Stonehell Dungeon: Into the Heart of Hell On Sale Oct. 27th

The Last, Long Mile of the Stonehell 2 Journey

I've been keeping the masses informed about the progress of the Stonehell Dungeon sequel over on the books' Facebook and Google+ pages, but new milestones have been reached. I thought I'd share that report here, along with a preview of the cover art and links to other associated projects.

Stonehell Two Status Report (5.3.14)

I’m extremely pleased to break the month-long silence with news that all the last elements of the book are coming together. As predicted, I didn’t have much to report as the book’s progress relied on other people’s contributions and wasn’t directly in my hands. It amazing how things move forward when I’m not the one responsible for pushing the project along. This report brings us two big pieces of news: the finalization of the sequel’s cover art and the edited manuscript back in hand.

J.A. D’Andrea, who did the cover of the first Stonehell book, is providing the cover art for the sequel. I’m always greatly impressed by J.A.’s work, but his piece for the sequel really struck a chord. He did a magnificent job of expressing the depths of Stonehell Dungeon and the strange mentality that accompanies those who tread its halls. I’m proud to feature this one on the cover, not only because it’s good, but because having J.A.’s work reappear makes a nice book-end for the Stonehell series. Other pieces of art are also trickling in, meaning that I’ll soon have all the components needed to push on to final layout.

I have also received the edited manuscript back from the outside editor. I’m happy to report that my own three passes over the draft were not in vain and that the editor found only minor corrections that need to be implemented. This was a great relief, as my mind always suspects the worse when I send things off for others to review. However, in this case at least, the worry was unfounded.

Here’s what remains to be done on the punch list:

1) Implement the minor changes required by the manuscript.

2) Collect the last stray pieces of art.

3) Finalize the layout by adding the art, tweaking the format, and including the various legalese, index, credits, and “special thanks to” sections.

4) Compose the cover.

5) Get a printer’s proof made and review it.

6) Make any final changes required by the proof.

7) Publication.

As you can see, there’s still a little work to be done, but we’re heading into the last mile of the journey. Unfortunately, and you knew there had to be an “unfortunately” if you’ve been following this project, I’m running into a time crunch. The success of the Metamorphosis Alpha Kickstarter left me with a few pressing projects that need completion ASAP. I need to get these off my plate before I can attend to the sequel. I also have North Texas RPG Con in a month and must complete the last adventure that needs writing before I get on the plane for Dallas (space remains in at least two of my games if you’re interested). I’d hoped to be able to debut Stonehell 2 at North Texas, but, barring a miracle of time and effort, I doubt this will occur. Rest assured, I’m eager to complete Stonehell 2 and bid a fond farewell to the project. I’ll continue to push ahead when I can and I’ll keep you informed of my progress.

Once again, I thank you for your patience, but know that we’re almost there. In the meantime, I ask anyone who enjoys my work to check out the latest Goodman Games’ Kickstarter for The Chained Coffin, a new adventure penned by me that centers on a hexcrawl through a “fantasy Appalachia” as inspired by the work of Manly Wade Wellman. The Chained Coffin is one of my favorite works to date and I think it demonstrates admirably the goal of DCC RPG going back to the source material of the hobby and doing new and interesting things with the Appendix N material.

Stonehell 2 Update

It has been awhile since I posted anything here regarding the progress of Stonehell 2 (or about anything else for that matter). Most of the status reports have been shared via the Stonehell Facebook page and the Google+ page, but I’ve let the blog go fallow. My apologies for that to everyone who chooses to avoid social media. Let me correct my error.

The manuscript and maps for Stonehell 2 are finished and the book is in rough layout. After a couple of editing passes by myself, the book is now in the hands of an outside editor for a final editing and proofing pass. Once this is complete and the last corrections are implemented, I’ll be ready to move the book into the final layout phase in preparation for getting a printer’s proof.

I’m expecting to have all the art by the end of April, and using May to do the layout and proofing of the book. If things go according to plan, I intend to have Stonehell 2 out in the first weekend of June to coincide with NTRPG Con. I’ll have copies in hand down in Texas and the book and PDF will be available through the usual venues.

Needless to say, I’m anxiously looking forward to getting the sequel out into the wild, bringing a project with began five years ago to a long-overdue conclusion. I hate leaving things unfinished and I’m ecstatic Stonehell has defied the obstacles and reached the end of its journey. As we get closer to the finish line, I’ll post here again to keep you up to date on the status of the sequel.

Let me once again extend my thanks for your patience and support, and I hope you enjoy the final Stonehell book as much as the first.

Post-Fundraiser Stonehell Sequel Status Report

This is a brief update for the period immediately following the Save Stonehell Fundraiser from last week. As promised, now that I’ve restored myself to the 21^st century and have the means to continue working on the dungeon, I’ve spent the last seven days getting back to business. Some time was spent acquiring my new system and the programs needed to access and edit the existing draft of the sequel and its map components, but, despite that, the project moves along.

As of this morning, three more quadrants are completed, meaning their maps saw their final tweaks, the drafts went through preliminary edits, and they been added to the rough layout of the book. For those of you following along at home, this means that I’ve hit the two-thirds completed mark and only nine more quadrants remain to be finished. I remain optimistic we’ll have a finished draft by month’s end and a completed Stonehell Dungeon by the end of December. Of course, any delay could through this schedule out of whack, but I’m keeping my head down and pushing on.

There are existing projects that I need to work on, all of which were assigned prior to the fundraiser, but these are small ones that shouldn’t eat into too much time to work on the sequel. One will be completed this afternoon, while the second is due in mid-November. Until the end of the month, Stonehell will be my primary concern, and I’m aiming to have the draft ready for editing by that time. Once it’s prepared, my next step will be acquiring art for the book to prepare the cover and the interior layout after the editing process is finished. After those steps are finished, it’s just a short sprint across the finish line with proof copies and final changes.

