Issue #151Vol. XIV, No. 6

November 1989

PublisherJim Ward

EditorRoger E. Moore

Fiction editorBarbara G. Young

Assistant editorsAnne Brown Dale Donovan

Art directorPaul Hanchette

Production staffKathleen C. MacDonald

Gaye O�Keefe Angelika Lukotz

SubscriptionsJanet L. Winters

U.S. advertisingSheila Gailloreto Tammy Volp

U.K. correspondentand U.K. advertising

Sue Lilley

SPECIAL ATTRACTIONS

1 1 Into the Eastern Realms:Adventure is adventure, no matter which side of the ocean you’re on.

1 4 The Ecology of the Kappa � David R. KnowlesKappa are strange, but you�d be wise not to laugh at them.

1 8 Soldiers of the Law � Dan SalasThe next ninja you meet might actually work for the police.

2 2 Earn Those Heirlooms! � Jay OuztsOnly your best behavior will win your family’s prize katana.

2 8 The Dragon�s Bestiary � Sylvia LiThe wang-liang are dying out — and they’d like to take a few humanswith them.

3 2 The Ecology of the Yuan-ti � David WellmanTo call them the degenerate Spawn of a mad god may be the only nicething to say.

OTHER FEATURES

3 6 The Beastie Knows Best — Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk LesserWhat are the best computer games of 1989? You’ll find them all here.

3 8 Role-playing Reviews � Jim BambraDid you ever think that undead might be . . . helpful?

4 6 The Role of Books � John C. BunnellNew twists on an old tale, and other unusual fantasies.

5 2 The Role of Computers — Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk LesserFly a Thunderchief in Vietnam — or a Silpheed in outer space.

6 8 Through the Looking Glass � Robert BigelowJust what do people do at a miniatures gaming convention? Everything!

7 8 At Close Quarters — Jeffrey A. Sullivan and Bruce W. OnderYour Orion agent is being chased by a Web assassin along a cliffside. How

can he escape?

8 5 The Gamers Have Chosen! � the editorsYou’ll find some familiar names in the 1989 Gamers’ Choice Awards.

9 1 Son of the Ultimate Addenda — David Edward MartinBack by popular demand! More answers on The Ultimate Powers Book.

DEPARTMENTS

5 Letters 1 2 Statement of Ownership 9 5 Convention Calendar7 F o r u m 27 T S R P r e v i e w s 100 Dragonmirth8 Sage Advice 80 Gamers Guide

COVER

This issue of DRAGON® Magazine showcases the talents of one of our longtimecontributors, Jim Holloway. You’ll find his work throughout our special edition onthe world of the AD&D® Oriental Adventures tome. We lead off with Jim’s coverwork, “Sushi From Hell” (at least that’s what he scribbled on the bottom of thepainting). As for what Hell itself looks like, see his work on page 11.

4 NOVEMBER 1989

What did you think of this issue? Do you havea question about an article or have an idea for anew feature you’d like to see? In the UnitedStates and Canada, write to: Letters, DRAGON®Magazine, P.O. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI 53147,U.S.A. In Europe, write to: Letters, DRAGONMagazine, TSR Ltd., 120 Church End, CherryHinton, Cambridge CB1 3LD, United Kingdom.

E v e r y t w o w e e k s ?Dear Dragon:

I am writing in hopes of getting your maga-zine to go at least bi-monthly. Once a month isjust not enough! I really like your articles,fiction section, computer and book reviews,everything about your magazine. But once Iread the month’s issue, I have to wait a wholethree weeks to get more of this great magazine.I know you have enough on your hands already,but I just like this magazine too much to get itjust once a month. So please, please, please gobi-monthly at least.

Jonah S. EwellNo address given

Yours is exactly the kind of letter we love toreceive here, but if we tried to put this maga-zine out once every two weeks, we would haveto be taken to the Great Lakes Home for Self-Lobotomized Editors within the first two issues(I think you meant bi-weekly or semi-monthlyinstead of bi-monthly, but I’ve heard the term“bi-monthly” used for either meaning.) Youshould seriously think about subscribing toDUNGEON® Adventures, which would give you

more than enough material to keep you going.See our subscription cards in this issue.

Overseas notesDear Dragon:

With the exception of a couple of issues,you’ve done a great job of entertaining andinforming us gamers who are overseas servingthe military. It hurts to see all the great stuffcoming out that we won’t see for another year(e.g., the AD&D® 2nd Edition Player's Handbookwill probably be in the Stars & Stripes book-store in September 1992).

I have a few questions for you:1. whatever happened to the “Daily Planet”

(DC™ HEROES game) Gaming Supplement?2. Why don’t you have the World Gamers

Guide? I’m here on the 662nd plane of the Abyss(actually at Giebelstadt AAF in Germany, samedifference), and I need to do some gaming!

3. When is the nest Best of DRAGON Maga-zine Anthology?

4. Are there plans to republish the FinieousFingers Treasury (oh please, please, grovel,grovel, licking your boots, beg, beg)?

Michael S. WebsterAPO NY

1. The “Daily Planet” supplement was actuallyan advertisement series from Mayfair Games,supporting its licensed DC HEROES game. There

are no plans at present to start the series again.2. We discontinued “The World Gamers Guide”

feature in DRAGON Magazine with issue #131.The magazine’s increased distribution world-wide was responsible; we were simply gettingtoo many entries to publish, and the spacedevoted to the feature was not benefiting themajority of our readers. We still encouragegamers the world over to organize gaminggroups, set up conventions, and use the re-sources of their local game and hobby stores.

3. We made mention in issue #133’s “Letters”column that an anthology would be released inearly 1989, but the anthology was dropped fromthe production schedule. We have no furtheranthologies planned for now, though someanthology types have been discussed. Whatwould you like to see if we did decide to publishan anthology of material from DRAGON Maga-zine? Write now and tell us.

4. We have no plans to reprint The FinieousTreasury, the collected graphic adventures ofFinieous Fingers the thief and his friends, thatwas released by TSR, Inc. in 1981. Finieous leftDRAGON Magazine years ago for another gam-ing magazine that is no longer published. How-ever, the new adventures of Finieous, Fred, andCharly now appear in Space Gamer magazine,published by 3W, Inc. (4070 West Street, Cam-bria CA 93428).

Back to BBSsDear Dragon:

After reading Roger Moore’s editorial in issue#146 (“R.I.P.: RPGs?”), I thought of another usefor computers on the subject of RPGs. For thosewith modems, there is always the option of BBSs[bulletin board systems]. Many BBSs have ongo-ing RPGs, usually run by the users. I myself calla number of BBSs that have RPGs to play, andone BBS is devoted completely to RPGs.

While computer games are excellent (andgetting better) for the gamer, BBSs provide away to play your favorite game and get thehuman contact that makes the game fun.

Aaron GoldblattFort Worth TX

The BBS games that I’ve seen work more likeplay-by-mail (PBM) games, but they do introduceinteraction with real people. Some on-linecomputer services offer real-time role-playinggames, like the CompuServe® InformationService’s Island of Kesmai fantasy game (see“Kesmai and Beyond,” in issue #149) and li-censed SNIPER™ World War II computer game(see “The Game Wizards,” in issue #148).

For what it’s worth, TSR, Inc. has no objectionif gamers wish to play TSR’s games on-linethrough BBSs. However, such use cannot bemade for profit; no one can charge other play-ers to play in a TSR game. I recall seeing oneBBS system that was completely devoted to theAD&D ® Oriental Adventures system; another—the “Illuminati” BBS—is operated by Steve Jack-son Games in Austin, Tex. (512-447-4449, 24hours, 300/1200/2400 baud).

DRAGON 5

Laying the blame

In mid-September, there was a newsarticle about a 17-year old student in

If you were afraid it was aDUNGEONS & DRAGONS® rule book,

McKee, Ky., who took 11 high-schoolclassmates hostage. He was armed witha shotgun and two revolvers. The stu-dent eventually surrendered to statepolice officers. No one was injured.

As officials sorted through the stu-dent�s belongings while negotiatingwith him just before his surrender,they discovered a book that the author-ities think formed the basis for thestudent�s hostage taking. Any guessesas to what that book was?

you were wrong. It was Stephen King�sRage, a novel about a teenager whotakes other students hostage beforebeing shot by police. The McKee stu-dent had not seen his real father sincehe was four years old; during the hos-tage ordeal, he consistently demandedthat he be able to see his father. Themain character in King�s novel hadserious problems with his own father.It seems reasonable to guess that theMcKee student identified greatly withthe situation in the novel�and he wasunfortunately upset enough about hislife to do something radical about it.

The question is: Was the book respon-sible for the student�s actions?

I�ve never read a Stephen King novel,though a friend once told me I resem-ble one of the characters in Christine(he wouldn�t say which one; I assume itwasn�t the car). Given the circum-stances described in the paper, I find itvery difficult to believe that the bookwas in any way responsible for thestudent�s actions. If someone is ex-tremely upset, mentally disturbed, orvery immature, almost anything can sethim off.

The McKee student is hardly alone.All of you should recall John Hinkley,Jr., who shot and wounded the Presi-dent of the United States in 1982 forreasons that had reportedly somethingto do with seeing the movie Taxi Drivera great many times. He was found to beinsane, as everyone knows, and no oneblamed the movie for his actions. Agreat many other people had seen it,and it hadn�t caused them to shootother people.

You might also remember the teen-ager in Florida who went on trial someyears ago for the murder of an elderly

Continued on page 86

�Forum� welcomes your comments and opinionson role-playing games. In the United States andCanada, write to: Forum, DRAGON® Magazine,P.O. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI 53147, U.S.A. InEurope, write to: Forum, DRAGON Magazine,TSR Ltd, 120 Church End, Cherry Hinton,Cambridge CB1 3LB, United Kingdom. We askthat material submitted to �Forum� be eitherneatly written by hand or typed with a freshribbon and clean keys so we can read andunderstand your comments.

Enough! It seems that evil player charactersare fast becoming the “female dwarf beards” of'89. As a gamer with over 11 years playingexperience (five as Dungeon Master), pleaseindulge me for one story

Bored with playing the good guys, my playersstarted asking for a “different” campaign. Talkturned to assassins, antipaladins, and mages offoul disposition. “One more game in Oceanus,” Isaid, “and then we’ll see.”

Next gaming session, the party was ap-proached by an old man who spoke of a greatevil spreading across the land, monsters over-running the countryside, and events that obvi-ously indicated his insanity. The diamond heproduced as a retainer, however, convinced theparty to hear his story. They retired to theNaughty Mermaid Inn.

Once there, the party was lead to a largeroom filled with crates, casks, and barrels. Theinsane look on the man’s face was gone, and hespoke quite eloquently. “Our world is in greatdanger. These supplies are needed desperately.Thank you for aiding us.” He then began tochant arcane words. A circle of power appearedabout the party, and they were gone.

They reappeared in an area of ruins, shakenawake by scantily clad humans. Orcs wereoverrunning the human forces, using rods thatflashed powerful beams of energy through thenight. “Run quick, fools, or die!” the PCs heardas the humans fled. The mage was slow to actand was struck by an orc’s power beam.Screaming in pain, he looked at the stump thatwas once his forearm and hand. The partybarely escaped.

What had happened? The party had been sentto a parallel world where a space probe runamok had caused the evil races to gain control.Most good-aligned individuals had been elimi-nated; the remainder fought with guerillatactics and aggressively took what they neededto survive. Paladins wore leather for its stealthvalue and were feared for their great fightingprowess. Rangers became the kings of thewarbands, relying on their survival abilities tosave their people. Magic was at a premium. Thegood-aligned still kept to their principles whenpossible, but exceptions became the rule. Neu-trals were enigmas, as often enemies as allies.

The horror of this world came home to theplayers when the party met the counterparts oftheir own high-level characters (then retired onOceanus) on this world. Leading a warband,these counterparts were far different from thecharacters my players used. Attitudes, abilities,and features had changed. Most had lost at least

one limb or organ and looked, as one playerlater said, “tough.” The elves in the party re-coiled in horror to learn that the three high-level elf characters were the last of their race.Suddenly, the “evil” in the world was not soattractive. Unable to return home, the partybegan a quest to free at least some small part oftheir new world. The task was not easy.

Parties of adventuring humanoids hunted thesurvivors — raiding their lairs, seeking powerfulartifacts, and smashing uprisings. Using technol-ogy (couched by the probe as powerful magic),the evil races ruled supreme, and the good-aligned beings fought for survival in a worldgone mad. The challenge became to remaingood while suffering all the negative aspectsnormally given to evil.

The moral? Both the players and I learnedthat the allure of evil player characters is not inbeing evil per se, but rather the challenge ofsurvival outside the bounds of the “normal”game setting. Through playing this world’s evil,the party strengthened its ability to play an-other world’s good. So the next time a playersays, “I want to play an assassin!” give ‘im ahunted paladin instead. He might survive toenjoy it.

John WommerFort Ord CA

Aaaarrgghh! I have seen enough of letters thattalk about the benefits of having a good- or evil-aligned campaign. By far the more enjoyable isthe neutral campaign. Most PC groups shouldconsist of neutrals bent one way or the other,and perhaps one strongly evil or good character.Occasionally, it is also fun to play a group ofpurely good characters on a crusade againstevil, or a group of evil characters on a raid.Using only one alignment, however, loses itsspice after a while. A veteran player shouldhave a folder of characters of every alignment,level, and class, for they are all fun to play,although some more than others. I feel thatthose who play only good or evil characters aremissing a whole facet of the AD&D® game. Anotherwise dull adventure could have someinteresting role-playing on the side if the twocharacters are a good cleric and an evil thief,thrown together against their will by necessity.This could never happen in a good-or-evil-onlycampaign.

