Saturday, September 27, 2008

Sslartrack (Cast of the Rituals of Choice Adventure Path)

Sslartrack is a major npc in the Rituals of Choice Adventure Path. 

Art by Eric Lofgren

Description

 A tall man-like figure wearing a deep black robe with star patterns bears a staff made of crystal. If you can see past the deep robes (Spot DC 15), you see a thin humanoid, with a long narrow reptilian-head, spindly arms supporting long fingers. Its body is covered in small greenish-brown scales and it sports a snakelike tail.

Sslartrak has a habit of looking at the comet even when talking to someone. It is a gifted magister, especially in researching long forgotten spells, and has a great love of researching written lore. It has dealt with great prejudice, both for its love of books, rather that depending on the collective memory, and for its choice in becoming a mojh. It is extremely introverted and tends only to notice those around it when confronted; it then deals with them in an efficient and curt manner. Its love of books and its hate of the akashic memory drive it, along with a desire to prove its devotion as meaningful. Sslartrak knows the location of the Infinite Library, and a number of different ways to reach it. Sslartrak could reveal that information to a PC that befriended him.

 History: (Delve Into Collective Memory, Gather Information or Knowledge (Mojh) DC 35) Once a human researcher, who was spurred in his research by society’s reliance on Akashics, he went through the transformation into a mojh and began to seek the Infinite library, where it found a ritual to summon a “heavenly repository of knowledge beyond the akashic memory.”

Secret: (Delve Into Collective Memory, Gather Information, or Knowledge (ceremonies) DC 40) 

Sorry, you failed your difficulty check, try again next level!

Sslartrak          CR10

Medium Humanoid (Mojh) Magister 10

Init 2 (+2 Dex); Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Listen +1, Spot +1

Languages Common, Draconic

 

AC 16, touch 14, flat-footed 14

hp 49/-2/-13 (10HD)

Fort +4 Ref +5 Will +8


Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)

Melee +2 quarterstaff +6 (1d6+1)

Space 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.

Base Atk +5; Grp +4

 

Magister spells prepared: (CL 10, +4 melee touch, +9 ranged touch)

5th (2/day)--unstoppable energy, hunter‘s serpent, defensive field

4th (4/day)--conjure energy creature IV, everlasting charm, protection from energy, tongues

3rd (4/day)--attack from within (energy) (DC 18/F), clairaudience/clairvoyance, unknown magic circle, tracer (DC 18/F)

2nd (5/day)--enhanced magical flow, energy blade, lesser drain away speed (DC 17/F), bypass word, read mind (DC 17/W)

1st (6/day)--creature loresight, cold blast (DC 16/F), conjure energy creature I, harden, protect staff, precise vision, wind churn (DC 16/R)

0 (7/day)--appropriate size (DC 15/F), canny effort, detect creature, detect magic, lesser glowglobe, minor illusion (DC 15/W),read magic, saving grace, scent bane (DC 15/W)

 

Abilities Str 8, Dex 15, Con 13, Int 20, Wis 12, Cha 10

SQ darkvision 60 ft. and familiarity with magic

Feats Bonded Item; Brandish Magical Might, energy mage (fire, electricity), Modify Spell, Quicken Spell, Signature spell

Skills Balance +7, Decipher Script +14, Forgery +8, Knowledge (Cosmology) +17, Knowledge (Magic) +17, Knowledge (Science) +17, Spellcraft +13

Possessions +2 quarterstaffrobe of starscloak of protection +1amulet of natural armor +1headband of intellect +4ring of shooting starsbracers of armor +1, 12 gp, 4 sp, 13 cp.

 

Personal Info: Ht: 6' 4", Wt: 124lbs, Scale Color: Green, Eyes: Black, Age: 165.

 

Familiarity With Magic (Ex): Sslartrak gains a +2 competence bonus to all saving throws against spells and spell-like and supernatural abilities (including magic items). Further, it gains a +2 competence bonus to Armor Class against spells requiring attack rolls.

 

Monday, September 22, 2008

[Adventure Tropes] Rites of Passage part III (Coming of Age)

Either growing up sucks or its cool to be an adult because you can do stuff, it all depends on your point of view, Bring the magic and tragedy of this transition to your adventure with a coming of age story.

Coming of Age (Rite of Passage)
In Far-Rough, children choose a mentor (or a parent/guardian chooses one for them). These mentors generally teach the children a trade, skills, philosophy, religion, and/or simple morality. At some point in the relationship the mentor will declare that the child has "come of age" and is ready to become an adult. A Runethane, Runelord, Champion of Runes, Runechild, Runeblade, Shuryn, or someone with runic knowledge (usually a relative or the mentor themselves) will place the rune for “Coming of Age” upon the forehead of the adolescent using the mentor's blood. The mark is to remain until the end of a ritual celebration. Invitations for this celebration are sent out, during which the newly declared adult receives money and special gifts.