Since I have a bunch of new bosses, I’ll continue to make weekly progress reports throughout this stage of the process (preliminary editing, map changes, and draft layout). They may become bi-weekly during the editing and art phase since that’s all work that will be out of my direct control and I’ll be dependent on others for progress through that period. Nevertheless, I look forward to keeping everyone informed and I hope you’re getting as excited as I am that the final Stonehell book is nearing completion.

I'll be posting status reports over on both the Google+ Stonehell Dungeon page and the Facebook Stonehell Group. If you're not yet circled or joined those groups, now it the perfect time to do so to ensure you get the news first, as I'm not certain I'll be detailing the process as thoroughly here on the blog.

Thank You

The Save Stonehell Fundraiser (which swiftly became the “pay what you want” release of Convention Specials: Revealed) is finished. Actually, it was finished two hours after it started, surprising the hell out of me. Due to your overwhelming generosity, my efforts to raise $300.00 to cover or defray the cost of getting my old computer repaired or replaced was met six times over. One hundred and nine of you contributed to meeting that goal, resulting in a total of $1889.63 in contributions and purchases of the limited-edition PDF. I am astounded.

In all honesty, I thought I’d be lucky to reach the $300.00 mark over the course of the week. You proved me wrong and for that I’m deeply appreciative. I now have 109 new bosses, so I’d better get to work on finishing that sequel.

As to dispersal of the money raised, here’s the anticipated breakdown: Half of it goes to replacing my ancient computer, upgrading the few programs I need, and purchasing a backup power-supply. I’ve not owned a computer that wasn’t second-hand since the turn of the millennium, and owning one without “quirks” is a new experience for me.

The remaining money is going towards two other goals. Firstly, I’ll cover some monthly bills with it. This means I can turn down a project or two and devote all my time to finishing Stonehell 2. Lack of time and breathing room has been the book’s greatest enemy and is largely the reason it keeps getting delayed. With the surplus raised, I can say “no” to another gig or two in the short term to finish the sequel. This will be both a boon to everyone who has been waiting patiently for it, and to myself, who wants to get the damned thing done and remove the millstone from around my neck.

Secondly, a portion of the remaining money is to be paid forward. Since I ended up with far more money than I anticipated, it only stands to reason that others benefit from my good fortune. There’s a number of worthy causes out there more deserving of assistance than my First World problem. I mean to do my part to help now that I can.

In regards to the two sets of original notes I promised, each of those has a new home. One is going to the North Texas RPG Convention. I’m not certain what plans Doug and Mike have for those pages, but I can’t think of a better home for them. There, they’ll either find a place of security or make their way into someone’s collection.

The second set goes to a very generous contributor who paid a few dollars extra to bump him into second place. That contributor will receive the remaining set of notes after NTRPG Con makes their decision as to which one they want.

Let me close by again thanking you all for contributing or buying the PDF. Your generosity and fellowship has both inspired me and humbled me. I will continue to endeavor to sustain your faith in my ability to produce interesting and entertaining material for your games.

Very sincerely,

Mike

Fundraiser Update 10.9.13

We're reaching the last 24 hours of the fundraiser, and I'd like to again thank everyone who donated. Yesterday, I replaced my broken, aged computer with a new Dell Inspiron and will soon be back at full production. I’ve one small piece I’m contracted to finish, and then it’s on to Stonehell 2 full-time. Your generosity has made that possible.

There are still three donors tied for who shall receive the original notes for one of the adventures. These three contributors each donated $100.00, and if you were one of those kind souls, you’re in the running for my notes. The last thing I want to do is encourage more donation as you all gone above and beyond my expectation, but if one of those three were to contribute even $1.00, that’d break the tie and ensure that party ownership of the original adventure. I’ll leave that up to you all to decide if you desire adventure that much or are willing to determine the receiver by a die-roll.

According to my records, every donor has been sent their copy of the PDF as of 10:45 AM EST, today. If you didn’t receive yours, please check your spam folder and then contact me. I’ll make sure you get your copy. For those of you who have your copy, I hope you’re enjoying them!

Remember that I’ll be officially pulling the plug on the fundraiser/”pay what you want” release at noon EST time tomorrow. At that time, the donation button comes down and the Stonehell Dungeon—Convention Specials: Revealed supplement goes away for good. You have roughly 25 hours remaining.

Thank you all once again for your extreme generosity and fellowship. No matter if you contributed $1.00 or $100.00, your help is greatly appreciated. Without you, I’d been sidelined from making any progress on either Stonehell or other projects until at least the turn of the year. You’ve made it possible for this writer to write, and you don’t know how much that means to me.

Sincerely,

Michael.

The Save Stonehell Fundraiser (UPDATED!)

Important Announcement!

In an unbelievable stroke of generosity, I've reached my goal (and then some) for the fundraiser in an unimaginable short time. The gift was so generous that this unnamed individual will have the choice of either both sets of my original notes for the adventures or one of his choosing. Should he wish just the one, I'll be giving the other set to the next highest donor in thanks for all the good will I've received in less than two hours.

So for the record, I'll be able to replace my aging computer and get back on with finishing the sequel. However, I promised to keep this fundraiser going for a full week to allow people access to the limited edition PDF. I intend to keep that promise. All additional funds raised from this point forward will be applied towards other expenses. This allows me to actually turn down additional freelance projects (not counting those I've already committed myself to) in the short term so that I can concentrate on getting the sequel completed before year's end. However, I know not everyone may not wish to contribute towards that goal, and I wanted to be honest with all you very fine and unbelievably generous people. So consider the PDF to be more of a "pay what you want" product than a true fundraiser from now until next Thursday.

