our Winter Game Day. Yay!
For Warehouse 23 and e23 customers, this means we're going to be distracted from our normal tasks. We'll get the urgent packages shipped out, and we'll pick up the phone if it's ringing (maybe). But responses, especially via email, will be slow. Plan your emergencies accordingly.
Because we'll be playing games. A wide variety of titles have been thrown around, and we'll have a report sometime before the end of the year. But if previous Game Days are any guide, the best laid plans will fall apart once folks start grabbing boards and rolling dice.
And if we're lucky, Jane will bring in her famous deviled eggs.
-- Paul Chapman
The annual OgreCave Christmas List was posted a few weeks ago. I read their lists each year because every now and then the guys mention a product that I happened to miss (it's rare, since I spend so much time staring at the industry in general, but it happens). This year they've listed Lord of the Fries as one of their Twelve Stocking Stuffer Games, saying: "The hilarious spirit of the original game is complimented by tokens to track points and smooth gameplay - in all, this is the best version yet of an essential gaming experience."
Thanks, guys, but you've got some mighty big feet if you can fit a copy of Lord of the Fries in your stocking!
-- Phil Reed
Server Downtime Wednesday Evening
The main servers for our site will be going offline for maintenance Wednesday evening at 7:00pm CST (GMT -6:00). This maintenance is expected to be brief, and the servers should be back online within 30 minutes. During this time, the main website, Warehouse 23, and e23 will be unavailable.
-- Jimmie Bragdon
Warehouse 23 News: More Holiday Cheer Than A Bottle Of Whiskey!
It's the holiday season again, boys and girls. That means shopping, Christmas songs, and . . . right, the family. Maybe it's not so bad. Maybe you actually like your family. Maybe this really is a joyous occasion filled with mirth and merry-making and familial ecstasy. But on the slim chance that it is, instead, a seething cauldron of angst, we suggest taking B-Movie Card Games: Silent But Deadly Night with you to keep everyone occupied.
It's the second week in a row for three releases from e23. That would explain the late nights Fox puts in, lining all those little 1's and 0's up. Digital products require more manual dexterity than you'd expect.
If you liked the MacGuffin Alphabet in your SF campaign, you'll love the Alphabet Arcane in your fantasy world! Stefan Jones has concocted 26 artifacts to reward . . . or punish! . . . adventurers. Each item comes complete with background and history.
Have a Martial Arts sized hole in your Third Edition collection? You're in luck! This PDF reprint is exactly what you need, whether it's for your collection or your GURPS Third Edition game. (If you're playing Fourth Edition, you'll want the new Martial Arts.)
But if you're using martial arts at all in your campaign, you'll need ninjas. And for ninjas, you'll need Cardboard Heroes: Fantasy Set 12 -- Japanese Characters. These 36 figures run the gamut from the aforementioned ninja to samurai, from magic-wielding shugenja to yakuza.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Buy This Book Or Be Purged
It's a simple decision, really. You can either purchase Dark Heresy: Disciples of the Dark Gods and continue to server the God Emperor as a faithful citizen of the Imperium, or . . . Well, let's just say the Inquisitors have had a very bad couple of days and leave it at that, shall we?
Matt Drake is a pleasant guy to chat with, as I did at BoardGameGeekCon last month. And now he's reviewed Munchkin on his Drake's Flames review blog. Matt's a funny guy, and his reviews are a good read, especially if you enjoy the occasional bit of immature humor -- and if you're interested in Munchkin, you better be.
The Armchair Critic has given a bit more mature, but no less useful, review, this time of Munchkin Quest. James Lynch has reviewed several other titles from the Munchkin line, and even dressed up as the iconic Supermunchkin for Halloween.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Thank You, May I Have Another?
What is Pandemic? It's a wonderful lesson in despair, humility, and fatalism for the whole family. Oh sure, you'll struggle mightily. You'll stand fast against the terrible wave of pestilence that threatens to make the human race nothing more than a big squishy memory. And then the board will say "mm, nah, I win" and destroy you like the feeble mortal you are. How good is Pandemic? So good that despite what just happened, the first thing you'll say is ". . . let's go again!"
We've been hinting at how good Frag Gold Edition looks and feels. Earlier in the week, the prototype showed up from the printer, and now we can show you, in living color.