ADVENTURE HOOKS

Uninvited Guest: The PCs are invited to the coming of age celebration. Ur-glif the rune reaver disrupts the beginning of the celebration kidnapping the Runechild mentor, the PCs are asked to rescue the runechild.

Childhood’s End: The family of the child contacts the PCs, having found the dead mentor. The only clue is some note about the location of an immoratlity scroll, it seems the child plans to stay a child forever. The family begs the PCs to help their child.

New Beginning: The adolescent seeks out the player characters telling them a strange man once visited telling him “You belong to me once you come of age.” The adolescent asks for the PCs aid if the stranger comes calling, The stranger is a military recruiter come to enforce the daft upon the newly eligable (or an arranged marriage etc, have fun with it. )

Put Away Childish Things: A mentor is ready to allow the child to come of age but he discovers that the adolescent has an imaginary friend. Ashamed the adolescent runs away, the PCs are asked to help locate him, discovering the friend is not imaginary and has a dark plan for the adolescent.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

[Adventure Tropes] Rites of Passage Part II: Menarche

You can avoid this one if you wish, or you can use it to show the importance of rituals and mark a radical cultural difference for the setting , I challenge you to take your PCs where they fear to tread. The best way I know how to put this is summed up by Tvtropes.org No Periods Period.

Menarche (Rite of Passage)
When a girl has her menarche in the town of Far-rough, she is henceforth called a woman. An interpreter of dreams (priest, diviner, witch, or somnomancer) is contacted and will speak to her about her next dream, to help guide her choices about the future. A ritual bathing is preformed at the Ceremonium, where the women of the family scrub the girl all over her body; she then is dressed in blue. Invitations for a party are sent out, during which the girl receives money and special gifts.

Adventure Hook:

The Gift: The mother of the woman ordered a very special gift related to her daughter's dream, it has been stolen, and the Mother asks the PCs who were guests at the party to recover it before the party ends.

Carrie: An uneducated and repressed young girl comes screaming to the PCs seeking their help because she has been stricken by a horrible curse, as her witchery powers also manifest at this time.

Not Rite: A young girl is seen by the PCs throwing away bloody stained sheet, she is uncooperative and eventually tries to flee, the young girl is only covering up her first Menarche so that she does not have to perform the ritual but she knows her family will not respect her wishes.

Moonblood: It is not what you think, because at the height of the party the young girl transforms in to a monster, she is suffering from Curse! (Go nuts use the Monstrous Lycanthrope Template from the Advanced Bestiary or the Totem Curses from Diamondthrone.com).

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

[Adventure Tropes] Rites of Passage Part I: Childbirth

Rites of Passage are very important rituals that can bring a group of PCs together and can also help establish the tone of a campaign, they also can be more than the mundane as in a fantasy setting (such as my example of Monte Cook's Land of the Diamond Throne) as the supernatrual and magic forces take root.

Childbirth (Rite of Passage)
When a women learns she is with child in the town of Far-Rough, at dawn on the first day of the next week the mother (and father if available), seek the "Blessings of the Green" usually granted by a servant of the land (druid, ranger, greenbond, totem warrior, or totem speaker); usually a close relative. Their parents are often invited as witnesses. As of late the First Speaker Rabin, anointing the mother with the holy oils of Rollonarch the Giving has substituted this.

Adventure Hooks:

Dark Blessing: Each PC is invited to the Ceremony when the mother is kidnapped by a servant of the Dark who wishes to perform the "Blessing of the Dark" on the unborn child in a lightless cavern on the last day of the week at midnight. The Father is killed in the assault and it is up to the PCs to save the women and her unborn child.

Split at Birth: In a supernatural and magical land birthing can be far more dangerous than this mothers birthing ceremony is disrupted when a oppositional twin (choose two opposing causes) is created, there are cries of abomination and destroying the child, the mother however contacts the PCs begging them to save her child and see it finds a good home.

Instant Baby just add water: The party is escorting the pregnant woman so that she can go see the servant of the land when her water breaks right there in a very inconvenient place (monster territory), at a very inconvenient time (a super-cell lightning storm is on the horizon)

Changeling: The mother swears this is not her child after but no one believes her but the PCs are able to deduce that this newborn is a doppelganger. Is this her child transformed into a doppelganger; or did the doppelganger steal her child and replace it with one of their own.

Death by Childbirth: The PCs are this woman’s only friends, the servant of the land is a PC who is there to give the blessing, her sister is in a far off secluded area and the trek is too dangerous. Yet, there is blood, agony and tragedy as the mother dies in childbirth now the PCs must decide what to do with the child. Take it to her sister? The local orphanage? Raise the child themselves? What about the Father?