I am deeply in awe of you all. I've said this before, but writing is an extremely lonesome profession and I'm seldom aware of how much people enjoy my work until I get out on the convention trail and meet fans face-to-face. Your contributions this afternoon have astounded me, and I remain gobsmacked at the generosity and humanity of you all. From the bottom of my heart, I extend my thanks. I will endeavor to continue producing work of my finest caliber for your enjoyment. Again, thank you, thank you, thank you.

Very most sincerely,

Mike.


My friends, Stonehell Dungeon is cursed.

I’m not speaking of the manifold magical enchantments that lurk within, but rather a real world phenomenon that has plagued the dungeon since its inception. Back in 2009, when I was assembling the first book, my computer decided it would be a good time to cook its motherboard right when I was at the tail end of putting together the book. Some work was lost, but I was able to get my hoary computer repaired and complete the book. Now, history has repeated itself.

You may have noticed that I’ve had little to report either here or on the various forums and social media dedicated to chronicling the sequel. This is because nothing has been accomplished for reasons outside of my control. A few weeks ago, my computer decided to become twitchy, and then undergo a series of catastrophic failures. I’m typing this on a loaned laptop, which is how I’ve been connecting to the ether the past three weeks.

As with many things in life, catastrophe seldom comes when it’s convenient, and my computer giving up the ghost for good is no exception. My machine died just when finances are at their worst and, after pursuing my budget, it’s apparent it may be several months before I can afford repairs or replace the ancient computer. At this point, it’s probably the same cost to do either. Frankly, that’s a delay I do not want to endure.

To this end, I’ve decided to appeal to the fans of the dungeon to help get things back on track and to finish the book before year’s end as anticipated. Beginning today and running for one week, I’m holding the Save Stonehell Fundraiser in hopes of helping cover or at least defray the cost of getting myself back into the modern age and finish the sequel. I’m not one to ask for charity often and hate to do so, but this is one case where I feel appealing to the fans of Stonehell Dungeon in particular, and my work in general, is justified since it helps me get the book out and into your hands all the sooner. Both of us benefit in the long run.

However, rather than ask for pure charity, the Save Stonehell Fundraiser rewards you for your assistance. For the next seven days, anyone who donates any amount to the fund will receive a special PDF of seldom-seen Stonehell material. This PDF, Stonehell Dungeon—Convention Specials: Revealed, contains two special adventures set in and around Stonehell Dungeon, adventures previously only experienced by a small handful of people who played through them at conventions. After next week, I’ll no longer be distributing this PDF and its mysterious contents will return to my private archive of work for good.

The 16-page supplement contains “The Hidden Vault of Evaders Noan”, an adventure designed for 3^rd level PCs that was first run at the 3^rd Annual Dave Arneson Memorial Game Day in 2011, and “The Great Stonehell Lazer Massacre,” run exclusively at this year’s NTRPG Con. In addition to the adventures, the PDF contains a number of “Behind the Scenes” sidebars that discuss dungeon design choices, humorous anecdotes, and actual events that occurred when running these adventures. Much like Stonehell Dungeon Supplement Two: Buried Secrets, there is almost no art in the supplement (but there is a cool piece of map clarification by Jim Wampler), meaning the pages are jam-packed with goodies. If you own that supplement, you know what to expect.

As noted above, it doesn’t matter if you can spare $1.00 or $100.00. All contributors receive a copy of the PDF as a “thank you” for your generosity. I’ll endeavor to email your copy within 24 hours of being notified of your contribution. The PDF will be sent to the default email address associated with the contributor’s PayPal account unless otherwise specified by the donor. The PDF is 883 kb in size, so if you expect your email provider may have issues with a file of that size, let me know and I'll make other arrangements to get it to you.

But that’s not all. To further show my appreciation (and to possibly convince you to donate generously), the two contributors who donate the most to the Save Stonehell Fundraiser will receive a special thank you: my own personal copies of the adventures, including my hand-drawn maps, notes, and other annotations that accrued through actual play. I will personally mail each of those two contributors one of the adventures and provide extra customization (an autograph, a letter of provenance, a stick figure drawing of a Viking riding a whale, etc.) as desired. The contributor who donates the most will get first choice of the two adventures, with the second highest donor receiving the other. In the event of multiple donors contributing the same amount, I’ll determine the recipient randomly using a good old polyhedral.

At the end of each day, I’ll post in the comments below the highest contributions to date. This way, if you really want a shot of one of the adventures, you’ll know the goal to hit or exceed. Multiple donations by one person will be totaled when determining the two recipients of my personal notes, so if you give more than once, all your contributions will be applied when making the determination of the most generous donors.

How to Help Out

EDIT: Should be working now. Thank you!

On the upper right of this blog is a Paypal Donation button. If you wish to contribute to the fund, please use that button to give. I’m hoping to raise around $300.00 during the next seven days, which will either cover the cost to get my nine-year-old, second-hand PC restored to life or allow me to purchase a budget economy tower from the local electronics box store. If thirty fans of Stonehell contribute $10.00 each, my goal is reached and I can accelerate the return to working on both Stonehell and other projects, clearing my plate clean by 2014. Give what you can, however, if you’re so inclined.

Let me conclude by both thanking you in advance for your generosity and for you constant patience in waiting for the final Stonehell book. The dungeon is getting close to completion and, with your help now, will soon go from a long-standing promise unfulfilled to something you can read, use, and keep on your shelf for years to come.

I Get Burned

This week, I'm the first-ever "special guest" on the new DCC RPG-focused podcast, Spellburn. Judges Jeffery, Jim, and Jobe grill me on topics such as my involvement with DCC RPG, the secret Easter Eggs behind certain spell names, the status on Stonehell Dungeon, and why I'd pick Fritz Leiber and Clark Ashton Smith over REH in an Appendix N grudge match. Check out the episode over here.