In issue #146's “Forum” were a few lettersconcerning this topic. Ian Reyes wrote about thefun of playing evil characters. I think that an all-evil group, although it may work together forsurvival during an adventure, will not last long.After the adventure, everyone will have an eyeon the other’s newly (and probably ill-) gottenitems, and they will not worry about monsterswaiting to kill them if they split up. Further-more, I think that a continuous campaign of thissort will make for dull role-playing after awhile. I agree that it is fun to role-play andbattle through scenes in which a character hasbeen caught in the royal treasure chamber, butthere are other good role-playing scenes, and

Continued on page 64

DRAGON® Magazine (ISSN 0279-6848) is publishedmonthly by TSR, Inc., P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI53147, United States of America. The postal address forall materials from the United States and Canada exceptsubscription orders is: DRAGON Magazine, P.O. Box111, Lake Geneva WI 53147, U.S.A.; telephone: (414)248-3625. The postal address for all materials fromEurope is: DRAGON Magazine, TSR Ltd, 120 ChurchEnd, Cherry Hinton, Cambridge CB1 3LD, UnitedKingdom; telephone: (0223) 212517 (U.K.), 44-223-212517 (international); telex: 818761; fax: (0223) 248066(U.K.), 44-223-248066 (international).

Distribution: DRAGON Magazine is available fromgame and hobby shops throughout the United States,Canada, the United Kingdom, and through a limitednumber of other overseas outlets. Distribution to the booktrade in the United States is by Random House, Inc., andin Canada by Random House of Canada, Ltd. Sendorders to: Random House, Inc., Order Entry Department,Westminster MD 21157, U.S.A.; telephone: (800) 638-6460 toll-free except Alaska (call (800) 492-0782 toll-freein Maryland). Newsstand distribution throughout theUnited Kingdom is by Seymour Press Ltd., 334 BrixtonRoad, London SW9 7AG, United Kingdom; telephone:01-733-4444.

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Back issues: A limited quantity of back issues isavailable from either the TSR Mail Order Hobby Shop(P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI 53147, U.S.A.) or fromTSR Ltd. For a copy of the current catalog that listsavailable back issues, write to either of the aboveaddresses.

Submissions: All material published in DRAGONMagazine becomes the exclusive property of the pub-lisher unless special arrangements to the contrary aremade prior to publication. DRAGON Magazine welcomesunsolicited submissions of written material and artwork;however, no responsibility for such submissions can beassumed by the publisher in any event. Any submissionaccompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope ofsufficient size will be returned if it cannot be published.We strongly recommend that prospective authors writefor our writers’ guidelines before sending an article to us.In the United States and Canada, send a self-addressed,stamped envelope (9½” long preferred) to: Writers’Guidelines, c/o DRAGON Magazine, as per the aboveaddress; include sufficient American postage or Interna-tional Reply Coupons with the return envelope. InEurope, write to: Writers’ Guidelines, c/o DRAGONMagazine, TSR Ltd; include sufficient return postage orIRCs with your SASE.

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DRAGON 7

by Skip Williams

If you have any questions on the gamesproduced by TSR, Inc., �Sage Advice� willanswer them. In the United States andCanada, write to: Sage Advice, DRAGON®Magazine, P.O. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI53147, U.S.A. In Europe, write to: SageAdvice, DRAGON Magazine, TSR Ltd., 120Church End, Cherry Hinton, CambridgeCB1 3LD, United Kingdom.

This month, �Sage Advice� looks at theAD&D® Oriental Adventures volume. Pagenumbers cited herein refer to that gamevolume by David �Zeb� Cook.

What do the birth ranks generatedon table 38 (page 31) really mean?

As explained on page 31, the exact cir-cumstances of a character�s birth are up tothe DM. The higher the initial die roll, thebetter off the character�s family is. A firstrank character, for example, probablycomes from a well-to-do family with clearconnections to the imperial family, orperhaps the character belongs to the impe-rial family (he might be a distant cousin).Upper-class families are skilled artisans,scribes, or wealthy merchants.

I don�t understand the birthrightrules on page 34. How do you usebirth rank in order to modify thechances for a birthright? If you sub-tract birth rank from the number ofrolls on table 40, then characterswith low ranks never receive birth-rights, right?. Also, not all the re-sults on the birth rank table (table38, page 31) have numerical values.

The term �birth rank� is used incorrectlyon page 34. The term that should be usedhere is �birth order� (see Unearthed Ar-cana, page 83). An only child has a birthorder of zero. A character born late in thebirth order might not receive any birth-right even in a wealthy family.

How frequently are the generals ofthe animal kings encountered?

The �frequency� listing does not apply tothese beings, as they appear only whentheir kings send them on errands. The DMmust decide where and when they appear.If you wish to include them on a specialrandom encounter table, assuming thatPCs might encounter a general while it isabroad on some errand. Their frequencyshould be very rare at best.

Can samurai PCs become daimyos?If so, at what level?

Samurai characters can become daimyos

but not simply by virtue of level. Thecharacter must first gain control of aprovince, either by conquest or by impe-rial decree (or both). Once control isfirmly established, the character becomesa daimyo. The character must be at least10th level in order to have the hierarchyof followers described on page 22 of theOriental Adventures tome.

Can Oriental characters have psi-onic abilities?

Psionics are optional in an Orientalsetting using the AD&D 1st Edition rules,just as they are in non-Oriental settings.

How do you determine the value ofgems found during an Oriental ad-venture?

Use the gem section of the 1st EditionDungeon Masters Guide (pages 25-26) orthe 2nd Edition DMG (page 134) to deter-mine values and properties of gems.

Why hasn�t TSR published Orien-tal Adventures character sheets?

The newest AD&D character sheets(TSR product number 9264) are designedto work with Oriental characters.

Several character classes musthave the calligraphy proficiency.The class descriptions seem to indi-cate that calligraphy costs one slot,

lllustration by Gary Williams

but table 61 says it costs two slots.Calligraphy requires two slots.

How many proficiencies do monksand yakuza get?

The following additions/changes apply totable 56 (page 51):

Initial # Add Prof.Class of Prof. per level WNPPMonk 5 1/2 - 3

Yakuza 3 1/3 - 3

Can the explanation of the wu jen�schance to know a spell on page 25be used in non-Oriental campaigns?

The method described on page 25 is thesame as the method described in the 1stEdition Players Handbook, so there is noharm in using the Oriental Adventuresexplanation in non-Oriental campaignsbased on the 1st Edition books. However,the 2nd Edition Player’s Handbook doesnot allow a chance-to-learn check for aspell until it is found (see page 16 of thatvolume).

How do Oriental characters gainlevels? Do they have to train? Whendo wu jen get new spells?

Oriental characters gain levels by accu-mulating experience and training. Theymust pay training costs (see page 86 of the1st Edition DMG or page 49 of the 2nd

8 NOVEMBER 1989

Edition DMG). Wu jen should gain newspells whenever they gain the ability tocast them and have access to such spells.For example, at 3rd level, a wu jen gainsthe ability to cast a second-level spell; hecan do so if he finds a written copy ofsuch a spell, learns it from someone else,or researches it himself and makes hischance-to-know roll (see page 25).

Why isn�t the battle axe listed as atwo-handed weapon on table 49?Battle axes were used with twohands, at least sometimes. Perhapsthe battle axe should be treated likea bastard sword, with two sets ofstatistics.

A battle axe is not a two-handedweapon. It is true that battle axes wereoften used with two hands, but this wasbecause a man without a shield did nothave anything better to do with his freehand and the axe�s long haft providedspace for the additional grip. If you wantto experiment with statistics for two-handed use, improve the speed factor andAC adjustment for all armor types by + 1and increase the damage inflicted to 3-9(2d4 + 1). Weight, length, and space re-quired are unchanged. The improvementsreflect the extra muscle the wielder gainsfrom using two hands.

Can gajin characters learn Orientallanguages, and can Oriental charac-ters learn gajin Common? Whatabout characters who already havea �full load� of languages?

Any character can learn a new languageif his intelligence score permits. The DMmight permit a character to forget a lan-guage that has not been used for a lengthof time in order to allow the character toacquire a new one. Racial and alignmenttongues can never be forgotten in thismanner. The time required to learn thenew language is up to the DM; one localcampaign uses 48 weeks minus the sum ofthe character�s intelligence and wisdom.

Is there any limit to the number ofmartial-arts styles a character canlearn?

Theoretically, a character could have asmany different martial arts styles as hehad weapon proficiencies, but this wouldbe a waste. The character would do muchbetter to use the slots to learn weapons orspecial maneuvers.

The calendar on page 107 is abouttwo weeks short. Where did theextra time go?

The Kara-Tur calendar is 356 days long,making it nine days short when comparedwith the calendar of the FORGOTTENREALMS� setting on the very same planet.�Just Making Time,� an article inDRAGON® issue #123, provides a quicksolution for this problem. A nine-day

festival is held between the consecutivemonths of Tu and Tsou, belonging to nomonth, which can be extended for one dayevery four years by imperial decree (ac-counting for leap years). The Kara-Turzodiac has a celestial space unclaimed byany other constellation, matching this gapin the calendar.

Where is the random encountertable for dungeon adventures?

Create your own random dungeonencounter table if you wish. The monsters�section of Oriental Adventures (starting onpage 115) and the notes on page 138 ofMonster Manual II will get you started.

Can gajin characters use Orientalspells? Can Oriental characters usenon-Oriental spells?

Page 130 of Oriental Adventures saysthat 5% of scrolls will contain gajin spellsand that these may be used by Orientalcharacters; if you wish, you can reversethis for non-Oriental games.

At what level can a wu jen re-search new spells? What about man-ufacturing scrolls or other items?

Spells can be researched at any level, solong as such spells are appropriate to theresearcher�s level; see the 1st Edition DMG(pages 115-116) or 2nd Edition DMG (pages43-44) for more information. The requiredlevel for making magical items varies; seethe 1st Edition DMG (pages 116-118) or the2nd Edition DMG (pages 84-88). Wu jenlevels equal magic-user levels for thispurpose.

The rules say that a charactermust learn a martial-arts style�sspecial maneuvers in order. Yet thecommon styles on page 101 skipsome maneuvers; tae kwon do, forinstance, skips all the movementmaneuvers and goes straight tonumber five. Please resolve thisconflict.

There is no conflict at all. Any style�sspecial maneuvers are learned in numeri-cal order, no matter what groups they arefrom. In tae kwon do, for example, Move-ment 5 is the last maneuver learned. Thecharacter does not have to (and cannot)learn Movements 1-4 because they are notpart of his style.

Do bushi-ninja get strength bo-nuses in combat? Can wu jen-ninjause spells while armored? When cana ninja use the ki powers from hisother class? Does a ninja characterget experience only when he�s act-ing like a ninja?

It would be helpful for you to think of aninja as a type of dual-classed character.Ninja is not an independent class; a ninjamay draw upon either of his classes at anytime. Bushi-ninja do get strength bonuses.Any ninja can use the skills, spells, and ki

powers of his other class within the re-strictions given (e.g., a wu jen-ninja cannotcast spells while wearing armor). The DMmust decide when a ninja is �acting like aninja.� The determination does not have tobe exact, since it affects only experience.Generally, experience is split evenly be-tween both classes if the ninja makes useof his ninja abilities during an adventure.

Are scale and chain mail armorboth considered metallic armors, orcan ninja move silently while wear-ing these armor types?

Metal scale and chain are both metallicarmors. Leather scale is not, and so can beused for silent movement by ninja.

How do you determine which spe-cial maneuvers can be used with acreated martial-arts style?

The form of the style determines whichspecial maneuvers can be used with it.Each special maneuver on table 70 (page103) is labeled for use with one of theforms. A special maneuver labeled hard isused primarily with hard styles, hard/softmaneuvers can be used with any style,and soft maneuvers are used primarilywith soft styles. The special maneuverslisted under mental and physical trainingare labeled with the most compatibleforms but may be used with any style; all other special maneuvers should be re-stricted to their primary style�no morethan one �out of form� maneuver per style is a good rule of thumb.

How long are turns, rounds, andsegments in an Oriental campaign?

The lengths of a turn, a melee round,and a segment are the same as in non-Oriental adventures; see the 1st EditionPlayers Handbook (page 31) or the 2ndEdition Player’s Handbook (page 91; notethat segments are not used in the AD&D2nd Edition rules).

The rules say that the chance toperform a peaceful skill �can neverbe less than a 3 on 1d20� (page 52).Does this mean that a charactermust roll under the number givenfor the proficiency in order to suc-ceed? How does a charter get bo-nuses to his roll? Do high abilityscores help? How can a characterever roll more than a 20 on 1d20?

The character must roll the numberlisted or better on 1d20. Three is the low-est adjusted chance for success. That is, nomatter how good the character is, he willalways fail on a roll of 1 or 2. Scoresgreater than 20 can be achieved by addingbonuses from extra slots spent in theproficiency (see page 52) or from a magicalitem (or both). Ability modifiers do notapply to peaceful skills.