My newest book on sale.

Rite Publishing has released Mythical Monstrosities for sale, Mythical Monstrosities is a monster supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved it is compatiable with any 3.X version of the World's Most Popular Roleplaying Game.  You can find a preview of the product HERE.

Monday, September 15, 2008

220,000 without power and I am one of them.

South Western Ohio, just got hit with gusts up to 78 mph; state of emergency where I live, my work being a utility has back up power; It will take me some time to have updates again.

No damage to my house but the fiancees gazeboo is laying in pieces in the back yard, along with the phone line (I don't use a land line anymore though).

Thursday, September 11, 2008

An Encounter worth a Thousand Words.

I work with some talented folks who always go beyond the call. Last night I was up till 3am working with Corey Graham our graphic artist on the add for Kobold Quarterly, the Cover for Soren K. Thustrup’s The Living Airship, and Frank Carr’s Heroes of the Jade Oath. I also received the interior art for A Witch’s Choice (Part I of the adventure path), along with the interior art for The Living Airship. Then too top it all off, Corey designed a new logo for Rite Publishing (See below).



So how can you as a non-publisher who is not going to spend all this money on graphic elements and artwork make your home game better?
Answer: You do it backwards.

You have go out on the internet to a place like Deviant art and find a picture that you think is cool to use in your home game (personal use only). Then design your game element around that picture, and then during your game when the time presents itself, you show them the picture of what they see. Because you tailored your description to the picture, it works perfectly.

I have done this many times and found that this can really get your creative juices flowing when you have to make each element of the picture be something important.

I have a plan one day to use stock art and make a cool adventure from this one day. So many ideas so little time.

Steve “Qwilion” Russell
RitePublishing.com
“A hundred thousand lemmings cannot be wrong”

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Railroad of Illusion

Somes times as a DM you have this grand vision of how your game is going to go, you put in a tremendous amout of preptime into the game, You have a dream. So you provide a path so that you can show them.

How do you do you do this and not making it a Railroad? How do you allow a player to feel this is his adventure not your story.

Answer: You provide the illusion of choice.

All roads lead to Rome: no matter what choice they make the outcome of that choice will eventually lead to same desination. In my esitimation it is the condition you arrive in that determins which is the best path or the best entrance to the destination. A. has the local dragon path B. has the local brothel.

$hit happens!: you may not have a choice in what happens to you from time to time, you do have choice on how to deal with it once it has happened. Example in my home game a player is the victim of an Akashic Possession (think Alia from Children of Dune), it takes him over when he sleeps, it in no way affects the characters choices, but when the player does not show up to the game his character goes off an does some rather nasty things. The player can do whatever he wants about the enemy, I have no control of ther outcome just over the initial hook.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Preorder My newest book, and support Lands of the Jade Oath

If you enjoyed Veiled Denizens or Rite Publishing's preview; well now is the time to pre-order Mythical Monstrosites for only $4.95 (25% off the cover price). In addition you will not even have to wait for it to go on sale, Rite Publishing will be emailed to you with 24-48 hours of your preorder, with an option for a print on demand copy at cost.

As an added bonus I have pledged all preorder sales will be applied to the Lands of the Jade Oath Patronage Project! So if you are a fan of Oriental Arcana but can't afford to be a parton, here is your chance to show your support and a monsterous supplement to go with it!

From the Back Cover
The tragic Taurians, a new take on an old race, who drown their daughters to save their sons; The Soarlith, who defend the skies with near religious fervor; The Antaeans, grappling giants bound to the power of earth; The Ritefury, who seek to punish those who violate the ancient customs of guest and host. Mythical Monstrosities provides these new creatures as a supplemental bestiary for Monte Cook’s Arcana Evolved.
Within you will find:


  • A new, complex and detailed player race, the Taurian, with a new racial class.
  • All descriptions are presented in first-person perspective from the monster's point of view.
  • Detailed descriptions, variant rules, Lore DCs and designer's notes.
  • Each monster leaps from the page with inspiring and evocative illustrations.
  • The monsters within have complex motivations and can serve far beyond a simple encounter.
  • Compatible with the 3.0 and 3.5 versions of the world’s most popular role-playing game.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Player's Guide to the Rituals of Choice Adventure Path (to date)

If you did not know, I am currently writing, designing, producing and publishing an adventure path for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved called The Rituals of Choice. I have decided that I will be creating a free player's companion to the series, which can also serve as a regional sourcebook for the default location where the campaign saga takes place. I will be posting my raw work in progress, and plan to update at least once a week (sans interview posts).