Summer on the Convention Trail

Hey, looky there. It looks like I’ll actually post something here before the month runs out.

OK, so every now and then I get to pick the lock on my cage and escape into the wild for a few days before a refugee from Animal Planet comes and shoots me with a tranquilizer dark and hauls me back to the Freelancer Designers’ Home for the Mad. As summer creeps up, I know for certain I’ll be out and about and those of you interested in meeting me in the flesh can find me at certain venues. If history is any indicator, I suspect your second or third question for me will be “When’s Stonehell 2 coming out?”

As of right now, I’m scheduled to attend three conventions this summer, with a fourth a strong possibility. Here are the stops on my Summer Rampage Tour:

June 6^th-9^th: North Texas RPG Con—I’ll actually be arriving on the 5^th, so you’re sure to see me if you’re an early arrival at the hotel. I’ll be looking to play something because I’m a busy man that weekend once the con officially starts. I think all of my games are filled, but you’re always welcome to come by and see if there’s a no-show or two. I’m really very accommodating. My schedule is:

Thursday, June 6^th @ 6 PM in Trinity III at Table 4: DCC RPG—“Frozen in Time”
Friday, June 7^th @ 10 AM in Trinity III at Table 8: DCC RPG—“A Night on the Town”
Friday, June 7^th @ 6 PM in Trinity IV at Table 7: Shiverwhen Playtest—“The Perils of the Book Trade”
Saturday, June 8^th @ 10 AM: I’m actually playing! “Metamorphosis Alpha” with Jim Ward. I’m two for two in MA with Jim at the helm. This means I’m likely a casualty this time around.
Saturday, Jun 8^th @ 6 PM in Trinty IV at Table 7: Labyrinth Lord/Mutant Future—“The Great Stonehell Laser Massacre”

July 3^rd-7^th: Dexcon in Morristown, NJ. This one is not 100% guaranteed yet, but do to its proximity to my base of operations and the good things I’ve heard about it, it’s likely I’ll be attending and running some DCC RPG. More details as they emerge.

July 12^th-14^th: Connecticon in Hartford, CT: Hey, look it me! I’m a Tradition Gaming Guest of Honor at Connecticon. I’ll be bringing DCC RPG and doing another Shiverwhen playtest. My schedule is:

Friday, July 12^th @ 8 PM: DCC RPG—“Frozen in Time”
Saturday, July 13^th @ 9 AM: DCC RPG—“In the Court of Chaos”
Saturday, July 13^th @ 8 PM: Shiverwhen Playtest
Sunday, July 14^th @ 9 AM:  DCC RPG—“A Night on the Town”

August 15^th-18^th: The mother of all conventions, GenCon! It’s my first GenCon ever. It’s taken more than 30 years, but I finally get to attend the biggest RPG convention in the U.S. if not the world. I’ve got a bunch of games schedule and it’s also likely I can be found at or around the Goodman Games booth in the exhibitor’s hall in between events. My schedule is:

Thursday, August 15^th @ 7 PM: DCC RPG—“The Croaking Fane”
Friday, August 16^th @ 9 AM: DCC RPG—“Frozen in Time (zero-level funnel)”
Friday, August 16^th @ 7 PM: DCC RPG—“The Croaking Fane”
Saturday, August 17^th @ 9 AM: DCC RPG—“Frozen in Time (1^st level heroes)”
Saturday, August 17^th @ 7 PM: DCC RPG—“A Night on the Town”

Crap. That's a lot on my plate this summer. I better get back to work.

Stonehell Dungeon 2: Week Twenty-One Status Report

We interrupt this on-going shilling for the MAJUS Kickstarter campaign to bring you an update on the status of Stonehell 2. Remember, you can always get timely information on the dungeon' sequel at either the Stonehell Dungeon Google+ page or the Facebook group.

Yes, it really has been twelve weeks since I wrote one of these. I took a month off to prepare scenarios for the 2013 convention season, did three cons in four weeks, and then lost of month to post-con recovery, a final winter cold, and various other small projects and obligations. But that’s all behind me now and progress has begun once again on the long-delayed sequel to the Stonehell magnum opus.

The good news is that on April 10^th I wrote the following phrase in the Stonehell 2 manuscript: “Here Ends Stonehell Dungeon.” The final five levels of Stonehell have been officially keyed, noted, and hand-drawn maps exist for all the dungeon’s final twenty-six quadrants. In effect, the dungeon itself is complete, something I had occasional doubts of ever seeing. With the majority of the draft finished, it’s time to move along to the punch-list of tasks needed before I can call the sequel done.

Beginning this week, my main goal is to transform the hand-drawn quadrant maps into Photoshop images suitable for printing. It’s been several years since I last did this, so I cannot yet provide an estimate on how long this chore is going to take. In a perfect world, I’ll be able to create one or two maps a day, meaning at minimum we’re looking at slightly under a month’s work to finish the map series. Once those are finished, the lion’s share of hard work on my end is done.

After the maps are finished, I have the following tasks remaining:

1) A complete re-reading of Stonehell Dungeon: Down Night-Haunted Halls to ensure I didn’t miss anything I hinted at years ago that I wanted or needed to address in the sequel.

2) Write the introductory chapter containing important details regarding the lowest levels of the dungeon, Labyrinth Lord advice, and rumors.

3) Complete the appendices. I estimate there will be four in total. Two are already started and the remaining two are dependent on your input (more on this in a moment).

4) Write the afterword to the book. This is a short one or two page chapter wherein I bid a fond farewell to Stonehell, address the success or failure of my efforts, and talk to you gamer-to-gamer before saying goodbye.

5) Assemble a working layout of the book for revision and editing purposes. I’ve made tentative steps in this direction already, but can’t work on it in earnest until the maps are done.