Continued on page 58

DRAGON 9

STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION

Title of publication: DRAGON® Magazine Date of filing: 26 September 1989Publication no.: 0279-6848 No. of issues published annually: 12Frequency of issue: Monthly Annual subscription price: $30.00Complete mailing address of known office of publication: DRAGON® Magazine, P.O. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI 53147Complete mailing address of the headquarters of general business offices of the publisher: TSR, Inc., P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva

WI 53147Publisher: James M. Ward, P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI 53147Editor: Roger E. Moore, P.O. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI 53147Owner: TSR, Inc., P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI 53147Known bondholders, mortgages, and other security holders owning or holding 1 percent or more of total amount of bonds, mort-

gages, or other securities: None

Extent and nature of circulation

Total no. copiesPaid circulation

1. Sales through dealers and carriers2. Mail subscriptions

Total paid circulationFree distribution by any meansTotal distributionCopies not distributed

1. Office use, left over, etc.2. Return from news agents

Total

Average no. copies each Actual no. copies of singleissue during preceding issue published nearest

12 months to filing date

106,124 106,252

74,068 72,82825,701 26,80099,769 99,628

194 16599,963 99,793

5,673 6,459488 -

106,124 106,252

I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete.James M. Ward, Publisher

12 NOVEMBER 1989

DRAGON 13

14 NOVEMBER 1989

The Ecologyof the KappaLittle things should not be taken lightly

by David R. Knowles

From the Complete Bestiary of theReaches of Kara-Tur, of which one copysurvives in the city of Waterdeep:

The Kappa

AppearanceCertainly, one of the most bizarre and

dangerous of local beasts is the kappa,whose appearance is like that of a tiny,ugly boy with a distended stomach andslippery skin. Often thought to be a typeof monkey because of its stance and pos-ture while moving, the kappa is an am-phibian with magical powers. An uprightkappa stands, on the average, 2� tall,though a few larger ones have been seen.Female kappa are generally 6� shorterthan males. Both females and males havepot bellies, each with a pouch in the abdo-men similar to that of a kangaroo. Theirfeet look like those of a snapping turtle,having three webbed toes, and their handsare webbed and clawed. Indeed, mostkappa are known to have hard shells likethose of small turtles 1, and almost allkappa have scaled bodies, though occa-sionally they have been seen with smoothskin. Their skin is very tough and is nor-mally green, often with yellow tinges, andis clammy, slimy, and cold to the touchbecause they are cold-blooded. A few areable to change the color of their skin tomatch their surroundings in the samemanner as a chameleon, adjusting to al-most any color to enable them to hide orstalk successfully².

Clothing irritates their, skin, and theynever wear garments, finding them sillyand pointless. They have a thick layer offat under their skin for both buoyancyand warmth, and some kappa have a smallamount of body hair. They smell vaguelyfishlike. Their boyish heads are fairlychubby and flat.

On the top of each kappa�s head is asaucerlike depression filled with waterfrom the kappa�s home body of water. Thiswater is the source of that kappa�sstrength. The kappa will lose vitality andother abilities in proportion to any amountof this water spilled from the bowl in itshead, and it will die within minutes if all

the water is lost and the kappa is unable toreplenish this vital fluid with fresh waterfrom any source (though �home� water ispreferred).

Around this bowl, most kappa have hairthat is usually cut short, though somescholarly or artistic kappa wear it long.Kappa have large eyes with humanliketear ducts, and though most have largebeaks, some have long noses instead. Allkappa are able to breathe comfortablyunderwater or in air; however, they haveonly lungs and do not have gills, taking thewater in through their mouths. Theirlungs filter oxygen out of the water.

There are two types of kappa: the com-mon kappa, which is bad enough, and thevampiric kappa, whose bite drains vitality.The vampiric kappa is usually a solitarycreature, preying upon all who fall withinits grasp (even other kappa).

Common kappa weigh, on average,approximately 20 lbs. Vampiric kappausually weigh slightly more. Huge kappahave been known to stand 5� tall andweigh up to 150 lbs.; these are believed tohave once been experimental subjects of awu jen³.

AbilitiesKappa are extremely strong despite their

small size, and some have been known towreck bridges, hurl rocks, and tear fleshfrom their opponents with their clawedhands. Kappa prefer not to use weapons,but they can throw daggers and darts ifgiven the chance.

Kappa have lithe, supple bodies and arefluid movers, allowing them to climb andswim with great ease and grace. Thisgrace, combined with their thick skin,makes them difficult to strike in hand-to-hand combat, adding to the dangers offighting them in close quarters.

Additionally, each community of kappahas developed its own style of martial arts,and the kappa have become masters oftheir own styles. Often, these styles arebased upon basic wrestling techniques inwhich the kappa are highly skilled. Kappamartial-arts styles usually contain manygrappling moves and maneuvers designedto throw their opponents off balance.

All kappa regenerate wounds that they

have received; even their limbs can re-grow quickly. Kappa may reconnect sev-ered limbs if they are able to spend timeundisturbed to allow their regenerativeand recuperative powers to work. Theyare reputed to be masters of koppo, whichis the knowledge of bone structures andthe art of setting or breaking bones. Thisart may well be included in the martialcombat styles of some kappa4.

Vampiric kappa differ from their com-mon brethren in a number of ways. Theyare not undead, but they are more power-ful and deadly than their kin. Their eyesare blood red but dead looking, givinglittle indication of emotion or intent. Theirskin is more like hide, being tougher andmore resilient than that of normal kappa.They are as strong and powerful as theother types of kappa, but they are moreagile and much hardier. This difference inphysique and stamina allows vampirickappa to move nearly as quickly as a hu-man on dry land and gives them excellentendurance. Vampiric kappa are slightlymore intelligent than normal kappa; thisdifference in mental power only worsensthe naturally crafty and malicious attitudethat kappa seem to harbor.

In addition to normal attacks, vampirickappa also attack their prey by biting.Once this kappa has successfully bitten itsvictim, it will lock its jaws and not releaseuntil the victim is dead or the kappa isforced to disengage. This bite causes bothphysical damage and a loss of strength,and may also inflict a dreadful disease thatdrains strength. This disease lasts approxi-mately six days before killing its carrier.

Folktales tell of spell-casting kappa, butnothing else is known of such matters.5

Habitat & DietKappa most often live in rivers but also

inhabit deep streams, lakes, and largeponds�almost any suitably large body offresh water. Kappa die from extendedexposure to saltwater, being unable totolerate it for longer than a few hours�.Often making their lairs around rockyoutcrops and bridges, they use these areasas solid, defensible bases from which to scavenge. On occasion, these lairs maycontain magical items and treasures suchas gold and jewelry, all gained from thedemise of their victims. In fact, kappa area major cause of drownings in fresh waterin Kara-Tur, as they delight in draggingunsuspecting human and animal victimsinto their waterways. Kappa can see per-fectly underwater, having strong transpar-ent protective coverings over their eyes.

All kappa consider themselves gourmets.They normally live on fish, but they areespecially fond of cucumbers and melonssuch as cantaloupes, muskmelons, and thelike. Some kappa have a special taste forfruits such as oranges or grapes, but somehate sweet fruits with a passion. (No onehas yet tried to feed pickles to a kappa.)They are also very fond of horse, cow, andhuman flesh. Their normal method of

DRAGON 15

eating slain animals is to suck out theentrails of their victims. Kappa have beenknown to indulge in sake (rice wine) orplum brandy; such beverages have beenused to bribe even the destructive kappainto temporary truces.

SocietyA group of kappa usually has two to six

members, though larger groups do exist.What little society kappa share worksmuch as an extended family whose mem-bers are bound to one another by socialobligations more than by blood. Thesebonds, however, do not interfere witheach kappa�s independent, ruthless, andpredatory behavior. (Vampiric kappa al-most never live in groups, preferringsolitude or living with a mate only.)

Courting among kappa is initiated by thefemales, who chase their chosen malesvigorously until the former�s advances areaccepted. Once established, partnershipsare usually permanent. Males outnumberfemales, though only by a small margin,and the females are equal to the males intheir abilities, strengths, and aggressivenatures. Young are hatched from tiny eggsthat are kept hidden within the pouches oftheir parents (males, however, sometimeseat the eggs they carry).

Kappa are believed to have a lifespansimilar to humans, although they developtheir skills and abilities at a younger age incomparison to humans8. The most obviousexample is that their babies can walk andtalk at hatching and very quickly learn toswim well.

Almost all kappa have, even from a veryearly age, full literacy in their own lan-guage and usually in those tongues spokencommonly in their lands. They are able tospeak, read, and write with great elo-quence in �kappanese,� although they aresomewhat less capable in other languages.The script of the kappa is very spindly andspiral; it is not aesthetically pleasing butrather is disturbing to the human eye anddifficult to read by nonkappa.

As a race; kappa are inventive andclever within their own lifestyle, but theyare no more intelligent than human be-ings, often exhibiting lesser intelligence.,As with any intelligent creature, there areexceptions to this, and a few intelligent(even brilliant) kappa have been discov-ered. These kappa use brain-power tomanipulate others to achieve their goals.

Kappa are self-centered and self-motivated to the exclusion of the opinionsand ideals of others. One unexpectedaspect of their personalities comes to lightwhen they are in trouble or somehowcompromised. They fawn on the peoplewho have cornered them, and nothing istoo much trouble for a kappa in this situa-tion. Rumors exist of captured, grateful, orindebted kappa teaching some or all oftheir skills to whomever controlled them.All kappa thoroughly enjoy the pain anddiscomfort of others and are great practi-cal jokers, especially if the joke ends in

16 NOVEMBER 1989.

disaster for their victims. Kappa some-times assault lone travelers for no reasonother than to cause them misery, greetingthe victim with great formality just beforethe attack. This malicious streak stemsfrom a kappa�s complete and utter disre-gard for anyone or anything else.

Travelers and local inhabitants attemptto appease kappa by throwing food intokappa waters. Village folk write the namesof their family members on these gifts sothe kappa know who should not be at-tacked. Another way to pass the lair of akappa without being attacked is to offer towrestle the kappa for the right of passage.As all kappa are skilled wrestlers, they willoften agree to this. However, if a kappadefeats his opponent, he will almost al-ways drag the victim into his lair to beeaten at his leisure.

Kappa are extremely polite, even to theirprey, but they make their intentions wellknown. If treated with great respect, akappa might be swayed from slaying andeating its victim, but it will certainly de-mand immediate payment of money orvaluable belongings in return for sparingthe victim�s life.

Given to such exhibitions of extremebehavior, all kappa regard odd and seem-ingly meaningless acts as perfectly normal.To a human being, a kappa�s lifestylewould appear random, thoughtless, anddevoid of almost anything other than self-gratification. This is perfectly true, andkappa not only admit to this but take pridein it. Their rarity is, perhaps, their onlyblessing.

Footnotes1. About 10% of all common kappa lack

shells, having a base armor class of 3. Suchkappa are always solitary, being bullied byother kappa.

2. Assume that 5% of all kappa have thischameleon power, which gives them a 75%chance to hide in natural terrain.

3. Assume that there is a 5% chance thata particular kappa is a huge one; double itshit dice, movement rates, damage (giving ita strength of 19 with huge claws), andheight (4-5�). These huge kappa are alwayssolitary and extremely rare. Huge vam-piric kappa are, as one would imagine,incredibly dangerous; these specimensdrain two strength points per round thatthey can bite.

4. The special maneuvers Crushing Blowand Eagle Claw come to mind here.

5. Spell-casting ability exists in approxi-mately 10% of all male kappa. Each maycast as many spells per day as a wu jenwith as many levels as the kappa has hitdice. For example, a vampiric kappa wouldbe able to cast four first-, three second-,two third-, and one fourth-level wu jenspells. These spells need not be chosen atthe beginning of a day, nor do they have tobe learned from a scroll or book, sincethey come from the kappa�s elementalsympathy with water. A kappa may cast

spells only within one mile of his ownwaterway. Spells should be chosen asneeded. If a kappa has lost any water fromthe bowl in his head, his spells� durationsand effects are reduced by the same de-gree as the amount of water lost. Spell-casting kappa may choose any spell listedas �Water� or �All� from page 73 of theOriental Adventures tome.

6. Nonvampiric kappa lose 1-4 hp perturn they are immersed in saltwater;vampiric kappa lose only 1 hp per turn.Furthermore, if the water in the bowl ontheir heads is filled with saltwater, theygain no special strength, though they canstill regenerate wounds and do not lose 2hp per round, as per Oriental Adventures,page 124.

7. If six individuals are indicated by a dieroll, allow a 50% chance that there areanother 1-6 individuals present. If anothersix is rolled, allow another 50% chance for1-6 more kappa, and so forth.

8. Common kappa typically live to an ageof 100 years, and vampiric ones live to130. From birth, kappa gain 1 HD per yearuntil they reach adulthood.

BibliographyDorson, Richard M. Folk Legends of Japan.

Rutland, Vt.: Charles Tuttle, n/d.Ryunosuke Akutagawa. Kappa. Rutland,

Vt.: Charles Tuttle, n/d.

18 NOVEMBER 1989

Soldiers of the LawWhen you need help, call for O.A. Law� Oriental Adventures Law

by Dan Salas

The cities of Kara-Tur are alive withdanger. Samurai warriors are ready todraw swords at the slightest insult. Bushiand ronin samurai start trouble to test ordisplay their fighting skills. Kensai duelserupt suddenly and end just as quickly.Yakuza thugs make their demands at knifepoint to terrified commoners. A wu jentakes action to defend his honor againstsomeone who has mistaken him for apeasant. How do the craftsmen and mer-chants conduct their businesses under allthe flashing swords and flying arrows?

Police forces are necessary to keeporder in the cities of Oriental Adventurescampaigns. PCs might be accustomed totavern brawls and street duels unhinderedby the law, but what would happen ifevery NPC was allowed such freedom?The result would be a wasteland ofburned buildings and dead bodies. Only analert, aggressive police force can preventsuch a disaster.

The ruling clan of each territory main-tains its own police force within its ownboundaries. This force is commonly one oftwo types: military police drawn from theregular army, or local police made up ofcommoners, mercenaries, and a few sol-diers. In either case, the police are alwaysbacked up by the army in emergencies. Alltypes of lawmen serve as military policewith jurisdiction over commoners, trav-elers, strangers, and the clan�s warriors.

