Toy News International has an article about the upcoming DC Battle Dice game I designed for Playmates Toys. (This is the DC Comics version of the Marvel Heroes Battle Dice game, of course.) They also have a gallery up, which features photos of the figures from both lines. This includes a shot of unpainted masters for the DC dice chuckers: Green Lantern and Captain Marvel.
REV It Up!
Altered States Magazine has more images of Marvel Heroes Battle Dice from the Toy Fair.
If you want to see something else I’ve been working on with Playmates, click on the links under R.E.V.s. The fantastic designers at Playmates came up with this all-new toy line and drafted me in to help out with developing the characters, the setting, and the storyline that binds it all together. I’ve had a real blast with it all, and I hope to be able to tell you more about it soon.
Battle Dice Story
The Herald Bulletin of Anderson, Indiana, features a story about how Battle Dice came about. It includes quotes from Playmates Toys‘ Pat Linden about how I became involved in the design of the game.
Marked for Death Review
The fine people at Cinerati just posted a review of Marked for Death. It’s a good, solid piece with what I think are fair criticisms of the book.
Sam’s Story
I met Jeph Loeb several years back, when I was working on the WildStorms Collectible Card Game for WildStorm Productions (which was then part of Image Comics but is now owned by DC). We played in Jim Lee’s annual poker game at Comic-Con International, and I got cleaned out quick. I saw him again at the same convention in 2004, and he told me he’d given up playing in that game. “It’s easier just to hand those guys my money,” he said with a smile.
I don’t know Jeph all that well, but I admire his work as a writer, both in comics and on television. When I read last year that his son Sam had died, I felt horrible for him. As the father of five myself, the thought of a child dying drives a cold spike straight through me.
In an arrangement with DC Comics, Jeph has come up with a special benefit issue of Superman/Batman (#26). Sam was to write the issue, but he died before he could complete it. A roster of 26 of the top artists and writers in the comics industry rallied together to finish it, and each of them has pledged his or her proceeds from the book to the Sam Loeb College Scholarship Fund.
See the Newsarama interview with Jeph for all the details. Then be sure to go out and pick up a copy (or several if you like) this April. And be sure to scroll down to the end of the interview page for a six-page preview sure to tear at your heart.
New Knights Covers
Amazon.com has posted the covers to my next two Knights of the Silver Dragon novels: Prophecy of the Dragons and The Dragons Revealed. These form a two-part story (“Revelations”) due out this summer, the results of which shake the world of Kellach, Moyra, and Driskoll to its core.
Click the thumbnails for larger pictures of the covers. Note that they form a single image when placed next to each other. Thanks to artist Emily Fiegenschuh for doing such a great job with them!
New Marvel Battle Dice Playmat
Playmates has released a PDF of a demo-ready playmat for Marvel Heroes Battle Dice. This puts the regular playmat together with the reference sheet that describes all the different powers in the game. It’s the perfect tool for teaching people how to play, and the Playmates demo team will be using it at their premiere appearance at Megacon next weekend.
Marvel Battle Dice Figure Gallery
Playmates has posted a gallery of many of the figures from Series 1 of the Marvel Heroes Battle Dice game. These are great, professional shots that really capture the way the figures look.
Marvel Battle Dice Previews
The fine people at Superhero Times have posted 31 photos from the New York Toy Fair of upcoming products for the Marvel Heroes Battle Dice game line from Playmates Toys. The coverage includes the battle arena, the huge carrying case, and the character lists for the next three expansions.
Alliterates Assembled!
I had a great time at the Alliterates‘ monthly meeting last night. Doug Niles brought a bar puzzle that took us forever to figure out, and we only managed it all because Steve Sullivan refused to give up. (Okay, Steve managed it himself long after the rest of us had let it go.) We also had a guest, Steven Schend, who I’d not met before, although I’m well familiar with his work. Don Perrin, Lester Smith, and Rob King also showed up and helped chew the philosophical and literary fat well into the late-night hours.