6) Solicit, find, and insert the artwork required for the book.

7) Revise and complete the draft based on any missing information, typographical errors, or improvements discovered during steps 1) and 5).

8) Hand the book off to my as-yet unknown editor.

9) Final revisions/edits.

10) Final layout.

11) Printer’s proofs.

12) Final corrections sent to printer and final proofs.

After all this is complete and I’m satisfied with the results, the sequel will then be made available for purchase.

My goal was to have the sequel available by the weekend of June 7^th to coincide with the North Texas RPG Convention. This deadline is still possible, but has edged into the realm of improbable. Rather than get wrapped up in getting it finished by then, I’m choosing to focus on getting the book completed to my satisfaction. If that coincides with the beginning of June, wonderful, but if not, I can live with it. This is to be my Stonehell swan song and I want to make sure the notes are pitch-perfect.

So what can you do to help see Stonehell 2 out the door? Glad you asked!

There are two appendices which I require the fans to assist with. One is a necessary evil and the second is something I’ve had planned since the dungeon was in its infancy.

I’m going to include a (in theory) short errata section in the appendices to address anything I missed or needs correction in the first Stonehell Dungeon book. I’m aware of one missing entry on Level 2A (Feature D is missing), but there may be others I missed. If you are aware of anything like this or something that is blatantly unclear (but unintended) in the text, please let me know by dropping me an email with the subject “Stonehell Errata” to poleandrope@gmail.com. I’m not worried too much about any misspelled words or punctuation errors, but you can include those if you wish and maybe I’ll correct them in a revised version of SH1 someday. Mostly, my goal is to address missing game information to make the job of adjudicating the dungeon easier on the referee.

Secondly, I’m looking for a roster of those adventurers who’ve entered Stonehell Dungeon so far. If you have a PC or PCs that explored Stonehell, regardless of game system or campaign world, both the dungeon and I want to know about them. There is a room deep in Stonehell that knows these things and one of the appendices is a roster of those who’ve tread its halls. If you’ve explored the dungeon from either side of the referee’s screen and want the name of your adventurer(s) to be recorded for the ages, please send me those names in an email with the subject header “Stonehell Roster” to poleandrope@gmail.com. Any name sent to me before the final revisions are finished will be included in the appendix and therefore known by the dungeon itself.

And that’s it for this week’s update. I’ll see you in a week with (hopefully) more good news.

An Interview with Grognard Games

I'm back from CincyCon and getting caught up on projects and prepping for Gary Con (in just nine days!). While in Ohio, I had the opportunity to sit down alongside Tim Kask and participate in an interview with Grognard Games for their YouTube channel. You can see the results below. WARNING: contains gratuitous self-promotion!

Off to TotalCon

I'm off this morning to TotalCon in Mansfield, MA, for four days of gaming. I'll be running DCC RPG (including a sneak-preview of The Croaking Fane), Labyrinth Lord, and OD&D. Both of the latter feature trips into/around Stonehell Dungeon. If you're planning on attending, there's still room (as of this writing) in two of my DCC RPG games, "Frozen in Time" and "A Night on the Town." Everything else is booked solid.

Although those five sessions look to be fun, what I'm really anticipating in the first public playtest of a game I've been working on quietly now for sometime: Shiverwhen. Once the Stonehell sequel is complete, Shiverwhen is going to see the majority of my attentions in 2013. I've started a blog to document the development of the game and to promote it. It's just getting rolling, but interested parties are welcome to point their browsers over here.

Next weekend sees me in CincyCon in Cincinnati, OH, and I'll be in Lake Geneva for Gary Con two weekends after that. Hope to see some of you on the con trail in the weeks ahead!

The “Jennisodes” Podcast is Now Live

My interview with Jennifer Steen for “Jennisodes” is now up. In it, we discuss an array of topics ranging from how I got into this bizarre hobby, the body of my work, Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG, The Dungeon Alphabet, Fight On! magazine, this blog, and, of course, “Of Unknown Provenance.” You can listen to my dulcet tones by clicking on this link.

Throwing Rocks in Texas (Part Four)

Matt Finch runs Mythrus Tower

After “Expect the Unexpected” wrapped up, I had time to grab an early dinner before I started preparing for my Saturday night game of Dungeon Crawl Classics. Unfortunately, that meant I had to skip the Artists’ Panel scheduled right after “Expect the Unexpected.” I’d be kicking myself for this a little later.

My belly filled and my scenario, pre-gens, and accoutrements together, I slipped back to the Longhorn Room in time for the NTRPGCon Auction and—more importantly—the announcement of the winner of the 2012 Three Castles Award. Regular readers already know I won in absentia last year for The Dungeon Alphabet and was a co-nominee this year for Realms of Crawling Chaos with Dan Proctor. 

Unfortunately, I was tipped early that Realms was probably not going to win when Doug asked me to present the award since I was in town. Disappointing, but I expected my name in the mix again was unlikely to result in another award.

Jim Ward runs Dragonlairds on Sunday morning

Doug and Mike introduced me prior to the auction and I threatened the audience with reading the hour-long acceptance speech I wasn’t able to deliver last year and got some laughs. I then pointed out that if I neglected to announce this year’s winner, the award was technically still mine. All laughter aside, it was an honor to finally be able to thank some of the judges in attendance and those of you who’ve supported The Dungeon Alphabet with your dollars and glowing reviews. It was with a mixture of pride and sadness that I passed the torch on to Kevin Crawford for Stars Without Number. Congratulations, Kevin!

Having already blown most of my budget (or so I told myself), I slipped out after the award announcement and finished up the last little details of preparing for my DCC session of “The Fane of St. Toad” scheduled immediately after the auction concluded. I had my Brave Halfling Old School Game Box (the Erol cover, natch, and now signed after “Emirikol”) stuffed to the gills with DCC notes and was ready to roll.