Against such crimes as theft, assault,murder, and duelling (which is consideredby samurai warlords to be a waste ofmanpower), the police act swiftly. Theirdedication to uphold the law is as seriousas a samurai�s loyalty to his lord.

Hierarchy of lawmenThe organization of the law courts is

described in Oriental Adventures (page140). On the street level, the warriors arearranged as follows:

The town commissioner is the Chief ofPolice for a single town or city. He is oftena bushi of 7th-9th level, though in majorsettlements (such as a city or strategicallyimportant town) he is a samurai of 9th-12th level. He supervises the police of thesettlement, examines reports of illegalactivities in the area, and determineswhich criminals are to be apprehended.Occasionally, he personally helps to arresta major criminal or a suspected (and re-sistant) official. A samurai town commis-sioner always has at least 3d10 samurai

under his command, along with the bushipolice.

Beneath the town commissioner are thecommon policemen. They are often calledwatchmen or patrolmen, and these namesexplain their most common duty. Militarypolice consist of samurai soldiers (1st and2nd levels) and samurai officers (3rd-5thlevels), while local police consist of bushiwarriors (1st-3rd levels) and samurai orbushi officers. Up to 25% of these bushiare commoners who have been given thewarrior�s right to use weapons, thoughupon reaching 4th level, a bushi-commoner becomes a full-class warrior.

Secretly employed by the police are thecensors. These undercover agents areninja/bushi, ninja/yakuza, and genin ninja(see DRAGON® issue #121, �The Genin�).Rarely drawn from normal ninja clans,these agents are employed directly by thesamurai clan�s leaders. Their jobs are togather information for the police and towatch the police themselves for corrup-tion and conspiracy. Along with their ninjaabilities, the abilities of NPC censors in-clude the ability to investigate as yakuzaand to interrogate prisoners.

Lowest in rank are the era policemen:zero-level bushi with 2-5 hp each. The etaare given the worst jobs: prison guarding,executions, and the guarding of characterswho are paraded publicly as punishment.

Into the meleeThe armor and weapons of the police

are specialized to their needs. Combat is aconstant threat but rarely a daily realityfor a lawman, so a warrior cannot simplybe transferred from the battlefield to thestreet and called a policeman.

Full suits of armor are affordable onlyby rich officers and are worn only in themost extreme situations. On a typical dayof patrols, the lawmen wear padded ar-mor and small metal helmets. For danger-ous tasks in which combat is expected, theofficers wear chain mail armor or, morerarely, full suits of armor.

Eta police carry only spears. All otherpolicemen have at least one sword, whilepolicemen who are not commoners wearthe two swords (katana and wakizashi)that their warrior status permits. Thepolice also use man catchers, hookedspears, and sode garamis. Man catchersare clumsy to carry, so are used onlywhen a specific criminal is sought. Hookedspears can be used for martial-arts special

maneuvers; each lawman has a 5% chanceper level of knowing Weapon Catch; ifcapable of that maneuver, he has a 5%chance per level of knowing WeaponBreaker. Sode garamis can be used toentangle a loose sleeve or pants leg; anormal to-hit roll is necessary, then thevictim attacks at - 4 to hit and - 2 todamage. These penalties are cumulativewhen an opponent is entangled by morethan one sode garami.

Each officer carries a jitte as a statussymbol. The jitte can be used for WeaponCatch and Weapon Breaker. Officers areoften creative in their preferences forweapons, so it is not unusual for one towield a chain weapon, lasso, or whip, allintended to entangle an opponent withoutcausing harm.

Since they prefer to capture live pris-oners, many policemen are skilled in un-armed combat, especially jujutsu. Eachlawman has a 20% chance per level ofknowing a martial art and is then skilled inone special maneuver per two class levels.

When encountering criminals, lawmenwill first attempt to capture the offendersfor judgment in the courts. They willdemand the criminals� peaceful surrender.If disobeyed, the police will attempt todisarm, entangle, or subdue the law-breakers. Note that when NPC samurai,kensai, and ninja are subdued, they usu-ally attempt suicide by seppuku, leapingover a ledge or cliff, or any other fatalmaneuver. The chance of this reaction is5% per level, plus the NPC�s honor score.The NPC must be physically restrainedfrom the self-destructive act or will auto-matically succeed (this does nor apply toPCs, who may act as they wish).

As a last resort, the police use deadlyforce with their edged weapons. On rareoccasions, they use long bows againstdangerous criminals. When faced withoverwhelming odds, the town commis-sioner can appeal to the local daimyo formilitary support. This request is rarelydenied.

Good versus EvilAn uneasy relationship exists between a

city�s police force and the yakuza gangs.Where both sides are equal in strength,the best reactions between the two groupsare suspicion and tolerance. Where theyakuza are stronger, the police tend to betough in appearance but timid in theirencounters with the gangs. Where the

DRAGON 19

police are stronger, they are strict towardthe commoners and brutal toward thecriminals, striking violently at the gangs atevery chance.

Whether they are yakuza or policemen,the number of protectors in a settlementcan drastically affect the encounters there.Where there are few protectors, crimeand violence are everyday problems. Peo-ple tend to be suspicious and prone toviolent reactions in self defense. Common-ers live in fear of the bullies and short-tempered warriors who wander thestreets. As for equipment and goods forsale, quality is poor and quantity is lowbecause the merchants don�t like to risktheir necks in dangerous settlements. Thefew merchants who conduct business insuch places always surround themselveswith a bodyguard of bushi and roninsamurai.

In well-protected settlements, the com-moners thrive amidst the law and order.Rich merchants bring the best equipmentto the markets, while craftsmen andfarmers sell their goods with little fear ofstrangers� weapons. Only the most violentor foolish warriors unleash their combatskills without good reason.

Sample encountersThe following encounters will help to

establish the police in any Oriental AD&Dcampaign city, though only the first twoshould be used regularly.

The gate watch: At every main city gateare 2-5 watchmen. Small cities and townsmay have fewer guards. These men keepwatch on all peasants, travelers, and samu-rai who pass through the gate.

In Shou Lung, the guards take actiononly against wanted criminals or if there istrouble. Otherwise, they remain patientlyat their posts.

In Wa, written passes are required fortravel through a main city gate and some-times through a district gate (especially acastle district). These papers are to bepresented by important people such asofficials and samurai, not by clergy orpeasants. The passes must be signed orapproved by the lord of the settlement.

In T�u Lung and Kozakura, the guardsquestion characters if the characters looksuspicious (e.g., are heavily armed for-eigners, are carrying drawn swords andbows with knocked arrows, are displayingunusual magical talents, etc.). As the char-acters answer questions, the guards makereaction checks until a hostile or friendlyreaction is reached. Hostile means that theguards will not allow the characters topass through the gate; friendly means thatthe guards allow them to pass.

In T�u Lung, the guards can be bribed bypersons whom they are questioning. Thecost is typically one tael per watchmanand two tael per officer. That cost is dou-bled if the guards have already showed ahostile reaction. In any other country, anattempt to bribe is an insult to the guards�honor.

20 NOVEMBER 1989

Wandering patrols: Watchmen travel ingroups of 2-5. Each turn, there is a 25%chance that a group wanders down anygiven street. These men keep watch oneverything that happens around them. Ifthere is open combat in a street or withinhearing range of the street, make thecheck twice each turn. Unless the fight isan approved vendetta duel, the policedemand that the offenders cease hostili-ties. If disobeyed, the police enter combatto capture the offenders.

Prison: Each city or large town has asingle-room prison where captured crimi-nals are detained. The prison is usuallylocated at the edge of the city, often nearan eta community. Depending on its size,each prison is guarded by 5-20 eta andhalf as many bushi, all overseen by a bushiofficer. At any time, there are 20-80 peopleunder guard, depending on the size of thesettlement and the country (e.g., T�u Lunghas more prisoners due to its corruptsociety, while Kozakura has fewer pris-oners because the police are free to usedeadly force at their discretion, with noquestions asked).

Mistaken identity: A group of watchmensurround the PCs in the street. Thoughthe police do not attack, they hold outtheir weapons in defensive positions.Within a few rounds, an officer arrives,looks at the PCs, and declares that theyare not the criminals he seeks. He apolo-gizes for the mistake and he and his menhurry away. If the PCs push a fight, thepolice will assume that they are guilty andwill attempt to capture them for transferto the prison.

Public execution: A crowd of peasantssurrounds a wooden platform wherecriminals await execution. At least oneofficer and six patrolmen conduct theevent, while eta police perform the actualslayings. Thieves, murderers, pirates, andother low-life villains are boiled alive inhuge pots of oil, while yakuza charactersreceive fast beheadings. On rare occa-sions, the PCs may recognize some of thecriminals as old friends, acquaintances, orneeded sources of information. A rescuemight be in order.

The trapped fugitive: The PCs see acrowd of peasants in one of the streets.Upon closer inspection, they find a dozenpolice and a half-dozen soldiers surround-ing a building (an inn, teahouse, mer-chant�s walled compound, or whatever).The lawmen have cornered a dangerousfugitive but are afraid to storm the build-ing. The fugitive might be a high-levelmember of any character class, especiallya kensai, monk, samurai, or wu jen. Also,the fugitive might be holding a kidnappedchild, rich merchant, or Maiden of Virtue.The police will not ask for help, but theywill accept the PCs� offer of assistance ifthe PCs charge a reasonable price. If noPC attempts to help, the lawmen chargeinto the building and kill the fugitive,losing half their men in the process.

Collective responsibility: A desperatecriminal bursts into the PCs� inn room andbegs for help. The criminal might be aluckless commoner, a low-level yakuza, atreacherous ninja, a pretty girl, or otherappropriate unfortunate. If possible, theNPC will offer a valuable reward for thePCs� help. Soon after, the police arrive anddemand to search the rooms. If the PCsare caught trying to protect the criminal,they become outlaws themselves.

The informer: If the PCs become in-volved in illegal activities, they find thatthe police remain one step ahead of them.Lawmen appear at the most inopportunetimes to foul up the PCs� plans. Some-where, an informer is spying on the PCs.The informer might be a beggar, a shop-keeper, or even one of the yakuza withwhom the PCs are dealing. Occasionally,the informer is a censor who watchesunseen from the rooftops or under vari-ous disguises.

Strike force: As the PCs encounter thelocal yakuza clans, they are surprised bythe appearance of a police strike force.This group is assigned to capture (if notkill) an upper-level yakuza leader. Thepolice fight only with characters who getin the way of their goal. Depending on thehunted yakuza�s level and guards, thestrike force can consist of 5-20 watchmenand one or two officers. All are dressed inas much armor as possible. Rarely, 10-20regular soldiers assist in the capture of aboss or underboss.

War in the streets: The police and ya-kuza forces are involved in increasinglyviolent encounters in the streets. Rumorsabound that the censors and the yakuzakillers are fighting a war of assassinations.The reason for the conflict is not clear.Perhaps the lawmen executed an under-boss or the yakuza thugs beat up the towncommissioner�s brother. The war hasaffected the entire city, filling it with ter-ror. Men on both sides become violent at amoment�s notice, and the commoners arecaught between them. However, the ya-kuza gangs are doomed, since a troop ofheavily armed foot soldiers will eventuallyarrive to restore order. Many yakuza are already deserting the city, though mostwill fight until the end, even if they mustgo into hiding for a few years. The PCsmight be recruited into either side of thewar, or they might get into trouble onboth sides. Their own actions will deter-mine how the conflict affects them.

Rewards of serviceMany adventures can develop when the

PCs perform their own police activities.They can join an existing police force orform their own force where none exists.Upon reaching 9th level, a samurai PCmight be offered the position of towncommissioner in a city. Note that this job isroughly equal in power to the stewardshipoffered at 7th level. However, it commandsas much respect as the job of constablebecause crime fighting is a tougher, more

dangerous job. A constable rarely, drawshis sword in combat, while a town com-missioner often deals with the possibilityof such an occurrence.

Normally, the local government paysfour tael per level per month to its police-men, double that to officers, and triple totown commissioners. However, the truerewards are the honor points and experi-ence points to be gained.

The Honor Awards table herein listshonor-point awards for characters em-ployed by an officially recognized policeforce. Experience points must he gainedfrom encounters with the thugs, trouble-makers, yakuza gangs, ninja clans, andcommon criminals of the settlement. ThePCs can declare an all-out war to “clean upthe town,” or they can seek a peaceful (ifuneasy) compromise with the gangs. ThePCs are sure to find that crime fighting isone of the most dangerous and thrillingoccupations in Kara-Tur!

Honor Awards: Oriental Police

Circumstance Award

Has proficiency in martial artsTakes a bribeMakes false arrestLets prisoners escapeRetrieves stolen goodsSaves a life

+ 1 per two special maneuvers- 1- 3- 1 per prisoner+ 1 per 100 ch’ien value+ 5

Discovers true identity of a ninja NPC + 1 per two ninja levelsDiscovers true identity of a yakuza NPC + 1 per two yakuza levelsCaptures a wanted criminal + 1 per two levels of criminalCrushes a yakuza gang + 1 per 20 disbanded yakuzaSolves a minor crime + 2Solves a major crime + 5

DRAGON 21

22 NOVEMBER 1989 Illustration by Clyde Caldwell

Earn Those Heirlooms!Only the honorable should inherit the goods

Between the covers of Oriental Adven-tures exists a very troublesome set ofrules: the dreaded birthrights in Table 40,page 34. As the rules stand now, playersof lucky die rolls and distinguished birthhave a chance to begin their adventuringcareers with armor or weapons of quality,large amounts of cash, shares of the fami-ly�s productive property, or even magicalweapons. Acquisition of these goodies isabsolutely free; there is no risk involvedand no special service required. This cangive a DM a real headache, for these rulesgive neophyte Oriental characters anadvantage over most low-level monsters.Besides, characters with three or morebirthrights may dominate the party, andthis is not good. On the other hand, birth-rights do allow some characters to startoff with a bit of extra cash which, giventhe high cost of equipment in the Far East,can be very useful. Thus, completely dis-carding the system is not the answer. Ifthe rules were modified so that one wouldinherit his heirlooms gradually, the systemwould work much better.