Your eyes are not deceiving you -- that board is thick! Fox got a great close-up showing the height of the folded board. (Please ignore the lack of color on the figure; it's just a prototype.) The art on both sides is familiar, but you'll never worry about the map not laying flat, or accidentally tearing the edges.
Those player record sheets? They're not as heavy as the board, but they've still got some weight. And they're coated for dry-erase (pen included). The colors will vary a bit from what you see here . . . the final version will be color-coded to one of the six figures.
All this, wrapped in a jumbo box (the same size as the delightfully heavy Munchkin Quest), will be hitting store shelves in late March 2009.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Some People Are Naughty Constantly
Stuffy players adore needless conformity. Silly parables annoy nocturnal cops. Stupid, perplexing advertisements notify customers! SPANC (Space Pirate Amazon Ninja Catgirls), the only card game to feature space pirates, amazons, ninja, and catgirls all at the same time, has returned from the dismal hills of Out'Of'Printlandia. Buy it today and revel in this wonderfully tongue-in-cheek exploitation of . . . well, everything, really.
Munchkin Booty 2 - Jump the Shark
Jump the Shark . . . or you're fish food!
Return to the high seas for more Munchkin Booty action. Fight the Hammerhead Shark -- and the Phillips-Head Shark, too. And greatest of all is the terrible Moby Duck!
So kill them and take their stuff.
On the munchkin side, there are lots of new Ships, and a new Class: the Explorer! He gets a Treasure when he helps in combat, and he can pull cards back into his hand!
This set features four monsters with a new weakness: Current or former members of the real-life Armed Forces get a bonus against them!
112 cards and rulesheet, in a tuckbox. Stock #1461, ISBN 978-1-55634-784-9. $19.95.
The Vorkosigan Saga Sourcebook and Roleplaying Game
From the award-winning science-fiction stories of Lois McMaster Bujold comes The Vorkosigan Saga Sourcebook and Roleplaying Game . . . set in a future universe of honor and betrayal, war and intrigue, great victories and great defeats. Miles Vorkosigan is brilliant, charismatic, the heir to a noble house on a warrior planet . . . and hopelessly crippled.
No. Not hopelessly. A Vorkosigan never gives up. And when the fragile, dwarfed, odd-looking Miles charges headlong against the universe . . . Miles may break, but he's used to breaking. And he'll pay that price, for his Emperor's honor and his own, because when Miles hits it hard enough, the universe gives way.
Now you can enter the world of Miles Vorkosigan. Play his soldiers, his agents, his comrades. Play Miles himself, if you're up to the challenge . . . and if you think you can dare as much, and talk as fast, as the "little Admiral."
Illustrated by Bob Stevlic, with character art specifically approved by Lois McMaster Bujold.
240 full-color pages. Hardcover. Stock #01-2490, ISBN 978-1-55634-577-7. $39.95.
-- Paul Chapman
Miniatures terrain is great. It adds flavor and depth to any wargame. Minis terrain is also, sadly, fragile. Or rather, it usually is. War Torn Worlds struck upon the idea of making high-quality terrain from rubber (recycled rubber no less!), and the result are stone ruins you can't ruin. Go ahead, buy one today and hurl it against the wall! It'll bounce right back. (First-hand experience has taught us that one should duck after throwing it.)
December 11, 2008: Printfection Has The Shirts Off Our Backs
Over the years, Warehouse 23 has released many, many different shirts. Some sold well, and those remain available on Warehouse 23. Others simply didn't sell well enough to justify the cost of large print runs. Keeping them in print, despite being very cool, was proving troublesome. We needed an assist.
After a bit of searching, we settled on Printfection. They'll be keeping those classic designs available for those who didn't catch them the first time (or maybe need a replacement), and making them available in a wider range of colors. It's a win all the way around.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Lividly Crazy Game?
"Living Card Game," actually. Call of Cthulhu LCG: Ancient Horrors is the latest addition to the Cthulhu card game that just won't stop changing. It's like a CCG, but without all that maddening card rarity. No, all the maddening here is caused by good old-fashioned beings from a realm beyond human comprehension.
The latest print run of SPANC has arrived, to the joy of many.
If you missed out on a copy of the first printing, this is good news. But this is also good in terms of the new elements of this printing. Sure, the mechanics still rock the same as the previous printing, but the counters are larger (click here for a comparison), and look better in general (thanks to the linen finish).