Saturday night games at cons are always dicey (and not in the good way). Exhaustion and drinks take their tolls and not everyone makes it to the table. My game had seven players registered, but only three from the list turned up. Luckily for me, I had three other eager players accost me before the game and beg seats, which the low turnout allowed me to grant them. Unlike “Emirikol,” whose players were largely unfamiliar with DCC, five of the six players at “St. Toad” had copies of the rulebook with them and at least passing acquaintance with the rules. After a quick rules overview, we hit the ground running.

“The Fane of St. Toad” is the first full-length adventure I wrote after getting involved with the OSR and it is dedicated to Dave Arneson. I hadn’t looked at it since I started working on Stonehell, and I always get a little nervous revisiting old work. Surprisingly, it still worked for me. I updated it to DCC, smoothed out a couple of rough edges, and made some changes so that it wouldn’t be completely predictable to someone who had read the original. In my own opinion, it turned out great.

Those red words: all toads

The players spent very little time exploring the upper level of the Fane (but enough time for them to soak up the ambiance), heading down the Undercroft where they rightly concluded the good treasure was. Down there, they encounter really, really crappy mummies (my Zocchis were again rolling cold and I couldn’t strangle a poor sap to death to save my life), tore up a creepy orgy chamber (and inadvertently discovered a cache of vials when they struck off a particular protrusion from a statue), and then faced down a big honking cavern of toads. The battle was pitched against the hopping menace, but with a lot of spellburning and sleep spells, and charm spells, they overcame the toads—but not before the halfling in the party found the “sleeping” avatar of St. Toad and decided to battle it hobbito a toado.

In an eerie repeat of “Emirikol,” the elf in the party called down the power of his patron and the party was near indestructible for many, many rounds and enjoyed a healthy bonus to their rolls to boot. I did manage to get the cleric swallowed by the avatar, but out-of-the-box thinking with a Word of Command (“vomit!”) got him out of its belly and the Toad was slain, leaving the party very rich and the session at an end. Alas, I didn’t get to sic the giant Toad idol on them as they tried to leave with their booty.

The Not-Be by Jennell Jaquays

During a break in “St. Toad” I ran into Tim again and he started talking to me about something called a “Not-Be” and I honestly had no clue what he was going on about. Finally, the penny dropped. A couple months before the convention, Bad Mike sent the word out that the con was looking for funky, unique monster submissions to present to the artists during the Artists’ Panel for them to draw. The end results would eventually be judged, featured in an adventure, and the winner would have a miniature sculpted of the monster. When I read the call for monsters, I drafted up a quick entry: “The Upside-Down, Inside-Out Thing That Should Not Be” or “Not-Be” for short. It turned out that Jennell Jaquays brought the “Not-Be” to grisly, two-dimensional life at the Artists’ Panel and it was a big hit. And I missed the whole thing.

The rest of the evening, although late, was a lot of fun. I talked up my upcoming releases from Goodman Games with the DCC players and signed a few books before heading back to the ballroom. There I talked about Stonehell with Bad Mike, editing with Tim, and got the lowdown on Jennell’s next professional leap (and got to see the “Not-Be” for myself). The hour was late and after collecting my winnings from the silent auction (Call of Cthulhu 5.6.1 autographed by Sandy Petersen, Secret of San Fransico, and Cthulhu Dark Ages—what can I say? I love me some Call of Cthulhu and spent less than I would have at the store), I called it a night.

Erol, a gorilla, and I wait for the shuttle to the airport

Sunday was all about saying hello and saying goodbye. Frank Mentzer introduced me to Peter Kerestan of Palace of the Vampire Queen and Wee Warriors fame. I had breakfast with Steve Winter and my favorite fan from Gary Con, Zach Glazer (after chatting with Erol Otus and Jeff Dee while waiting for my breakfast to arrive). Allan Grohe introduced me to Chris Holmes, son of J. Eric Holmes, who turned out was one of my fellow cavemen in “Expect the Unexpected” and we got to playtest Chris’ board game of “Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Zombies vs. Monkeys” (or something like that). The Ninjas won, but not before proving that if you really want to playtest the beejezus out of a game, Allan and I will put it through its paces.

There were of course many people I didn’t get to say good-bye to or spend enough time talking to during the con, but hopefully 2013 will correct all that. I’m going to try like hell to make it down again next year. Writing this close to three weeks after the events of the convention, there are many events, people, and good conversations I’m forgetting, but I do want to thank all my fellow attendees for welcoming this New Yorker down to Texas. The fact that so many of you took the time to introduce yourself and compliment me on my work (and demand autographs!) means a lot to me. For those of you who don’t do it as a vocation, writing is an extremely lonely pursuit and it’s usually just me vs. the computer screen. Getting out and meeting people who my work has brought some entertainment to means the world to me and so long as you keep wanting more, I’ll keep writing it.

Thank you all!

Mike.

An Ill-Fated Expedition into Stonehell

So apparently it is now possible to record your Google+ Hangout sessions and completely scuttle any chance you might have for public office. A hearty big thanks goes out to Nicholas Mizer and David Brawley for not only allowing me to join in on their Stonehell hijinks (although not in this session), but for recording their exploits and posting it for all to see. Maybe once I get a real internet connection again, I can stop by and play some time.

Some Drunk Umber Hulk Reviews "Stonehell"

It's been a mixture of chaos and joy the past few weeks and I'm only now getting myself sorted out. Posting is likely to be light in the coming weeks as I have some big projects to attend to. In the meanwhile, please enjoy this review of Stonehell Dungeon over at The Drunk Umber Hulk. We'll return to normal posting soon.