Having players earn their heirloomsinstead of acquiring them on a silver plat-ter is not as unreasonable as it may sound;in fact, it make perfect sense. After all,why should a character�s elders hand overthe family�s most prized possessions sim-ply because one of their dear children isbeginning a life of danger and adventure?One well-placed hit from a bakemono�snaginata and all of those treasured heir-looms, not to mention the beloved kins-man, are lost. Besides, being selected toinherit such treasures is an honor dueonly to those who have first proven them-selves worthy. Until characters have doneso, all heirlooms (and, as a result, anyhonor and experience that accompanythem) should be retained by their elders.

The rules proposed here introduce theconcept of inheritance points. Inheritancepoints, or IP are an abstract way of mea-suring whether or not a character hasproven himself honorable enough to in-herit any heirlooms due him; they are, ineffect, simply used to �buy� birthrights.Inheritance points may be obtained in oneof two ways. First, one starts with thenumber of IP equal to the sum of one-halfhis family honor (round fractions up) plusone-half his personal honor (again, roundup), divided by 10 (round down). Second,one receives ½ IP for each point of honorgained. The opposite is also true; one loses½ IP for each point of honor lost; how-ever, losing honor affects neither birth-

by Jay Ouztsrights inherited not birthrights due. Char-acters entitled to no birthrights neverreceive IP. Note that fractions are retainedand that it is possible to have fewer thanzero IP.

Inheritance points are awarded at thesame time as honor points. They may bespent immediately, or they may be saved.There is, however, a particular order inwhich birthrights must be purchased, aswill be discussed shortly.

Players should roll for honor, caste,families, and numbers of rolls on thebirthrights table as outlined in the rules.However, use the Expanded BirthrightsTable presented here and record the re-sults under the heading �Birthrights Due.�When an heirloom is inherited, simplydeduct the cost of the item from the char-acter�s current IP total.

Cash strings, if any, must be obtainedbefore anything else. Fen are obtainedfirst, followed by yuan, tael, and ch�ien,respectively. If there is more than one setof a particular coin (two sets of yuan, forexample), the set with the fewest coins isobtained first. Most cash strings cost 1 IPeach; ch�ien cash strings, however, cost 2IP each.

Once all cash strings have been inher-ited, horses are inherited. Should a PC beentitled to more than one set of horses, hegets the set with the fewest horses first.Each set costs 2 IP. The horses may be ofany type the player desires, but they alllack saddle and tack.

Inheritance of any suit of armor of qual-

Magical weapons are inherited next.

ity follows; each suit or piece costs 3 IP.Should a character be lucky enough to be

Magical items cost 2 IP plus 1 IP per magi-

due more than one set, he gets the onewith the least protection first. Should a

cal bonus; thus, a + 1 weapon costs 3 IP.

character be unable to use armor, allowhim to reroll. Determine the type of armor

Should a character be eligible to receive

randomly.

more than one magical weapon, he must

Weapons of quality follow armor. Allowthe character to select the table on page132 (tables 80 through 85, inclusive) on

receive the one worth the fewest IP first;

which he would like to roll. The weaponitself must be determined randomly.

in the event of a tie, he may select the

Should the character get a weapon he isnot allowed to use, allow him to reroll. If acharacter is entitled to more than oneweapon, he may select the one he wants toinherit first. Weapons of quality cost 3 IP.

weapon he wants first. The type ofweapon is determined in the same manneras a weapon of quality. There is a 5%chance that such a weapon is +3 to hitand damage, a 35% chance that it is +2,and a 60% chance that it is + 1.

Famous works of art (which come nextin the order of inheritance) include paint-ings, sculptures, pottery, or jewelry by themost famous artisans. If the character hada famous artisan in his ancestry, eachwork of art was crafted by that ancestor.Such treasures are worth 4d10 × 1,000tael, and each work costs 4 IP. Should a PCbe in line to inherit more than one art-work, he gets the least valuable one first.

Finally, the character may inherit prop-erty shares. Each share costs 4 IP. No onemay possess more than a 30% share of asingle property. If a player gets more thanthe 30% limit, or if his family owns noproductive property, treat the roll as �noresult.� Property shares earn two honorpoints for the first 10% share and one foreach 10% share thereafter.

Remember, deduct the character�s birthorder from the number of rolls allowed onthe birthrights table. However, the oldestchild always gets at least one roll.

Note that in the case of cash strings andhorses, it is possible that more than onesuch item will be called for by a single rollin the results. In these cases, all such itemsare inherited at once. Thus, if a playerrolls a 55 and a 95, he gets two sets ofyuan cash strings. One set may have onlyone string while the other has three, buteach set costs only 1 IP.

During a playing session, Xio-Tung isinvited to serve under a powerful lord andlater saves the life of his master at greatrisk to himself, thus earning seven honorpoints. This results in the simultaneousgain of 3 ½ IP. He immediately spends 1 IPto acquire the tael and 2 IP for the horses.

Example: Yingtze Xio-Tung is allowedfive rolls on the birthrights table and gainstwo strings of fen, a suit of quality chainmail, three more strings of fen, twohorses, and two strings of tael. His familyhonor is 31; his personal honor is 22.Therefore, he starts with 2 IP as [(31/2) +(22/2)]/10 = 2.65. He decides to immediatelyspend these on the fen, using 1 IP for eachset. Note that he could saved his IPs forlater, had he wished, or he could havespent only 1 IP to purchase the first set offen. He could not, however, have used theIP to acquire the tael, the horses, or thechain mail until all of the fen had beenacquired.

DRAGON 23

This leaves him with ½ IP. Since his horsesare worth one honor point, they are alsoworth ½ IP. Xio-Tung ends the sessionwith 1 IP.

During his next adventure, Xio-Tungloses a contest. Being a poor sport, heaccuses the judges of foul play and throwsa temper tantrum in public. To makethings worse, his rival accuses him of atheft he did not commit. These eventsbring a loss of seven honor points (one forlosing the contest, two for improper socialbehavior, and four for being accused of acrime) and 3 ½ IP. Thus, he ends the daywith — 2 ½ IP.

With the rules presented here, 1st-levelcharacters will no longer walk about witha full arsenal of magical weapons, valuableproperty, or large amounts of cash simplybecause of a few lucky rolls of the dice.Game balance is preserved. In addition,players will be forced to take honor evenmore seriously, especially those in proudfamilies who have much to inherit. Eachmoment of honor and glory brings one astep closer to his next inheritance, andeach moment of shame and defeat setshim a step back.

Expanded Birthrights Table1d100 Result Honor IP cost01-03 Nil n/a n/a04 Reroll; use next higher die* n/a n/a05 Nil n/a n/a06 Property share (10-30%) ** 407 Reroll; use next higher die* n/a n/a08 Property share (10-30%) ** 409-16 Nil n/a n/a17-18 Property share (10-30%) ** 419 One horse 0 220 1-4 cash strings (fen) n/a 121-30 Nil n/a n/a31-33 Armor of quality 2 334-40 Nil n/a n/a41-45 Property share (10-30%) ** 446-50 Nil n/a n/a51-53 1-6 cash strings (fen) n/a 154-55 1-6 cash strings (yuan) n/a 156-60 Property share (10-30%) ** 461-63 Weapon of quality 2 364-70 Nil n/a n/a71-75 Armor of quality 2 376-80 2-5 horses 1 281-84 Famous work of art 2 485-87 Nil n/a n/a88-91 1-6 cash strings (tael) n/a 192-94 2-9 cash strings (tael) n/a 195 1-4 cash strings (ch’ien) n/a 296-98 Weapon of quality 2 399 Magical weapon ** **

00 Reroll; add + 10 to result n/a n/a* “Use neat higher die” means 1d4 becomes 1d6, 1d6 becomes 1d8, etc. If using

1d100, add + 10 to the roll.* * Special

DRAGON 25

26 NOVEMBER 1989

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DRAGON 27

The Dragon’s BestiaryNever forget, never forgive: the wang-liang

by Sylvia Li

Wang-Liang

FREQUENCY: Very rareNO. APPEARING: 1 (see text)ARMOR CLASS: 4 (improved by armor)MOVE: 12”HIT DICE: 6 + 3 to 8 + 3 (see Table 1)% IN LAIR: 10% (see above)TREASURE TYPE: VariableNO. OF ATTACKS: 2 clawsDAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-10/1-10SPECIAL ATTACKS: Magical devicesSPECIAL DEFENSES: Regeneration, detect

invisibility, psionic invisibility, limitedspell immunity, polymorph self, magicaldevices

MAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: Exceptional to geniusALIGNMENT: Lawful evilSIZE: L (10’)PSIONIC ABILITY: See text

The wang-liang are closely related to theogre magi, being exceptionally intelligentand long-lived, with their own uniquebrand of magic. They are implacably hos-tile to human beings and rarely pass up achance to kill, injure, humiliate, orfrighten them. Toward humans, theirbehavior is destructive; among their ownkind, there are no known instances ofcruelty to each other. The wang-liang paytheir debts and keep their promises. Othernonhuman races are treated as humans ifthey are accompanied by humans. If non-humans are encountered without humans,the wang-liang do not initiate hostilities.

There is good reason for their hatred ofhumans. Wang-liang have a long lifespan�about 2,000 years�but with a correspond-ing low birthrate. They are intelligentenough to extrapolate the human ability tomultiply and the human disregard forlong-term consequences, and so have longbeen able to predict their own extinction.They are not charitable enough to forgivehumanity and go quietly. They are bitter.

Physically, they are tall (10�), carnivorousbeings with soft pelts of lustrous darkbrown or black hair. Their eyes are wideand large, having black irises rimmed withluminous, fiery red. They have the sharp,pointed teeth of a carnivore (doing 1d4 hpdamage if needed), but biting is not theirnatural attack form. The teeth are set in aprotruding and delicate muzzle.

Wang-liang are very strong (each with18-percentile strength) and have good

natural armor class and weaponry. Theretractable claws don�t cut like swords;instead, they operate with a scoopingaction that tears off chunks of flesh.

Their home territory is among forestedmountains, but single individuals may befound anywhere�on a country road, intowns and cities, even ranging as far asthe lands of the gajin.

Wang-liang are not savages. They havetheir own civilization. They wear clothesor, if going into battle, various kinds ofarmor that modify their armor classes asappropriate. They can use the full rangeof swords, spears, bows, and pole armsavailable to human bushi but in a largersize. They do not use iron or steel, butthey have a method of hardening bronzeto make it nearly as hard as low-gradeiron. Despite the larger weapon sizes, thequality of the metal limits damage tostandard by weapon type, with strengthbonuses. Weapons and armor used bythese creatures should be determined bythe DM as desired.

There is no difference in strength orfighting ability between adult males andfemales, but individuals encountered mayrange from 6 + 3 HD to 8 + 3 HD depend-ing on fighting experience (use Table 1).Wang-liang do not have classes and do notadvance in levels with experience but gainhit dice instead.

Wang-liang know the human passion forgold, silver, and gems, but they do notshare that passion. In fact, they find greedto be repulsive. They are, however, quitewilling to use this human weakness as atool for manipulation, and for that reasonthey sometimes carry gems or other itemsthat would be valued by humans. Amountscarried should be determined by the DM.

Like their better-known relatives theogre magi, wang-liang are not considered�persons� for the technical purposes ofsuch spells as charm person or hold per-son. Their innate abilities are similar tothose of the ogre magi, though not quite aspowerful. They can regenerate wounds atthe rate of 1 hp per round while con-scious; they can polymorph into anyhuman or humanlike form (4-12� tall); theycan easily see creatures and things ren-

dered invisible either magically or psioni-cally; and they can become psionicallyinvisible at will to certain total numbers of

hit dice of creatures (see Table 2). Theseabilities do not require concentration tobegin or to maintain. The wang-liang alsohave a limited telepathic ability that func-tions only between members of their ownrace. This has a range of about 33 milesoutdoors but is blocked by stone walls.This telepathy requires concentration.

In addition, they nearly always carryvarious magical items of their own. Theseare of two sorts: items bestowing usefulmagical abilities for the wang-liang�s ownuse, and cursed magical items for �trade�with humans.

One useful magical item common amongwang-liang is a straw hat that bestowsmagical invisibility, just like the ring in theDMG. (This lets them combine the effectsof magical and psionic invisibility to be-come extremely hard to detect.) Theremay also be some fairly powerful offensivemagical items, some of unique design. Anyitem of useful wang-liang magic is subjectto one serious inconvenience: The wang-hang will not permit anyone other than awang-liang to keep or use such an item.They will always try to recover a lost orstolen item, and they will not give up untilthey have succeeded. The DM should feelquite creative in designing such items,using those from the DMG as bases towork from.

The other category is of �trade� magicalitems, designed for the specific purpose ofbeing palmed off on unsuspecting humans.To call them cursed would be like sayingthat Juiblex is ugly: While true enough, itdoesn�t quite cover the full scope of thesituation. These are highly ingenious,vicious, and imaginative practical jokes, notwo of them alike. DM fiendishness isencouraged.

Think of it from the wang-liang point ofview. Suppose you have a lifetime of acouple of thousand years in which towander around a world infested withstupid, greedy, treacherous, despicablescum who don�t deserve to take over theworld but are going to do it anyway.There�s really no point in killing them.Humans do a better job of killing eachother than you possibly could, arrangingbattles that slaughter hundreds ofthousands�yet 50 years later, they�re justas numerous as they were before.