A Companion
To help immerse both players and player characters in the saga of the campaign, Rite Publishing is proud to present The Player's Guide to The Rituals of Choice Adventure Path for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. DMs are encouraged to provide a copy of this document to each of thier players (Full permission is granted to reproduce this document) and allow players to reference the Player's Guide during the course of the game. This Player's Guide also serves to help assemble the emerging "Puzzle Piece Plot" that constitutes the story arc of the Rituals of Choice Adventure Path by providing the starting framework. The default setting where the adventure path takes place is a large town known as Far-Rough along with its surrounding environment called the Edgelands, once known as the fallen Duchy of Nem before the coming of the Dramojh (Dragon Scions).

Why Far-Rough?
The Cradle of Nem, The Birthplace of Seral the Rune Messiah, the giants call it Tar-Duph but overtime the local population bastardized the giantish pronunciation so that now most everyone else calls it Far-Rough; I, Lomen Taverson, Bard of the Eldritch, call it home.

You will find my home at the center of the "Edgelands" a crossroads that can lead into the Floating Forest, the Central Plains, and the forbidding Bitter Peaks. It is an outstanding location serving as both a destination for trade, and as layover on the journey into these evocative regions. Far-Rough offers many a pursuit for both knight and seekers of fortune such as myself, from expeditions into the ancient ruins that dot the central plains, to the evocative environment of the floating forest, and even the Clandestine War of the Dark Depths. The town itself offers a unique political climate where the Hu-Charad rules over a far larger population of humans along with a mix of other races. Backed by the large numbers of non-giants the Order of the Axe challenges the power of the Diamond Throne; while the Nightwalkers and Jaren jockey for economic dominion. It is even more dramatic still for my people the "Roughfolk" judge others only by their deeds, often you will find visiting goblins, rhodin, and chorrim about town this does not even address the more astounding permanent residence that settle in both Far-Rough and the Edgelands. Far-Rough features all the amenities and ancient traditions of an old world city, dating back to a time before the dragons left for the mysterious west, coupled with the friendly charm and the hospitality of a small town. It has an excellent variety of first-rate inns, taverns, restaurants, sages, a trade bazaar in the Traveler's Burrow and even a magic item shop, as well as a vibrant culture scene.

My Lyre greets you, you are well come to Far-Rough, the crossroad of adventure.

Tone of the Campaign
While each adventure can stand alone, when run as a campaign The Rituals of Choice Adventure Path provides an epic over-arcing storyline. It makes full use of the Diamond Throne setting and its various adventuring environments. Players are encouraged to read Chapter 10: the Diamond Throne Gazetteer of Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved, as while the first five adventures will keep the players close to the northern border of the Floating Forest they will travel the height and breadth of the lands before the story is complete.

The Rituals of Choice Adventure Path is a campaign saga that places a great deal of importance on the choices the player characters make. Every choice holds consequences that effect encounters throughout the course of the adventure path. There is no pre-destined outcome to the campaign. PCs can fail; they can destroy the world, or bring about a pyrrhic victory. The PCs could leave behind a bleak dystopia or even win a wondrous victory where they bring about their own vision of the future.

The choices presented will be far beyond choosing the left or right corridor, these are difficult moral choices that change the foundation of who the player character is, and from choice of whether saving a soul is worth risking the welfare of the world or assisting in a ritual suicide.

Honor, duty, and loyalty are not just words in this fantasy campaign they are supernatural powers in their own right, and the Lands of the Diamond Throne respect that power. The campaign fully expects players to be a part of the world around them there are powers in the world who will seek you out as both ally and enemy based on your choices, those you support will call upon your aid. This is an idealistic campaign where people keep their word, enemies rarely lie, and the untrustworthy few stand out in the crowd. With powerful ceremonies and customs stronger than law, backing the cultural codes of conduct the PCs will find the Lands of the Diamond Throne setting helps encourage a heroic ideal within the campaign saga. However, nothing stops a player from having their character be a scoundrel or a villain so long as they are willing to suffer the consequences of their choices. Ultimately, the campaign leaves this type of decision in the hands of the DM.

Idealistic does not mean Utopian, every NPC every organization, every cause, every oath, every choice you make will put you in opposition to a different agenda. Those in opposition to your position are likely to be friends who were previously allies, and people of principle who you likely respect. Whose cause is more just, whose oath more sacred, which choice is the right choice. As heroic as the PCs are they are not the only heroes, and in this campaign heroic Npcs are just as likely to be the opposition and be in the right as the Player Characters, for they are the hero in their own story. Part of the saga is the path taken to attempt to navigate past these obstacles and sometimes the battles that fail or succeed in defeating them.