Gary Con Recap Part I

Like the target at a snipers’ competition, Gary Con is an event viewed through many lenses. As a gamer, I experienced the con through the fun and camaraderie I had at the tables, but as a designer, it was interpreted by who I met and spoke to in the publishing industry. And lastly, as someone with a background in history and archiving, Gary Con was a place filled with those whose roots extend back to the long-ago days when this was all new and wondrous. No matter which lens I viewed the weekend, however, it was an outstanding experience.

Unfortunately, the four-day weekend began on a down-note when I received a phone alert that my first flight of the day was suffering from an hour-and-a-half delay. This alert came ten minutes before I was set to depart for the airport and threw all my travel plans askew. Forty-five minutes of trying to contact the airline on the phone without success eventually drove me to abandon my efforts and drive to the airport anyway. The clerk there managed to get me on another flight, but from another airport, making a $100 cab ride necessary to make my flight. Further complications at O’Hare delayed me again and I finally arrived in Milwaukee four hours behind schedule. Luckily, the Lodge at Lake Geneva was kind enough to dispatch a shuttle to convey me from General Mitchell to the hotel. A very big thanks to Larry the Night Security man at the Lodge for coming to my rescue!

After finally arriving five hours later than I intended, I discovered I had missed the meet-n-greet entirely, as well as the majority of games. Dropping off my bags in my room, I wandered down to the hotel bar looking for something to eat (and was again foiled since the restaurant had long-ago closed). I did spot someone in a tied-dyed shirt playing the Battlestar Galactica board game and soon found myself talking with Allan “Grodog” Grohe and Mark CMG of Creative Mountain Games. Alas, last call followed all too soon and a Diaspora of gamers was sent into the desert of the Lodge’s hallways. A brief snack from a vending machine and a long discussion with fellow gamer David(?) from Stone Mountain, GA closed an overlong travel day.

Friday arrived in much better shape. Determined to remain on New York time, and anticipating a diet of completely fattening meals during the weekend, I was up at 6 AM to take a walk around the Lodge’s grounds. Back at the hotel, I finally managed to acquire breakfast and to meet Tim Snyder of The Savage Afterworld at the concession table. Soon thereafter, the Vendors’ Hall opened and I stepped inside to discover Dan Proctor behind the Goblinoid Games’ table, which was situated next to Black Blade Publishing’s wares. I spent a good hour inside there talking with Dan and Alan, as well as meeting John Adams of Brave Halfling (who had his game boxes for sale nearby), Jeffrey Talanian (of Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea), and Jon Hershberger of Black Blade. Across from the Goblinoid Games table was the Artists’ Nook. There sat Jeff Easley, who was kind enough to sign one of his illos in my copy of the Dungeon Alphabet, and Jim Wampler, creator of “Marvin the Mage.” I can’t say enough nice things about Jim, both as an artist and a person. He’s an old-school Gamma World fan to boot and did me a solid during the course of the con. Stop reading this right now and go to Mudpuppy Comics and check out a free issue of Marvin. I’ll be here waiting.

With time to kill before my first game, I wandered the rooms, snapping pictures. There, I ran into Frank Mentzer, who I met last year at I-Con. I was pleased that Frank not only remembered me, but went out of his way to welcome me into the ranks of professional game designers. (I’ll let the “Stonehell Outhouse” comment slide, Frank.) Frank’s always a pleasure to talk to and is generally interested in my own efforts to till a row in the field of game design. That means a lot to me.

As I was wearing my Stonehell T-shirt the first day, it wasn’t long before I had my first fan approach me to say how much he enjoyed my work. I’d see Zach (a.k.a. Nogrod from Dragonsfoot) several more times during the con and he’s another great gamer, one I’d share the experience of Tim Kask’s OD&D game with later in the day.

When 2 PM rolled around, it was off to the wargaming room for a game of Dungeon!, an activity I last enjoyed when Reagan was in the White House. Running the game(s) was Dave Megarry, the original designer of Dungeon! Dave took the time to explain the origins of the game, as well as bring the original Dungeon! prototype board for us to “ooh and ahh” over, but the real bomb shell was yet to come. I had encountered Dave and his wife upstairs an hour earlier as they unloaded a large table from the back of their car. I gave them a hand wrestling the dark green table through the front doors of the hotel, not thinking much of the activity other than I was giving a fellow gamer a hand. Only during the event was the identity of that table revealed: it was Dave Arneson’s ping pong table, the same one where he played the original Blackmoor campaign on decades ago! Having never met Dave in person, this was the closest I’d ever get to him and it was an incredibly cool experience. I could see that the opportunity was not overlooked by fellow Dungeon! player, Tavis Allison of the Mule Abides and Adventurer, Conqueror, King. I’ve met Tavis before and, knowing his interest in the history of our hobby, was certain he was just as floored by playing at Dave’s table as I was.

After finishing the Guinness Book of World Records’ Longest Game of Dungeon Ever (the other game’s players packed up, departed, and went on to marry and see their children graduate from college before we finally completed our game), it was back into the Vendors’ Hall to hang around the Goblinoid Games table. There, I met Jeff “bighara” Sparks and his wife (who is not at all still angry about a game Jeff ran 10 years ago), and signed a few more copies of Stonehell Dungeon.

At 6 PM, I got to play OD&D with Tim Kask. The adventure saw us exploring a frigid glacier and the mysterious Tower of the Phoenix located within it. I had a blast, even though we lost a few party members before we actually got inside the place, and, in true old school fashion, forged the legend of Sigurd Bear-Breaker. Facing down a certain TPK, my dwarf drank a potion of giant strength and challenged two giant polar bears to a wrestling match. He broke both their spines and allowed us to continue the adventure to its completion.