Phil's been bringing higher quality components to our lines, and even the reprints are reaping the benefits. Hurray Phil!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Players 5 And 6, Your Day Has Come
Until now, if you have 5 friends, two of them got to sit around and watch you play Settlers of Catan with the Traders & Barbarians expansion. This probably worked fine if you had two friends you hate (which one would think would preclude their "friend" status, but whatever). Chances are your situation is not thus. Well, this problem is a problem no longer. Behold: Settlers of Catan: Traders & Barbarians 5-6 Player Extension. Salvation at twenty bucks. What a deal.
Given the nature of the season, many of us will be doing things at the last minute. To aid in this planned procrastination, here's our schedule for the rest of the year:
- December 19. Winter Game Day. We'll be playing games and other fun stuff.
- December 20 – January 4. The office will be closed. While some will be frolicking and enjoying the holiday break, others will be sneaking back into the office. But don't expect any responses during this period; these naughty overworkers may keep up with email, or they may not. The exception is Warehouse 23. Read on for their schedule.
- December 24. Warehouse 23 staffers will be around for the first half of the day, but they plan on leaving early for carols and eggnog.
- December 25. Warehouse 23 will be closed. No orders will be processed or shipped, and no emails or calls will be answered.
- December 31 and January 1. Warehouse 23 will be closed for inventory. No orders will be processed or shipped, and no emails or calls will be answered.
Plan your last-minute shopping emergencies accordingly!
-- Paul Chapman
In space? Need a space-boat? Silly question; of course you need a space-boat. Vacuum and all. Traveller: Traders & Gunboats is what you want and what you need. Unless you just really enjoy the cold.
Last week was a busy one for e23, with not one, not two, but three new releases!
First up, David Pulver (Spaceships, Ultra-Tech) has given us a look into the island of necromancers known as Abydos, in GURPS Banestorm: Abydos. Although it's set on Yrth, the city is self-contained enough to fit into a wide variety of fantasy settings. Use it as a location to visit, as a source of enemies (or Patrons!), or even as a home base for the PCs. (Longtime playtesters will remember an "Abydos" manuscript from years and years ago. Yes, this is that Abydos.)
Next, Cardboard Heroes: Fantasy Set 11 -- More Player Characters features 40 printable figures of Vikings, nobles, clerics, halflings, gnomes, dwarves, and more! These can be heroes for the players, villains for the GM, or both! You can even print out a horde to cover your living room floor, and stomp through them like Godzilla.
Finally, GURPS Cliffhangers returns to availability in digital form. Two-fisted heroes, shadowy criminal masterminds, and exotic locales can all be found in this guide to the pulp era.
-- Paul Chapman
We may not know everything that happens in Shadowrun: Ghost Cartels, but we're willing to put good money down that your Johnson will double-cross you, you'll spend some time running from the authorities, your teammates will double-cross you, you'll blunder out of one ambush and into another, your dog will double-cross you, you will be dumped naked in the Barrens armed only with your personality, and then your Johnson will somehow double-cross you again. Just like any other good day, chummer.
The Christmas Chibithulhus have arrived! They're just as cuddly and filled with holiday spirit as their picture would lead you to believe.
Warehouse 23 is shipping these out just as fast as they can, but the "days 'til Christmas" clock is ticking down. If you want one of these cute little critters under your tree on Christmas morning, be sure to order before December 15 (for domestic orders, but earlier if you're outside the States) to ensure that the shippers have time to deliver.
Also, order before we run out. These are a limited-quantity item. We think we've guessed right and created enough for everyone, but you don't want to be left out, do you? Do you?!
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Numbers, Twisted To Our Diabolical Advertising Purposes
Five rings, three clans, one book, and a numbers-based advertisement for all of them. Legend of the Five Rings: Masters of Magic is the book, Dragon, Phoenix, and Mantis are the clans, and the five rings belong to the game you're probably playing if you want this book. Subtract a little money and this will make a fine addition to your collection.
In the past, Comics & Games Retailer had compiled sales data from the hobby games industry into a monthly ranking. Now that their focus has shifted exclusively to comics, industry website ICv2 has picked up the torch. They're interviewing retailers, distributors, and publishers to gather the rankings. All three tiers are traditionally close-mouthed about exact sales numbers, so this methodology will never produce precise data. But the results do provide an interesting benchmark.
