Alliterates | Forbeck.com

Secrets, Like Dragons

Apr 252011

My fellow Alliterate and friend Steven Schend is launching a new publishing effort called Vistag Media. To help get the company’s feet under it, he’s posted a new Kickstarter project for Vistag’s first book: Secrets, Like Dragons… It’s an anthology of five novellas written by great lineup of authors — Steven, Ed Greenwood, Jaleigh Johnson, Rosemary Jones, and J.M. Martin — and set in the new fantasy world of Kharndam.

I kicked in as a supporter myself. If you’re into excellent fantasy writing and would like to help support Steven’s efforts at launching a new publishing house, check it out and consider chipping in too. Thanks!

Free Kobolds!

Alliterates, Raves 7 Responses »

Jan 242010

My friends at Kobold Quarterly (a D&D/d20 magazine ably edited by my Alliterate pal Wolfgang Baur) are giving away free PDFs of issue #10 for the next week. Until January 31, 2010, you can grab one for yourself by entering the coupon code KQ10Free at checkout. As Wolf’s lovely wife Shelly (a.k.a. Kobold Minion #1) tells me:

Issue #10 features an interview with Paizo‘s Jason Bulmahn, Ed Greenwood‘s Dwarven Goddess, Ecology of the Hill Giant, John Wick‘s unique (and slightly disturbing) take on Halflings, Secrets of the Halberd, Monte Cook‘s Game Theories, Rampant Elf Lust, and more. We think it’s one of the best issues we’ve ever done.

I’ve long been a fan of Wolf and his work. Now, if you hustle on over, you can see why, for free.

KQ on Cordell

Alliterates No Responses »

Jul 062009

In the excellent Kobold Quarterly (run by Alliterate pal Wolfgang Baur), Jeremy Jones (who sometimes pops by here to comment) interviews Bruce Cordell (another Alliterate!). Bruce consistently does some of the best design work for D&D, so if you’re into the game, run (don’t walk) over to check out what he has to say.

More Free Lester Smith Games

Alliterates, Raves No Responses »

Feb 162009

My fellow Alliterate and good pal Lester Smith is on a game-designing roll. To add to the free MonsterCon! card game he released last week, he’s now posted rules for the Powerhouses of Wrestling! dice game, the Demon Bound! card game, and the Invasion of the Saucer People! card game.

As with the first, the best bits about these games (other than Les’s trademark wit and excellent game design) are that you can play them with components you already own—and they’re free! Be sure to check them out, play them, and let Les know what you think.

Play MonsterCon!

Alliterates, Raves No Responses »

Feb 112009

At the Alliterates meeting on Monday night, I had the honor of playtesting MonsterCon!, a new card game designed by Lester Smith. As with much of Les’s work, it’s wickedly funny and simple to pick up and shows surprising depth.

Best of all, it’s free! Les has posted the rules online, and all you need to play are a deck of cards, plus a pencil and paper for keeping score. It’s a fast and fun game, and it won’t cost you a dime, so be sure to check it out and give it a whirl.

More LOTRO

Alliterates, Professional No Responses »

Dec 022008

The Lord of the Rings Online website features more LOTRO-y goodness. Look for “Hero’s Guide to the Silvertine Lodes.” As usual, Will Hindmarch wrote it, and I edited it.

By the way, if you haven’t checked out the game, I recommend it. The Mines of Moria expansion really rocks.

I’m also getting into Guild Wars these days. The fact that my friends Jeff Grubb (also an Alliterate), Will McDermott, and Ree Soesbee handle a lot of the writing for it helps.

Lester’s Shadows

Alliterates No Responses »

Nov 242008

My fellow Alliterate and good pal Lester Smith just launched WhenShadowsRise.com, a new website dedicated to the development of a new horror roleplaying game. Among many other gaming gems, Les designed the excellent Dark Conspiracy RPG way back in 1991.

Les has been working on this game in his limited spare time for a long time. I’ve heard about it in bits and pieces from him over the years, and I can’t wait to read the actual thing.

Sullivan’s Olympics

Alliterates No Responses »

Aug 062008

My fellow Alliterate and good friend Steve Sullivan has a wacky idea he calls The Tournament of Death. He’s challenging himself to write a fantasy novella inspired by this year’s Olympic games while the games are going on—and then post each chapter as he goes.

Be sure to check up on him as he goes!

Origins Awards Awarded

Alliterates, Origins Awards 4 Responses »

Jun 292008

Last night, GAMA gave out the 34th annual Origins Awards. Although I’ve not worked on many tabletop games over the past couple years, I had two books with my name in them that were nominated this year: 40 Years of Gen Con by Robin Laws and Hobby Games: The 100 Best edited by James Lowder.

My contribution to each was small. Robin interviewed me, along with dozens of others, for his book, and I wrote one of the 100 essays for Jim’s book. (My entry was about Space Hulk.) Sadly, both were up for the Non-Fiction Publication of the Year, and only one could win.

Manwolf and Linda on the Air

Alliterates No Responses »

Feb 062008

Steve Sullivan, one of the illustrious Alliterates, launches a brand-new radio show tonight, along with author Linda Godfrey: “Uncanny Radio.” It concentrates on things strange and macabre, and it features an original theme song by another Alliterate, Tim Brown.

If you live near Burlington, WI, you can pick Manwolf (Steve) and Linda (Linda) up directly at 89.1 FM. For the rest of us, we can tune in live via the web.