Tim was another pleasure to finally meet, especially since he was one of the judges on last year’s "Three Castles Award." During a break in the game, Tim invited me to the VIP Smoking Lounge (otherwise known as the patio off Tim and Frank’s room where they had stashed one of those big standing ashtrays they had somehow “acquired” the days before) and we talked about the old days of Dragon, the Dungeon Alphabet, and artists. Like his partner in crime, Frank Mentzer, Tim was very gracious, kind, and encouraging in regard to my design efforts. It was great getting to talk with him outside of the game.

The game ended around 10 PM and I had the chance to talk with some more fellow gamers (both newly met and by this time old friends) up at the bar. Eventually, the day’s events began to take their toll and I excused myself to grab a few hours’ rest before starting in all over again the next day.

Off to See the Wizards

I'm off to GaryCon first thing tomorrow morning, so this will be the last you'll hear of me until next week at the earliest. Due to technical limitations, I'm not going to be blogging from Lake Geneva, but keep an eye out for me in various photos that might turn up online during the weekend.

This trip marks my first vacation in far too long. I depart having turned in my final draft of a Secret Project that I've been working on for a publisher of some renown in the OSR, so I'm footloose and fancy free. I've also received word that Dan Proctor will be attending GaryCon thanks to a last minute cancellation, and Goblinoid Games will have a booth there. Dan has kindly offered to display Stonehell Dungeon amongst his wares, freeing me from having to sell copies out of my hotel room like a black market smuggler. He might have a single Stonehell T-shirt, too. If not, I will. If you need an XL classic black Tee, hunt me down.

I'll see some of you tomorrow!

Convention Schedule or How to See the Elusive Mike in the Wild

Most years, it’s a good convention season if I can hie myself to my local Sci-fi/Fantasy convention for a day or two of pick-up games and maybe an industry panel or three. This season, I’m really stepping out: hopping on planes, staying at new hotels, and doing battle with the ever-present threat of “the Convention Crud.” I’m gleefully looking forward to meeting many people whose only acquaintance has so far been via email or a pixilated face on Goggle+. Here’s where I’m going to be for certain in the months ahead:

March 22^nd-25^th: GaryCon IV in Lake Geneva, WI – This marks not only my first GaryCon, but my inaugural trip to the RPG motherland. I’ve rambled around the country a few times, but somehow always missed Wisconsin. I’ll be attending mostly as a “civilian,” playing whatever games I can and getting to know my fellow old school games both past and present, but I’ll have a few Stonehell books, a T-shirt or two, and I’m up to run some Stonehell in open gaming sessions. Please feel free to introduce yourself!

March 30^th- April 1^st: I-CON XXXI in Stony Brook, NY – My local con. I’ve been attending on and off since at least I-CON VIII (where Gary signed my Players Handbook). More geared to the sci-fi and fantasy scene than gaming, I nevertheless always manage to sit in on a game or two and meet fellow designers in the industry. It’s going to be hard to beat last year’s con, which saw me playing OD&D with Frank Mentzer (see my mapping efforts at 6:10) and talking a lot about the OSR, but I’m looking forward to gaming with some of the guests of honor this year. Say “Hi!” if you see me loitering or rescue me if I’m under attack by the cosplay hordes for making wise-ass comments.

June 7^th – 10^th: NTRPG Con in Dallas, TX – My attendance to this year’s con was completely unexpected, but I’ll be going courtesy of Goodman Games to demo some Dungeon Crawl Classics and to promote a new book or two. My flight is booked, my room reserved, and my registration paid. Now I just have to nail down what I’m running and when, and let the NTRPG Con folks know.

GenCon is most likely off the table of possibilities for this year, but some rumblings have been made to get me there in 2013 and I remain hopeful this comes to fruition. I’ve also had a request to come down to Dragon*Con, but through entirely informal channels unaffiliated with the convention organizers. Maybe one year, but it’s unlikely I’ll get down to Atlanta in 2012.

Stonehell Dungeon Review

Those of you who are still on the fence about adding Stonehell Dungeon: Down Night-Haunted Halls to your RPG collection may wish to venture over to TenFootPole.org. Bryce Lynch serves up a flattering review of the book as part of his ongoing series of OSR evaluations.

In related news, I've had a few inquires regarding the state of the sequel, with some folks (justifiably so) pondering whether it will remain RPG vapor-ware. I addressed those concerns over on Dragonsfoot, but will reprint my response here:

Hello, all. I just wanted to chime in RE: Stonehell Dungeon and clear up any misconceptions. The second book detailing levels 6-10 is most certainly in the works and will see print. I intended to have it out long before now, but I've been swamped doing design work for other publishers, and since Stonehell is the only deadline that I have any say over, it's been the casualty of overwork for others. Rest assured, the dungeon will be completed as I too dislike to leave anything unfinished--especially when I know people have been clamoring for the rest of the megadungeon.

I'm on a schedule where I try to complete writing one quadrant of the dungeon each week. Sometimes I hit that mark, sometimes I don't, but slow progress is better then no progress at all. I did hit the wall a while back, and I had to go back and completely redo a section of the dungeon that was causing problems and bottlenecking the rest of the design process. I can safely say that that issue has been corrected and I'm back on track. I'll be bringing Stonehell with me to GaryCon IV and if you catch me when I'm not playing someone else's game, I'll run it with whoever want to explore the ancient prison. Player's choice whether you want to visit the old levels or the new ones.

My goal is to have the book released before the year's over. I want it done and gone probably even more so than you fine folks, but I have to temper the desire to slap the rest of the dungeon together with my commitment to giving you a book that equals if not exceeds its predecessor. I hope you can understand this and forgive me the delay.

Thanks to all of you've who've purchased, played, and spread the word about Stonehell over the last two years. I'm very appreciative of the love and support my little monster of a dungeon has received from all the old school crowd (and a few new school folks as well).