The campaign saga evolves, changing, growing, and transforming both the world and characters playing within it. Beyond gaining character levels, the adventure path encourages players to create backgrounds that allow for character growth. Players will grow as well due to both the role-playing challenges presented by the campaign as well, as how the adventure path uses the rules themselves from compelling questions to invoked apocalypse. Players, who have memorized every class, feat, spell, monster and rule that has been published will be also be challenged by reinvented and original material put forth over the course of the campaign. Nearly, every reward component of the adventure path is also reinvented or original material to help enhance the sense of magic, wonder, and change.

The Town of Far-Rough
I, Lomen Taverson, Bard of the Eldritch, will tell you that my home is a growing town, on the verge of becoming a city. It would have become a great city of note long ago were it not limited by our famous crystal-woven walls, but there has been considerable growth of late outside the Woven Walls to the west of the town in an area known as the Traveler's Burrow. My home has about 2,000 permanent residents in the winter and nearly double that number of transient residents in the height of the trade season. Located at the center of the northern edge of the Floating Forest next to a deep-water lake known as the Fanormere, Far-Rough was originally the capital of the ancient Duchy of Nem before the dramojh invasion.

There was once a central keep within the Woven Walls, but that was destroyed by the giants when they liberated my homeland, but the vast underground fortress, that holds both the terrors of the dramojh occupation and the wonders of ancient Terrekal, still remains. There is currently, on either side of the small river that runs through the town, two gassar trees that support upon their sky islands an observatory and the manor house of the Lord Steward. The area surrounding my home is a frontier lands with simple folk trying to cutting a place of their own, if a wilderness of myth, rumors, and legends come to life. Yet I, Lomen Taverson, Bard of the Eldritch, know where your interests truly lies and though you may seem to travel with a band of misfits, I am certain you are the best you are at what you do, brave venturer. Therefore, I will tell you where you will find both ruins and labyrinths ripe for exploration.
  • Legacy's Haven is actually part of the crystal-woven walls of the city; it is deep below the ground and protects the town from unwanted incursions from the Dark Depths. The rare few find their way in and live to tell the tail, as it was a hold out of guerilla fighters in the dramojh invasion then later by the dramojh during the giant's war of liberation and was one of the dramojh breeding pits.
  • Edgehold is a Chorrim fortress to the west in the foremost mountain of the bitter peaks known as Mt. Seral. There is known to be a vast chorrim city complex beyond their gates, and who knows what army is amassing beyond its walls.
  • The Ossuary of Nem is a vast catacombs and necropolis, to the east of the town, for nearly all the dead it apparently has wardings that keep restless spirits trapped within the walls of the ossuary and force them into hiding from the sun.
  • The Pantheon Ruins a dilapidated and decaying temple complex hidden in the central plains that once gave praise to the Gods of the Denotholan, strange rituals can be found being performed here by those who seek to revive the dead gods. Mad preachers, divine guardians, immortal priests, and the odd pilgrim can be found lurking upon these grounds.
  • Fanormere is a nigh on bottomless lake that leads explores into the dark depths of the sunless sea. Here an eternal war rages amongst the dwellers in the darkness form the horrific Vallorian flesh-crafters to Slassan slavers.
These are not the only areas of exploration only the most common. The weather here makes exploration hard however for there are constant storms and very harsh winters. It is an important waypoint for those traveling on to Serathis, The Ruins of Intrigue, in the Bitter Peak Mountains, and is part of the Lands of the Diamond Throne, under the Rule of the Lady Protector though one of the largest and most hidden chapterhouses of the Order of the Axe lies nearby. When full-scale rebellion against the throne comes, Far-Rough will be in the middle of it.

The Diamond Throne
The Hu-Charad renamed my town of my birth Tar-Duph after the giant war-marshal who liberated the region during the Dramojh War, and have claimed my home as part of their dominion for over 500 years. Yet nearly every time a new Steward (regional governor) is assigned to administrate this area, they have lain down their burdens and preformed the Rites of Kor-Karan becoming Dark Wardens. To this effect, the throne has recently selected the elder giant Na-Parrinder as the new Lord Steward. Na-Parrinder is over 300 years old, has rejected the siren's song that compels the Dark Wardens, and is a dedicated proponent of Si-Karan (Caretaker). He is also an aristocrat, former member of The Observance, and a distant cousin to the Lady Protector.