No matter what you do, it won�t help in

DRAGON 29

the long run. So you amuse yourself byselecting individuals to torment. You don�treally care whom you choose as yourvictim; they�re all humans. Maybe you�lldismember one here or there, but there�snot much satisfaction in that as they diemuch too easily. Besides, a physical attacklays you open to physical retaliation, andyou aren�t suicidal.

So you distribute booby-trapped magicalitems. Whether lethal or otherwise, theyare designed to embarrass and humiliateor else to terrify (and possibly to kill).You�re getting even, either way.

For example, here�s an item adaptedfrom an actual folk tale: a magical bootwhich, the victim is told, can make thewearer feel as rested and refreshed asthough he had just had a full night�s sleep.However, when this is tested, the victimfinds that the boot transforms into a coffinenveloping him. Not only that, but withina single round, the coffin sinks 6� under-ground. If the victim is alone, this is theend of him. If friends dig him up andbreak open the coffin, they find him in astate of suspended animation that cannotbe distinguished from death except thatthe body does not decay. The spell can bebroken only by destroying the coffin.Meanwhile, the victim�s spirit wanders thelands of the dead somewhere on the outerplanes, where he may meet influenceseither kindly or malevolent. If one of thesespiritual encounters proves fatal, his bodyalso dies.

The parameters for designing a �trade�item are as follows: The item must besomething the wang-liang can easily carrywithout danger or inconvenience to him-self; there must be a way to activate it or(preferably) to trick the victim into activat-ing it; lethal results are okay, but nearly-lethal results are better, and humiliation isbest of all; the more flashy and flamboyantthe better; and the device should not bereusable. (Some jokes are only funnyonce.)

A few individuals among the wang-hangmay be prepared to admit that humanity isonly 98% scum, and that very rare hu-mans might have one or two redeemingqualities. That�s about as far as they�ll gotoward friendliness. If a wang-liang findshimself unavoidably obligated to a particu-lar human (e.g., saved from a fate worsethan death), he may repay the obligation,by his own standards, by telling the hu-man some of the above information andwarning the human not to accept magicalitems from his people.

The biological fact that has ensured theeventual extinction of the wang-liangunder the ecological pressure of expand-ing human populations is very simple: Nowang-liang female can give birth morethan once in her lifetime. Normally, thereare two young born at this time, a maleand a female. Very rarely, about as oftenas identical twins occur among humans,there are four infants instead. The time

30 NOVEMBER 1989

from birth to maturity is about 40 years.However, a female may not be ready tomate and give birth for hundreds of yearsafter she reaches maturity.

While their young are immature, amated pair is impelled by instinct andtradition to live in seclusion in the wild,using only their natural abilities to surviveand to care for the young. This early expe-rience ensures that every wang-liang is athome in the wilderness. They are invisibleduring most of this time. A family group-ing of four (or, rarely, six) individuals,called a �pod,� is under the fiercest protec-tion of every member of the race. Harmdone by any human to wang-liang in thismost vulnerable phase of their lives will beavenged in a ratio of 100 human deathsfor each wang-liang killed.

The period of caring for the young inthe wilderness is apparently viewed bywang-liang as the happiest time of theirlives; a short, idyllic interlude of perfectintimacy. Once the young have reachedadulthood, they join wang-liang society.The young adults band together for mu-tual protection and live in remote areas ingroups of 50-150. Here, they build struc-tures, engage in handicrafts, make weap-ons and tools, raise domesticated deer forfood, and provide the broad structuralbase of the wang-liang civilization. Theaverage intelligence of wang-liang is veryhigh, and they are able to adopt humandevices or invent their own. The apparentsimplicity of their lives does not mean thatthe wang-liang are primitive.

The time a young female spends in thisvillage environment varies from one indi-vidual to another. In extreme cases, it maybe as short as 20 years or as long as 1,300years. The average period is about 400years. When her time comes to mate, thefemale knows it instinctively, and shechooses a mate from among the youngmales in the village. (There is a recordedinstance in T�u Lung of a sorcerer who,out of curiosity, managed to kidnap andimprison a young female wang-liang justas she entered this phase. According to hisnotes, she appeared to suffer greatly overa period of several months, pleaded inces-santly for release, and was on the verge ofexpiring when his notes abruptly ended.)A wang-liang male remains in the villageuntil he is chosen by a female.

Parents still have many years of lifeahead of them after their offspring havebeen placed in a suitable village. They donot remain together.

The talent to learn magic is present inthe race only among some of the olderfemales. These retire to an Elder Circlewhere they are supported by all the vil-lages in their efforts to learn, preserve,and expand the body of magical knowl-edge available to their people. Only 1-4wang-liang mages may be found in a vil-lage, each mage being of level 1-20. TheElder Circle is the source of all magicalitems used by wang-liang.

Older males and older females who donot possess any talent for magic are freeto engage in any pursuits that take theirfancy: arts, history, music, gardening,social planning, or personal vengeance.These last become wanderers who enterthe human scene, invisibly and alone,observing with contempt and cold hostilitythe rabble destined to extinguish theirrace. They carry with them the itemsmade by the Elder Circle.

Most encounters with wang-liang will bewith a lone traveler, one of these olderindividuals. This is an occasion for theDungeon Master to exercise his ingenuityin devising a magical �trade� item. Remem-ber that the wang-liang are intelligent andwill have devised ways to ensure theirown personal safety before starting anytrouble. Unless the player characters areeither very clever or very lucky, the wang-liang should get away.

A resourceful wang-liang may be thebrains behind any number of unpleasantschemes. He may devote a few decades tothe construction of a classic trap-ladendungeon baited with the usual rumors ofdanger and immense treasure. Or he mayencourage a bandit gang, mastermindingraids of ever-increasing audacity until thefinal, most daring job turns out to be acarefully prepared trap leading to abloody battle and the capture and execu-tion of the bandits. The wang-hang will benowhere to be found; it was he who tipped off the authorities! He may supply acrime lord with generous supplies of aviciously addictive drug. He may induce

I�ll have you know thatMarcel Proust had a pet hali-but and if you�re calling the

author of A la recherche dutemps perdu a loony I shallhave to ask you to stepoutside.

shape-changing goblin rats to act as frontmen to foment trouble and eventual warbetween two human political factions.

If a wang-liang is using evil humans ashis tools to cause trouble for humanity, thejoke is liable to be on them in the end. Heholds nothing but contempt for any beingswho are willing to turn upon their ownkind, as witness the previous example ofthe bandits.

There is no recorded instance of a wang-liang bargaining in good faith with a hu-man. If the wang-liang has some scrap ofrespect for the human, he will refuse tonegotiate at all. Otherwise, he will spin aclever and elaborate deceit which does notbind him in the slightest. However, if awang-liang voluntarily offers an actualpromise, it can be relied upon absolutely,for then his honor is engaged and he willdie sooner than break his pledged word.

Only in their remote forested mountainhomelands will wang-liang ever be foundin groups—a 5% chance at best. If adven-turers encounter a pod (60% likely out ofthe multiple-being encounters), the wang-liang flee immediately using invisibility; ifthis is not possible, the adults will sacrificetheir lives to ensure the escape of thechildren. Remember that wang-liang war-riors will avenge any harm done to a pod,not only upon the offenders but also uponthe nearest humans at hand, innocent orotherwise, in a ratio of 100 to one.

Young adult wang-liang in a village (40%

likely to be encountered) do not engage inoffensive warfare but will defend them-selves if attacked. Villages typically do nothave much magic lying around. The callwill go out, however, and any older wang-liang in the area will come to the assist-ance of a village under attack. If the threatis serious enough and there is time, anyvillage can also call upon the Elder Circleto send help. This will be a spell-caster ofpower appropriate to the level of thethreat, which gives the DM a chance touse spells of his own invention since wang-liang magic cannot be learned by anyoneoutside the Elder Circle.

An encounter with the full force of theElder Circle should be avoided unless youare trying to end your campaign byslaughtering the entire party in a blaze ofnonstandard magic. In that case, you’re onyour own.

This NPC race will not work as a playercharacter race, for reasons evident in thisarticle. It does provide the DM with anopportunity to challenge the players witha clever and unpredictable opponent.

Table 1Wang-Liang Hit Dice

1d100 Hit dice01-60 6 + 3 HD61-90 7 + 3 HD91-00 8 + 3 HD

Table 2Wang-Liang Invisibility

HD6 + 37 + 38 + 3

Invisible to totallevels or hit dice

212836

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The Ecologyof the Yuan-ti

They�re not merely poisonous�they�re venomous

by David Wellman

“It rose out of the muck before me, inthe manner of a huge snake readying itsstrike. Six or seven feet long, it had thelower body and head of a serpent: greenscales, wet and glittering in the dim sun-light; a muddied yellow belly; and red eyesthat stared with malevolence. But whatchoked me with revulsion was the humantorso and arms between the snake-headand tail. My courage wavered. Then I sawthat wrapped tightly around the thing’swaist was a belt from which hung thedaisho—the katana and wakizashi—inmockery of the status of the samurai. Thesight of such a disgrace ripped me frommy trance. I drew my grandfather’s katanafrom my hip with a shout. Not even devilsthemselves could have stopped me then,for I would not allow the rank of samuraito be worn by such as this. . . .”

dian, a snakelike creature with humanarms (see the Monster Manual II, page 97).The venom of these creatures transmutesvictims into ophidians over a period ofseveral weeks. The ophidian is believed bysages to be a creation of Sch�theraqpasstt,sent to wreak havoc on the Prime Materialplane. When its venom is distilled andmixed with other ingredients known onlyto the yuan-ti, then consecrated to theirdeity, it becomes what is known to sagesas the Black Broth.

The worshipers of Sch�theraqpasstt who

�From the memoirs of the samuraiHirikito Toshubu, of the Imperial staff.

first created the Black Broth were also itsfirst imbibers and were willingly trans-formed into the histachii, progenitors ofthe yuan-ti race. Among the three types ofyuan-ti�pureblood, halfbreed, andabomination�any mating produces onlyabominations. The pureblood yuan-ti iscreated in matings of histachii with otherhistachii, and the matings of histachii withany true yuan-ti produces a halfbreed.

Hirikito�s adversary was a halfbreed Thus, the yuan-ti need a constant supplyyuan-ti, one of three types of the yuan-ti of humans in order to sustain the race.race. Yuan-ti use magic, are magic resist- Such has been the fate of many humanant, and have genius-level intellects, and as captives of the yuan-ti, transformed intosuch are dangerous foes for even the most the mindless histachii.well-organized party. The pureblood yuan- The gestation period for yuan-ti young isti can easily blend itself into human soci- about 60 months. Approximately 30% ofety, making even large cities possible the resulting creatures are so deformedencounter areas for the yuan-ti. that they die shortly after birth. This gives

Although they can be used in an Occi- the yuan-ti a very low growth rate but isdental campaign, yuan-ti fit better within counterbalanced by their extremely longthe Oriental milieu. But much more infor- lifespans. Pureblood yuan-ti age as do graymation is needed on their motives and elves (AD&D 1st Edition Dungeon Mastershistory before the race can be used to its Guide, page 13). Halfbreeds live twice asfull potential. long as purebloods, and abominations

The origins of the yuan-ti date to the have a life span three times that of a graydawn of man. Ages ago, when mankind elf, some 6,000 years.took its first tottering steps, there came When considering the lifespans andamong men a monstrous corruption power of the yuan-ti, one might wonderknown as Sch�theraqpasstt. This god is why they do not control the world. In fact,now a shadow of his former self, driven to they once held a great empire thatboth ultimate power and ultimate madness spanned much of the southern jungles ofin an insane attempt to become one with Kara-Tur. In forgotten corners of the land,the Abyssal plane he ruled. crumbling basalt temples stand in mute

Evil men, hungry for power and domin- testament to their once far-reaching grasp.ion over their kindred, turned to the wor- Then came the fall of Sch�theraqpasstt.ship of this dark force. The result, true to The god�s schemes were his undoing,the tenets of chaos and evil, was more a and he was reduced to the operationalcurse than a blessing. These men were level of a major demon. His clerics (hu-instructed to gain the venom of the ophi- mans, as yuan-ti cannot be any class)

found themselves without spell abilitiesand thus unable to complete the consecra-tion of the Black Broth. The yuan-ti empirewas thrown into chaos. The forces of goodtook the chance to destroy the yuan-tiempire, which they did to such an extentthat the race of yuan-ti was very nearlywiped from existence.

The few surviving yuan-ti dispersed,turning to other evil beings from theAbyss for aid. They gained little, as noother deity could successfully aid them intheir quest to create the Black Broth.Eventually, they discovered the true fateof their god and therein the salvation oftheir race. At times when the stars andplanets are in a specific alignment, signal- ing the conjunction of Sch�theraqpasstt�splane and the Prime Material plane, theyuan-ti may draw directly upon the en-ergy of that plane and complete the BlackBroth. Although this saved the yuan-tifrom degenerating into a race of abomina-tions, it did not mark their return topower. The conjunction of the planesneeded to complete the Black Broth comesbut once a millennium.

This is the current situation of the yuan-ti: small numbers, an erratic breedingcycle, and a 1,000-year wait betweenbreeding periods for two-thirds of therace. Although abominations may still becreated without difficulty, the yuan-ti limittheir birth rate to avoid gaining the atten-tion of the forces of good before theydiscover a more stable method of continu-ing their race. Population inequities result,of course; each yuan-ti encountered has a70% chance of being an abomination, a20% chance of being a halfbreed, and a10% chance of being a pureblood (but onlypurebloods travel among men).