Especially when they discover that Munchkin is a respectable #6 of the best-selling board, card, and family games for August, September, and October. We're assuming that's for the entire line, including everything from the classic game to Munchkin Booty. If so, this chart doesn't include Munchkin Quest, which was released in November. But the next one should, and given the fantastic sales that our first Munchkin board game saw in its first month, we're hoping for a bump up.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Maybe They Don't Want Brains
Maybe they're really just looking for guys named Brian and someone transposed a letter on their notes. They are zombies, after all. Typos are to be expected. In fact, when the Dead Reign, proper copy-editing is probably the furthest thing from your mind. (Unless you're SJ, in which case you'll probably still be correcting subject-verb agreements while beating back the waves of slavering undead.)
December 5, 2008: Illuminated Site of the Week: Toy Safety
The cutting edge of security is now made of Lego. They say you can keep all your valuables protected inside this safe because it has billions of combinations and an alarm-equipped motion sensor.
But the first thing anyone's going to steal is the safe.
-- Suggested by Rick Thomas
Warehouse 23 News: Chum Chummery Chaaroo
Listen up, chummers. Shadowrun: Street Magic ain't about some guy in the park with a rabbit and a top hat. This is big-time hoodoo that blows up people's heads and binds astral spirits to your will. You'd do well to read it if you want to survive in the shadows. No amount of chrome will save you when some angry toxic shaman decides you'd look absolutely delightful if you were inside-out.
Ever been so close to something you can taste it, but you're not quite there? That's how we've felt about The Vorkosigan Saga Sourcebook and Roleplaying Game. But the final pieces are coming together, and we're getting even more excited about the project. (Hard to believe, considering how tickled we were when we got the license, but it's true.)
The most recent achievement is the cover. It's finished, and more importantly, Lois Bujold herself has approved it. This is how the "little Admiral" looks, and we're painfully proud to have him on one of our books.
Quark Master Phil is polishing the layout, and we expect to have further announcements on this project before the end of the year.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Walking In A Winter Horrorland
Enjoying the holiday season, but wishing deep down to turn Christmas into the "Halloween in December?" Or are you perhaps searching for a gift for that horror fan (with a sense of humor) in your life? Or are you our mostest favoritest kind of person of all: someone who's just looking for any advantage he can get in a Munchkin game? Whoever the heck you are, you should buy a Christmas Chibithulhu Plush.
When you're trying something new, not every attempt will work out. For glow in the dark pawns, we had our share of duds.
The batch at the top is standard GITD material, with a dye injected into the mold. The "glowing" part of GITD was reduced noticeably, and the color match to the original colors was not nearly close enough for us. The middle batch is colored plastic, with a coating of glowing paint. The glow was even weaker than the top batch -- too weak to really even be called "glowing." The bottom batch is the normal GITD material, with painted bases. These have the brightest glow, with the best color.
Nope, still not telling what these are for.
-- Paul Chapman
Warehouse 23 News: Warehouse 23 Top Ten
Warehouse 23 has posted an updated Top 10 Page for November. Check it out, and see what all the cool kids are buying . . .
In the vein of the missile silos we've seen for sale over the past couple years, about 77,000 square feet of London Underground tunnels are for sale. They were built as air raid shelters in the 40's, and have been used by spies, telephone operators, and librarians during the Cold War.
Now these tunnels, attached to the surface by unmarked access points on High Holborn Street, can be yours for a couple million pounds. It's already hooked up for wather and electricity -- but what about broadband?
-- Paul Chapman
Not much to say here, folks. Glorantha: Ducks - A Guide to the Durulz pretty much speaks for itself.
If you liked Sean Punch's Dungeon Fantasy series, we've got a treat for you. Jason Levine (GURPS Creatures of the Night series) has penned GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 5: Allies. From animal companions to divine servitors to traditional familiars, this release has the loyal backup every character wishes for.
Also hitting e23's virtual shelves is Cardboard Heroes: Fantasy Set 10 - Traps and Treasures. Yep, piles of gold are as close as your printer, but so are devious traps. Which will you use? (I recommend both!)
-- Paul Chapman
We would say that a game with a name like Descent: Tomb of Ice is a particularly apt release, given the time of year, but . . . we don't really see it. Oh, we've heard of winter here in Austin, Texas. But we've also heard of unicorns and leprechauns. We'll believe it when we see it.
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