Do to the limited number of giants who inhabit the area that are interested in serving the government, the Lord Steward of Tar-Duph has had to lean heavily upon a number of sibeccai heralds and the rest of the local population. He has also formed the Avowed Quorum a chosen group of counselors who have bound themselves by ritual, oath, and truename to the Diamond Throne. The current members of the group are Guildmaster Hirim Gatewood of the Honorable Fellowship of Lumber Magnates; Stave Beast-speaker, ollahm lorekeeper and old friend of the steward; Au-Damna, known as the wisest Hu-Charad ritual warrior ever taught at Ta-Irkethas (Sanctuary of Forms); Myrya, a litorian totemspeaker honored by all the tribes of the central plains. Surprisingly the sibeccai commoner Vathru the Dreamer has been named spiritual advisor to the Steward and envoy to the unique faction of Rallonoch the Giving's faith that has deep roots in the region. Xelada a verrik serves as the head of the steward's heralds, she is not well liked or trusted by the other members, and many accuse her of being a mind witch and spy for the Lord Steward. The final member is a mysterious mojh runethane named Dramlok who is the steward's liaison to the Jaren. In times of need the Steward can call upon students from Ta-Irkethas (a secretive school for ritual warriors) and a few errant Knights of the Diamond. Yet the strongest military force in the area is the militant Steelveil Chapterhouse of the Order of the Axe, lead by the enigmatic Knight of Balam. The Order can muster a force three times the size the Steward could without assistance from the High Steward of the South.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part IV: Akashic Nodes)

This is the final post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. The interview starts HERE

37. What advice would you give to fans of AE?
I think we should start a campaign for Monte to revamp the AE setting for 4th Edition. Let’s all send him a d4. Maybe if we get a thousand to him, he’ll think about. Or, you know, he could just let me do it.

38. What do you think the future is for AE?
Hey, I consider Monte a friend—but not that good a friend. It’s times like this I was I was a mind flayer. I could just burrow into Monte’s brain and answer all my questions. My gut tells me that Monte doesn’t have any interest in revisiting AE. In that case, I suspect there will be a small but deeply dedicated group of fans that will continue to play that version of the game for many years to come.

39. Is there anything else the world should know about you?
I’m not actually a devil. You’d be surprised how many people make that mistake—not the least of which because I am a lawyer. I guess the big news is that I landed the license to do an rpg based on the bestselling John Rain novels by Barry Eisler (www.johnraingame.com). I’m pretty excited about that. And I’m a great cook—like gourmet great. My Oscar parties are legendary.

40. Is there anything else the world should know about AE?
It’s a great setting! Seriously, you can buy it just for the setting, port it over to your favorite system, and get your money’s worth.

41. How did you feel when you saw the final layout for the finished product? What were you impressions of Sergio Isaza, and his work that appeared in The Fall Of All Things? (I really enjoyed the peace conference piece).
Well, I did the layout myself. I’m self-taught in layout, and I think it shows. I’ve improved a lot since Poisoncraft, but I still have a lot to learn. Sergio was a great find. I’d love to work with him again. He’s got a neat style that’s just perfect for certain kinds of pieces. (My favorite was the portrait of Kraalis.)

42. I was a little disappointed the hypnolox, the antithesis of the akashic, did not make an appearance, was that just personal preference. (Though I was happy to see the akashic seekers).
I wish I could give you a cute little story—Bill Collins has an abnormal fear of hypnoloxes!—but it was probably just an oversight. In retrospect, you’re right of course.

43. The introduction of the akashic nodes, who wrote the majority of that, and was there any one section other than yours that really stood out?
Michael Trice wrote the bulk of it. I did some spotting on the mechanics side. The Serpent’s Heart Guildhall by Phillippe Daigneault is trippy. I still don’t know how Ed did a map of that thing.

44. What are your recommendations for making akashic nodes more relevant in an AE campaign?
That’s what I tried to do with the adventure: show people ways that an akashic node could become a fresh way to serve a traditional role in a D&D adventure.

45. How do akashic nodes affect the culture of a quasi-medieval fantasy setting like the diamond throne?
I’ve always seen it as a more benign version of undeath. Books can turn to dust; people die; but memory lives forever.

46. Could you talk about your favorite new monster from Akashic Nodes?
I think the node leeches are ripe with possibilities. I just wish WotC had come out with the swarm rules when we did that. They should definitely be a swarm.

47. What is your favorite akashic node adventure seed?
I like the adventure seed for the Hostility node (on p. 8): “A beloved trader’s caravan inadvertently traveled through the epicenter of a hostile node. They were beset by bandits, and he succumbed to a blinding bloodlust. The bandits were defeated, but the trader slew his apprentice as well. He now stands trial for the crime.” Maybe it’s just because I’m a lawyer.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part III: Akashic Nodes)

This is the third post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. The interview starts HERE

25. What has been your best moment playing with an AE product?
My favorite moments have been the AE games at Gen Con with all of the guys I only get to see once a year.

26. What has been your most memorable fan response to Akashic Nodes?
I did have one customer say that he thought it was as good as Monte’s stuff. That’s pretty high praise indeed.

27. What role do you think Akashic Nodes plays in the AE gaming community?
Heck, I don’t know. I’m hopeful it has launched more than a few memorable adventures, and I’m sure anyone who was playing an akashic was thrilled.