Yuan-ti temples are usually huge basaltedifices with no windows and only oneentrance. The walls are carved with re-volting scenes involving yuan-ti, humans,and unspeakable creatures from the outerplanes. Even abandoned ruins are placesof great evil and are almost always in-fested with foul monsters. Torture ofhelpless subjects is a favorite pastime ofthe yuan-ti, and implements of torture areeasily found in their places of worship.

DRAGON 33

They will sometimes enslave humans, andsuch slaves will usually be crippled ormaimed, thanks to the mercies of theircaptors. Yuan-ti do not forget their down-fall at the hands of good forces, and anygood-aligned character caught in theirclutches are often tortured long and lav-ishly before death, unless they fall victimto the Black Broth.

Yuan-ti have no holy days or festivalsexcept for the Night of Venom once every1,000 years. This is the conjunction thatallows the completion of the Black Broth.Beginning about a year before the Night,the yuan-ti become increasingly active.They create as much of the Broth as possi-ble and raid human settlements to kidnapvictims for the rite. Any single group ofyuan-ti will create 20-200 histachii on theNight of Venom. The forces of good, how-ever, have found these occasions excellenttimes to destroy large numbers of yuan-ti,and most of the ceremonies are broken upbefore they are completed. Still, it is ru-mored that in some evil-infested swampsthese creatures thrive in small cities andaspire to regain their former dominance.

Yuan-ti build dwellings both above andbelow ground, and their temples areknown for mazes of tunnels and dungeonchambers. Their lodgings usually consistof squat stone buildings (normally of vol-canic rock), each with 2-5 rooms and anunderground chamber. In yuan-ti com-munities, these underground chambersare connected to each other and to under-ground meeting places, throne rooms,treasuries, etc. Even a small yuan-ti villagehas an extensive underground layout.

Any yuan-ti community will be ruled bythe strongest abomination in the commu-nity. This creature�s basic duties are tosettle disputes, oversee the protection ofthe community, and regulate the activitiesof that community�s purebloods in thehuman world. Even though yuan-ti arechaotic evil, they are extremely intelligent.As they do not wish to further reducetheir population, physical combat is rareamong the yuan-ti. Instead, many disputesare settled by weaponless combat that caneasily be stopped short of fatality.

When attacked, yuan-ti are capable of ahigh degree of organization, especially if acommunity is threatened. Those able tocast spells will use sticks to snakes anddarkness to hold off attackers, cause fearto split a weakened group, then suggestionand polymorph other before engaging inmelee. Magical weapons will most cer-tainly be used if available. The yuan-ti willknow the properties of any miscellaneousmagical items they possess and will usethem if possible.

Yuan-ti will often cooperate with otherevil creatures as long as such cooperationwill further their own ends. Ophidians arefound 70% of the time in yuan-ti com-munities and are highly valued for theirvenom. Some yuan-ti have been known touse traps poisoned with ophidian venom.

34 NOVEMBER 1989

Characters wounded by these must savevs. poison at +2 or be affected as if theyhave been bitten by ophidians. Yuan-tihave been known to work with nagas,kappas, bajang, and evil dragons, and theyare rarely the losers in such partnerships.

In playing yuan-ti, the DM must remem-ber that these are highly intelligent, pow-erful, evil creatures with a goal of worlddomination. They do not involve them-selves in petty affairs, nor do they deallightly with those who interfere with theirplans. Yuan-ti do not forget such interfer-ence, even throughout their long lifespans.They treat revenge as they treat torture�it should be long, lavish, and painful.

Sch�theraqpasstt(Major demon)

FREQUENCY: UniqueNO. APPEARING: 1ARMOR CLASS: -4MOVE: 12”/36” (MC: C)HIT DICE: 111 hp (attacks as 16 + HD

monster)% IN LAIR: NilTREASURE TYPE: NilNO. OF ATTACKS: 1 bite and 2 constrictionDAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12/3-30SPECIAL ATTACKS: Poisonous bite, contin-

uous damage, insanity auraSPECIAL DEFENSES: +2 or better weapon

needed to hit, immune to mind-affectingspells, psionics, and illusions

MAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%INTELLIGENCE: Supragenius (insane; see

below)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evilSIZE: L (60’ long)PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil

Sch�theraqpasstt (pronounced schik-there-AUK-past) was once a lesser god thatruled the 111th plane of the Abyss, andfrom there orchestrated the creation ofthe yuan-ti ages ago. However, he was notsatisfied with being �simply� a god, and hedevised a method to gain ultimate power.Sch�theraqpasstt attempted to merge hislife-essence with the plane he ruled andbecome, in effect, a living dimension.

His scheme destroyed him by giving himwhat he wanted. He succeeded in mergingwith his plane of the Abyss, but no intel-lect, no matter how powerful, could standthe strain of being joined with pure Chaos.All but a minute portion of his psychewent insane; with what little of his mindwas left, he formed the body describedherein, a shadow of his former self.

This manifestation appears as a 60�-long,winged, ebony serpent. The attack modesare bite and, constriction. Those bittentake 2-12 hp damage and must save versuspoison at -4 or contract a form of insan-ity. Such insanity can be cured with a heal,wish, limited wish or alter reality spell.Constriction causes 3-30 hp damage, andsuch damage is automatic every roundafter the first hit. Sch�theraqpasstt canconstrict up to six small-size, four man-

size, or two large-size creatures perround.

A +2 or better weapon is needed to hitSch�theraqpasstt, and in addition to hismagic resistance, he is immune to allmind-affecting spells (including illusions).All beings within 100� of Sch�theraqpassttmust save at the beginning of every roundor be affected as per a scarab of insanity.

Sch�theraqpasstt flits through the multi-verse in a random fashion, rarely stayingin one place for more than one turn. Hehas been seen on the Prime Material planeseveral times and will always be there onthe Night of Venom, usually where thegreatest number of yuan-ti are singing hispraises. At this time he will be somewhatrational, but at other times there is a 10%chance per round that his intelligence willslip from supragenius to complete idiocy.If Sch�theraqpasstt goes insane during abattle, he fights to the death, with + 2 onall to-hit, damage, and saving rolls, and a-2 penalty to his opponents� saves vs. hispoison and magical effects.

If Sch�theraqpasstt�s material form iskilled, his psyche returns to his homeplane of the Abyss and reforms over aperiod of 111 days. The only way to trulydestroy this being is to destroy his entireplane. Thus, at the price of his godhoodand sanity, Sch�theraqpasstt attained anindestructible immortality.

This being�s home plane is known as�The Mind of Evil.� The only activity thereis the chaotic whirling of an intelligent,insane plane. Anyone transported here isat the mercy of Sch�theraqpasstt and, asmagic does not work here, has almost nochance of survival. Note that all planartravelers are aware of this peril and avoidthat layer of the Abyss at all costs.

Part of the yuan-ti plan after conqueringthe world is to gather all the magic theycan find and use it to reverse the downfallof their god. Whether this can be achievedis unknown, but there are few personsoutside yuan-ti society who wish to seethis come about.

Histachii

FREQUENCY: Very rare (found only every1,000 years)

NO. APPEARING: See belowARMOR CLASS: 8MOVE: 12”HIT DICE: 2 + 2% IN LAIR: 100% TREASURE TYPE: NoneNO. OF ATTACKS: 2 claws and 1 biteDAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-2/1-2/1-3SPECIAL ATTACKS: Berserk attack for +2

to hitSPECIAL DEFENSES: Immune to psionics

and mind-affecting spellsMAGIC RESISTANCE: StandardINTELLIGENCE: Low (insane)ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evilSIZE: MPSIONIC ABILITY: Nil

“The histachii inspired me with nothingless than revulsion. It had once been hu-man, but now its skin was a mottled yel-low, stretched taut over bone and muscle.Much of its hair had fallen out, and whatwas left was greasy and matted. The nailshad become claws extending out from thefingertips and the teeth were sharplypointed. But the worst were the eyes,black pits of nothingness that spoke of themaelstrom of madness that whirled be-hind them. The thing drooled and gib-bered, casting about in its chains forsomething to rend. . . .”

—From the library of Hodukuri the sage.

Histachii are the final product of theBlack Broth, the baby factories for pure-blood and halfbreed yuan-ti. The transfor-mation they undergo takes 7-12 days, isexcruciatingly painful, and drives theformerly human imbiber insane. Histachiiattack any nonreptilian being they encoun-ter but will obey any yuan-ti within speak-ing range.

Histachii have a lifespan of 20-80 yearsafter their creation, and their lives aredevoted to breeding more yuan-ti. Somehave posed the question of why the yuan-ti do not simply forget about purebloodsand halfbreeds and rely soley on abomina-tions, which can be produced withouthistachii. The answer lies in the goals ofthe yuan-ti as a race. The yuan-ti wish tocontrol the world as they almost did agesago. To allow degeneration of the race intonothing but abominations would hinderthis goal. No longer would there be pure-bloods and halfbreeds to infiltrate humansociety and corrupt from within; theywould only have brute force and masswarfare as their options. Considering thelevels of power humans and other racesmay attain, they see no sure or easy vic-tory in that path. They prefer to subtlysow the seeds of chaos, and once founda-tions are undermined, they strike.

Histachii are only encountered in thetime immediately following the creation ofBlack Broth. Any human prisoners aresubjected to the Black Broth’s effects atthat time; large groups of yuan-ti mayhave 20-200 prisoners, but small groupsmay have 2-20.

The Black Broth

Ingredients:l venom of an ophidianl The egg of an amphisbaenal 12 drops of yuan-ti bloodl 12 drops of human bloodl Petals and seeds of a withered sunflowerl The eyes of 100 normal dragonfliesl Powdered bloodstone (not less than 250

gp worth)l Potion of human controll A quantity of peat and human hairProcedure: First, a fire pit is dug andfilled with peat. The human hair iswrapped about a stick, lit, and laid in the

peat. A sticks to snakes spell is cast to turnthe stick into a snake, which writhes burn-ing through the peat and sets it alight.Over this fire, the ophidian venom is dis-tilled to a syrupy black liquid. Anothercontainer is lined with the sunflowerpetals and seeds, which are in turn coatedwith the contents of the amphisbaena egg.This coating is accomplished by a yuan-ticrushing the egg in its hands and lightlyspreading it over the petals and seeds. Thepowdered gemstone is then added to thismixture, while the dragonfly eyes areadded to the boiling venom. After the eyeshave been mixed in, this substance ispoured into the other container. As soonas this is accomplished, the blood is added,drop by drop, alternating types with eachdrop, and a polymorph other spell is castupon the entire mixture. Finally, at theconsecration, the priest imbibes the potionof human control and performs the bless-ing. The Black Broth is now complete.

In response to their desires for power,Sch’theraqpasstt gave to his followers theformula to create the Black Broth. Theresult, much to the woe of the world, wasthe introduction of the race called yuan-tito the world. In the beginning, it wasintended that the Black Broth would cre-ate histachii, who would create pure-bloods, who in turn would createhalfbreeds and finally the end product,abominations. But in light of their fallfrom power, halfbreeds and especiallypurebloods were deemed necessary intheir schemes to regain domination. Pure-bloods could infiltrate the world of hu-mans. Human-headed halfbreeds wouldbecome the priests, snake-headedhalfbreeds the temple guards and war-riors, and the abominations would be therulers. With the aid of the Black Broth, thehistachii became the foul reproductivearm of the race.

Any nonhuman who drinks the BlackBroth must save vs. poison at -4 or die.Those who save will be violently ill andhelpless for 1-4 turns. Any creature drink-ing an uncompleted version of the potion(i.e., before its consecration on the Nightof Venom) must save vs. poison at normal

chances or suffer the same fate.Any human drinking the completed

Black Broth must make a save vs. poison at-4. If the save is successful, the drinkerdies. If the save is failed, the victim willbecome a histachii in 7-12 days. (Anyonedying from the Black Broth can be savednormally with a slow poison or neutralizepoison. Since spell-casting yuan-ti possessthe neutralize poison spell, a human dyingon the Night of Venom may find himselfalive again, only to face another draughtof the foul potion.)

Once a human begins the process oftransformation, few methods may be usedto save him. Neutralize poison, dispelmagic, remove curse, and heal spells willreverse the process but must be cast con-secutively and in that order. The victimwill lose one point of intelligence; a wish,limited wish, or after reality will save thevictim with no loss of intelligence. Oncethe transformation is complete, only awish will restore the victim.

Adventurers have asked why the yuan-tido not simply consecrate an ocean of thesubstance on the Night of Venom. Theproblem is that the Black Broth is unsta-ble. Once created, it must be consecratedwithin a week or the effort is wasted.Even consecration does little to add to itsstability; after two weeks, it simply be-comes a poison equal to what it was be-fore consecration.

A further question is why no otherbeing’s power can consecrate the formulaand attain the same effect. The sage Hodu-kuri speculates that Sch’theraqpasstt de-creed that only his blessings wouldactivate the formula. Although his poweris now far reduced, it still exists and thegodly declaration is still empowered. Ifthat power were destroyed, continuedHodukuri, there are two possible out-comes: The formula might be freed forany to empower, or it may be rendereduseless for all eternity.

DRAGON 35

The BeastieKnows Best

The best software entertainment around.

©1989 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser

It�s time for the second annual BeastieAward for the best computer entertain-ment product. The calibre of computerand video system gaming continues to rise.Better graphics, sound, and user interfacesand new and unusual ideas have movedgaming into a higher plane of popularity.Lower prices of PC/MS-DOS computersand the introduction of color for the Mac-intosh II now place both of these systemsin the upper range of gaming environ-ments with the Commodore Amiga andthe Atari ST.