28. To Your knowledge has the Fading of All things ever been played with using Fantasy Grounds?
I don’t know one way or the other.

29. Could you tell us a little about the difference between professional game design and designing for play?
Great question. There are two big differences: clarity and balance. When you’re writing a rule for your home game, you only need to make sure that two people understand it, and if there are any questions, you can talk it out face to face. When you’re writing a rule for publication it has to be perfectly clear in its operation. Similarly, if you design for your home game and something turns out to be unbalanced, you can modify it. You don’t get that second chance with published design.

30. Why do you think the "Obvious Books" (racial and class books) for AE have never been done?
Monte never showed much interest in it. There weren’t a lot of third-party publishers for AE, and I’m guessing they, like me, took their lead from Monte. You should ask him that question.

31. What is your feeling about Lands of the Jade Oath?
It’s an incredibly neat setting. I don’t know if you are aware, but I was briefly in line to publish the setting, but things didn’t work out. I’m a big fan. I’ll be interested to see what the timing of the release means for its reception. Not only has Monte stopped publishing AE support, but 4th Edition is out now too. It will be a good metric for seeing who is still playing AE.

32. What is (was) your home AE game like? (describe it in a paragraph)
I’ll do it in one word: N/A. That’s right, I never had an AE game. We’ve run D&D and used some material from AE, but I’ve never run or played in any kind of extended AE campaign (much to my chagrin). Most of my AE gaming has been one-shots.

33. What is the AE product you want to buy?
I’m planning on signing up as a patron for Lands of the Jade Oath. I’m interested in the patronage angle too and, more specifically, to see if someone outside of Wolfgang can make it work.

34. Can you name for us a totem type, champion type and a witch type that would be cool but you have never seen from the fans?
Are there any left? Okay, I’ll play. Here’s what I want to see: elephant totem, champion of the poor, and salt witch. Has anyone done those?

35. What kind of player experience did you hope to create with your game? Did your goals change during the design process? Do you feel that you met them?
You’re talking about Akashic Nodes again? We wanted to give people something fresh and different in the same spirit that Mote approached AE in the first place. I think we met our goals pretty well.

36. What does AE need more of?
High-level adventures. But that’s my answer for anything—not just AE.

The interview concludes HERE.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part II: Akashic Nodes)

This is the second post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved. You can find the first part HERE

13. What do you feel was the most ingenious part of The Fading of All Things that you devised?
From a plot standpoint, I did like the idea that this arduous quest was for a long-forgotten piece of paper. And it wasn’t a world-ending spell or a massive treasure map, but a treaty between two small fishing villages. From a mechanic standpoint, I was proud of the idea to present three levels of difficulty for each encounter, which allows the DM to tweak on the fly based on how the party is doing.

14. What specific design choice are you most happy with, and why?
I really liked how we paired up each writer and each author. It gave the anthological feel that worked for me.

15. Which design element was the hardest to figure out, and why?
Well it wasn’t hard for me, but Bill Collins’s development of nodes for non-akashics was just brilliant. I know he put a lot of hard work into that chapter, and it shows.

16. What did you learn about design and especially setting specific supplements?
It made for a better finished product, but working with five different authors was little big like herding cats. Ironically, it did make the setting stuff easier to sort out. I know I had to make sure my adventure didn’t go against AE canon. Fortunately, there were several other sets of eyes to look out for that sort of thing.

17. What did you learn about The Fading of All Things during play-testing? (prototype, beta, or both) What did you change as a result?
Hah! I didn’t playtest Fading at all. A few of the other writers did some playtesting, and it went pretty well. The only thing I remember changing was giving Kraalis a few more resources to avoid hindering the party during combat and giving the DM a little more advice about how to play that. He’s incredibly easy to kill!

18. Did you make any other mistakes or miscalculations in the design process? How did you fix them?
I don’t recall any specifics. I know we went over the monster statblocks, like, twenty times to make sure we didn’t have any errors. Overall, that book is incredibly error free. In fact, I’m not aware of any errata for it.

19. We have a long history of dusty libraries and books in fantasy role-playing; do you have any recommendations to encourage DM's to use Akashic Nodes: A Home of Memory instead of these tropes?
You answered your own question. Akashic nodes can definitely slot into any fantasy setting. And they offer a new take on the typical fantasy tropes for information gathering. Notably, akashic nodes have personality, in the most literal sense of that word, that a traditional library lacks.

20. Are you happy with where Akashic Nodes is today?
Well, I’d love to have sold about a 1,000 more copies, but it’s about where I expected.

21. What makes a good AE product?
It has to be an AE product. Monte made that setting chock full of fresh ideas; run with them. Generic monsters and feats does it a disservice.

22. What is your favorite AE product (besides yours and the core book)?
Legacy of the Dragons is one of the best monster products out there for any setting. The monsters themselves are dripping with coolness. The addition of lair information—with maps!—was brilliant. Plus, one of my NPCs made it into the book!

23. What is your favorite Non-Monte AE (besides yours) product and why?
I’m partial to Plague of Dreams because it was the first third-party product for AE and it’s the bee’s knees.

24. What is your favorite Blue Devil games AE product and why?
Akashic Nodes for sure. But a close second is Dark Houses: The Guild Hive because it was an ambitious hybrid product, where we teamed up with Ed Bourelle of Skeleton Key to put out a unique little product.

Continues HERE.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Interview with Justin Jacobson (Part I: Akashic Nodes)

This is the first post in a four part interview with Justin Jacobson of Blue Devil Games, co-author and original publisher of Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory a supplement for Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved.


1. Please provide a brief bio about yourself, you gaming habits, and your professional work.
I’m 37, married with two young daugthers. I live in South Florida (born and raised). I am an attorney by day, specializing in debt collection. I work in a small firm my father started over 30 years ago. I love to play games every day, but between my home life and my work life, I only get to play around once a month. Mostly we’re playing D&D 4e, but I like playing all sorts of games, from indie-style rpgs to board games.

2. Ok I have to ask why Akashic Nodes? What made you choose to do that instead of say a class or racial splat book?
We wanted to do something different. I took the lead from Monte’s own work. His supplements always have a twist, from the event books, to BoEM3, which is keyed of specific locations. Akashic Nodes really is a splat book. It’s got tons of feats, spells, magic items, monsters, etc. It’s just presented through the lens of a specific focus.

3. Did you ever think about each section as individual PDFs instead of one large PDF, especially your adventure The Fading Of All things?
No. The material was too interconnected to release separately. There are references in Fading to concepts and mechanics presented elsewhere in the book. More generally, I’ve never really cottoned to the micro-pdf craze. Not for me creatively.

4. Could you please sum up "Akashic Nodes: Home of Memory" in a sentence or three?
Akashic Nodes starts with a fundamental question of what memory really is and uses that as a launching pad for a host of unusual mechanics and ideas to add to any fantasy setting.

5. How did you first become interested in creating a book about Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved rather than standard d20 product like poisioncraft?
I’ve had a good relationship with Monte since I first started with Poisoncraft. He seemed very accessible, and that proved to be the case. When I had questions about the publishing process, he was very helpful. (He is truly one of the nicest people in this industry, which is incidentally filled with extremely nice people.) This created something of a, hmmm, what’s the opposite of a vicious cycle? A symbiotic cycle? I bought all of Monte’s stuff. I did some playtesting for Monte. When I was deciding what to do next, Arcana Unearthed had a lot of real estate in my head.

6. How do you feel, when you discover someone still using a product like akashic nodes today?
I’m totally geeked, of course! My design goals have always been, in this order: (1) Don’t lose money; (2) give people stuff they can have a lot of fun with; (3) try to make some money. Number 2 only works when people actually use what I’ve put out there.

7. Could you list some of your major influences in the creation of Akashic Nodes?
Arcana Evolved (nee Arcana Unearthed) seems obvious, so I won’t mention it. When the Sky Falls, in particular was a big influence. As I mentioned, it really gave me the idea of using a more narrow theme as the skeleton for the material.

8. What are the strengths of Akashic Nodes over other source books?
It literally has material that you cannot find anywhere else. I think there is something for everyone in there.

9. Can you tell me about the adventure The Fading Of All Things that appears in Akashic Nodes and why you chose a political action adventure?
That’s an interesting lesson in design. I put off working on the adventure until the other material started coming in. I got to see how all the other writers were riffing off the concept. And really out of nowhere, I recalled the quote that those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. That was the spark for the idea for the adventure. The Iraq War was a separate influence. The rest just fell into place.

10. Can you tell me how you felt when you first saw the cover art by The Carmona Brothers, Jesus y Javier Carmona?
That’s one of the real perks of publishing: working with amazing artists, telling them what you are looking for, and seeing how they run with it. That cover is perfect for that book.

11. How much input did you have on sections that were not written by you?
Theoretically, I had a lot of input. I could have dumped some of it or rewritten it all myself. It was my baby after all. As a practical matter, that was a great collection of writers I managed to pull together. So I didn’t really end up doing a lot. I did have the initial idea for the mechanical aspects of nodes and fleshed out some of that part.

12. Describe your best moment working on Akashic Nodes?
We set up a private message board for all the contributors. Some of the conversations on that board are just amazing. I should dump them into a pdf and sell it for a hundred bucks! They were great to work with.

Part II Continues HERE.