We would like to thank you, the readers,for your hundreds of letters of the pastmonths. Your votes have been tallied, andthe results are given herein. Each readerwas allowed only one vote, and the BeastieAward is presented to the software gamethat received the highest number of votes,The game must also be offered in morethan one computer system format to beeligible for this award. Award recognitionof other programs is determined by thesoftware columnists. The awards hereinare presented to games received betweenDecember 1988 and August 1989.

The Beastie Award

Pool of Radiance (SSI)Pool of Radiance is the most popular

fantasy role-playing game of the year. Thevoting for it was heavily Apple II in na-ture; the PC/MS-DOS format came in aclose second in total number of votes, with,the Commodore 64/128 version garneringthe fewest votes for that game. Pool ofRadiance seemed to attract votes due to a

36 NOVEMBER 1989

variety of factors, the primary being thegame�s faithfulness to the AD&D® gamesystem. Great graphics and an easy-to-useuser-interface to activate commands alsoadded to the game�s value. With the major-ity of DRAGON® Magazine�s readers beingso familiar with FRPGs, it�s no wonder Poolof Radiance fared so well. The game cer-tainly deserves this recognition, especiallydue to the teamwork between StrategicSimulations and TSR, Inc.

The Beastie runner-up

Ultima V (Origin)Ultima V was the runner-up for the most

popular FRPG of the year, with approxi-mately three-quarters the number ofballots that Pool of Radiance received. Themajority of gamers voted for the AppleIIGS version, followed by the PC/MS-DOS,Commodore Amiga, and C64/128 versions,in that order. Utima V is proof positivethat sequels can be successful. It combinesthe best of interactive role-playing withsophisticated quests to produce an FRPGoffering great enjoyment for your gamingdollar. (Ultima V won our specific-systemaward for the Apple II last year.)

Specific category awards

Best War GameDecisive Battles of the American Civil War;

Volume Two: Gaines Mill to Chatta-nooga (Strategic Studies Group; VolumeOne was one of last year�s best militarystrategy games.)

Best Simulation GameSimCity (Maxis Software, Inc.)

Best Arcade GameTetris (Spectrum HoloByte)

Best Driving SimulationTest Drive II and accessory disks (Acco-

lade, Inc.; Test Drive I was one of thebest in this category last year, too.)

Best Flight SimulatorFalcon (Spectrum HoloByte)

Best Sports SimulationWayne Gretzky Hockey (Bethesda

Softworks)

Best Historical SimulationGold Rush (Sierra On-Line)

Best Game ConversionThe Bard�s Tale I to the Apple Macintosh

(Interplay Productions)

Best VCR GameVCR California Games (Epyx, Inc.)

Best Video GameSpace Harrier 3-D (SEGA)

Best Input/Output DevicePowerPlayers Joystick (Mindscape, Inc.)

Specific system awards

Fantasy role-playing gamesApple II: Times of Lore (Origin)

Apple IIGS Dungeon Master (FTL Games;this game wins this category award forthe second year running!)

PC/MS-DOS: Might and Magic II (NewWorld Computing, Inc.; Might andMagic I was last year�s Beastie Awardwinner.)

Apple Macintosh: Journey (Infocom/Mediagenic)

Commodore 64/128: The Legend of Black-silver (Epyx, Inc.)

Commodore Amiga: Dungeon Master (FTLGames)

Action-adventure gamesAtari ST: Rocket Ranger (Cinemaware)Commodore Amiga: Hostage (Mindscape,

Inc.)

Science-fiction gamesCommodore Amiga: Breach (Omnitrend

Software)

PC/MS-DOS: Sentinel Worlds (ElectronicArts)

Combat/war-game simulationsApple II: The Ancient Art of War at Sea

(Broderbund Software; the IBM micros/compatibles version was one of lastyear’s best military strategy games.)

Commodore Amiga: Rebel Charge atChickamauga (SSI)

PC/MS-DOS: Battlehawks (LucasfilmGames)

Sports simulationsApple II: John Madden Football (Electronic

Arts)Apple IIGS: Zany Golf (Electronic Arts)

Apple Macintosh: Jack Nicklaus’s Greatest18 Holes of Championship Golf (Acco-

lade, Inc.)Atari ST: TV Sports Football (Cinemaware)Commodore Amiga: Jack Nicklaus's Great-

est 18 Holes of Championship Golf(Accolade, Inc.)

PC/MS-DOS: Earl Weaver Baseball, with1988 player stats & commissioner’s disk(Electronic Arts)

Most Innovative GamesApple Macintosh (CD-ROM version): The

Manhole (Activision/Mediagenic)PC/MS-DOS: Captain Blood (Mindscape,

Inc.)

Most Unusual GamesMacintosh: MacScuba Dive Simulator

(Paradise Software Corporation)

PC/MS-DOS: Life and Death (The SoftwaretToolworks)

DRAGON 37

Further adventures in fantasy©1989 by Jim Bambra

Adventures are the meat and drink ofany fantasy system, whether they are ourown creations or the work of professionaldesigners. Although we admire detailed,innovative settings and background mate-rial, the excitement and fun of player andGM interaction are the main reasons weplay role-playing games. Performing he-roic deeds and puzzling out complex mys-teries give life to our games. Theseactivities engage our imaginations andinterest, transporting us to exotic worldswhere the actions of our characters canmake an impression on events.

There are certain elements that make anadventure good, such as intricacies of plot,clever NPCs, or climactic battles. But thesevirtues are relatively worthless if we haveto wade through cluttered or badly pre-sented text before we can use them. Toaspire to excellence, adventures need to bewell written and thoughtfully presented.Adventures that lack adequate maps, areshort on directions to the GM, or areblandly written turn me right off. Descrip-tions along the lines of: �This room con-tains four orcs armed with swords; theyhave three silver pieces each� are boring.I�d like to know what the orcs are doing

38 NOVEMBER 1989

there, how they are going to react to in-truders, how they are going to fight, andwhat information they can reveal to theadventurers. Details such as these makean adventure more vibrant and alive, andraise even the most basic monster-stomping, treasure-grabbing adventure tosomething special The four adventuresreviewed here all have plenty to offer.

Something Rotten in KislevCampaign setting and adventure for

WARHAMMER� FANTASY ROLEPLAY144-page hardback bookGames Workshop Ltd. $22.95Design: Ken RolstonEditing and development: Graeme DavisCover illustration: Richard DolanInterior illustrations: Martin McKenna, �H,�

Paul Bonner, Maz Sheperd, Tim PollardCartography: Ian Cooke

Something Rotten in Kislev is a realtreat, in both visual presentation andquality of adventure material. It is aproduct rich in graphics and GM aids. Themany illustrations enhance the flavor ofthe text, and it comes with superbly ren-

dered maps and player handouts.Something Rotten contains three adven-

tures that can be linked into an extendedcampaign or used as isolated adventures.It is set in Kislev, the equivalent of medi-eval Russia in the WARHAMMER world.Essays describe the history of Kislev andits lands and peoples in an engaging anduseful manner, setting the scene for theadventures that follow.

The adventures are rich in color andstaging tips. Dialogue is used to good ef-fect to handle character interaction withNPCs by depicting their speech patternsand mannerisms. In these pages, we seehow the people of this cold, inhospitableland, who are threatened by the Forces ofChaos to the north, view the world aroundthem. This description is not restricted tohuman and demihuman NPCs; we are alsotreated to insights into the thought pat-terns of hobgoblin raiders.

Undead have always held a deep fascina-tion for me. Whether they are lowly skele-tons or powerful liches, undead makeideal opponents. They ooze evil and decay,horror and revulsion. You know whereyou stand with undead�or at least that�swhat I thought until Something Rotten in

Kislev came along. Here, we have undeadwho serve a useful purpose in holdingback the Forces of Chaos. Necromancers,who are normally vile and despicablecharacters, are shown to be real people,too. What they do may not be very nice,but it serves a far greater goal than thecreation of skeletons and zombies.

As can be guessed, Something Rotten inKislev is geared toward interactive role-playing and problem solving. It contains itsfair share of combat, but the interactionwith NPCs makes it really special. Whilesuitably dark and dismal, it also has itshumorous moments as the adventurersdeal with dangerous nature spirits, proudbut superstitious nomads, petty nobles, anda necromancer with a social conscience.Player characters also discover copiousamounts of information on the characteris-tics of the undead and how to deal withthem. Some of this is completely bogus, butsorting the hard facts from the rumors andmisinformation is all part of the fun.

To round off the package, there are sixdetailed characters suitable for the adven-ture. They can be used in their presentform or as models for the best type ofparty to participate in the adventures.Personally, I�d use them as they are; theirbackgrounds and characterizations are toogood to ignore.

Evaluation: Something Rotten in Kislevis one of the best adventures that I�ve seenin a long time. It scores high in every de-partment, and the graphics are superb.Even if you have no interest in WARHAM-MER FANTASY ROLEPLAY, check this oneout; you won�t be disappointed. Many of itselements can be easily used in other role-playing games. In short, it�s a classic. This isavailable in the U.S. from Games WorkshopLtd., 3431 Benson Avenue, Baltimore MD21227; in the U.K. from Games WorkshopLtd., Chewton Street, Hilltop, Eastwood,Nottingham, England NG16 3HY.

Tournament of DreamsAdventures for the PENDRAGON game48-page sofibound bookChaosium Inc. $7.95Design: Les Brooks, Sam Shirley, and Greg

StaffordEditing: William G. DunnCover illustration: Steve PurcellInterior illustrations: Susan Seddon BouletCartography: Caroline Schultz

The PENDRAGON game is rich in narra-tive virtues and chivalric role-playing, andadventures for it have been consistentlygood although few in number. Tournamentof Dreams had the distinction of beingvoted the best role-playing adventure of1987 in GAMA�s ORIGINS� Awards, whichit deserved. It makes good use of the Ar-thurian setting to create two memorableadventures containing plenty of textureand depth. Full of staging directions andtips for the GM on how to make the bestuse of the material, it stands head and

shoulders above most other role-playingadventures.

The quality of the graphic presentationis high, with sidebars used to good effectto convey game mechanics in a clear anduncluttered fashion. The writing drawsthe reader into the adventure and makes ita pleasure to run.

The treatment of magical effects in �TheTournament of Dreams� adventure (by LesBrooks and Sam Shirley) is superb andadmirably conveys the dreamlike qualityof the pagan otherworld. In this first ad-venture, chivalric knights have theirknightly virtues tested to the extreme anddiscover that the PENDRAGON game�scharacter trait system is more than just ahandy method of defining a character�spersonality. Arriving at a tournament inthe pagan land of Sugales, the knights aredrawn into a struggle for power in whichtheir own base drives may well get thebetter of them. Enticed and enchanted bypagan magic, knights may end up with farmore than they bargained for. Only thestrength of their Christian beliefs may stillsave them.

The second adventure, �The Circle ofGold� (by Gregg Stafford) is more straight-forward in style. It pits the knights againstthe chivalrous defenders of the Land ofthe Circle of Gold as the knights attempt towin their way through to the Circle ofGold. Along the way, they must defeat insingle combat the knights arrayed againstthem. This adventure highlights the chival-ric background of Arthurian romances,with enough encounters with magicalbeings to keep the knights on their toes.

Evaluation: Tournament of Dreamsexploits the PENDRAGON game�s richArthurian background to test a knight�svalor, combat abilities, and virtues withmoral dilemmas and dangerous oppo-nents. High in suspense and narrativevalues, it deserves to be in every gamer�scollection. Tournament of Dreams is avail-able from Chaosium Inc., P.O. Box 6302,Albany CA 94706.

HarkwoodCampaign setting and adventure for the

GURPS® game64-page softbound bookSteve Jackson Games, Inc. $8.95Design: Aaron Allston and J. David GeorgeEditing: J. David George and Monica

StephensCover illustration: Darla TagrinInterior illustrations: Guy BurchakCartography: Carl Manz, Czeslaw Sornat,

and C. Mara Lee

Currently one of only two adventuresavailable for the GURPS® Fantasy game,Harkwood, like Tournament of Dreams,takes place during a tournament run by alocal baron. Whereas Tournament ofDreams injects rich magical effects intothe chivalric world of Arthurian fantasy,Harkwood is notable for paying only pass-ing lip service to the detailed GURPS Magic

system. The setting for Harkwood is thelow-mana land of Caithness, where magicis much harder to use than elsewhere inthe world of Yrth, a situation that makeswizards a �rarity in Caithness.

The GURPS Fantasy supplement is nowout of print; the magic section has beenreplaced by the GURPS Magic game (see�Role-playing Reviews� in DRAGON® issue#147) and the world background will beexpanded in the forthcoming GURPS Yrthsourcebook. Harkwood, however, is also asourcebook for the land of Caithness andcan be played without the rest of the Yrthbackground. The barony of Harkwood isdescribed and its major personages fullydetailed, making Harkwood useful whenthe adventure is completed.

Although players can take on the rolesof wizards, Harkwood is really a showcasefor the sophisticated and highly playableGURPS combat system, making it suitablefor fighters of noble, or not-so-noble sta-tus. The tournament is clearly describedand lets players gain familiarity with thecombat system and hone their character�scombat skills with little risk to life or limb.But Harkwood is much more than just arun of the mill medieval tournament;intrigue abounds and the future of thebarony is at stake.

As a novelty, Harkwood allows the GMto choose one of six characters to be re-sponsible for the nefarious occurrences inthe barony. This is both a strength and aweakness. I found the rationales for themotivations of some of the bad guys un-convincing, and found that the clues point-ing to their involvement sat awkwardlywith the rest of the adventure. Having saidthat, letting the GM choose the bad guydoes serve to directly involve the GM inthe design of the adventure.

The presentation is of a high standard;the sidebars provide background informa-tion and tips for the GM on how to stageand direct the adventure. Space is alsodevoted to discussing what could gowrong with the adventure and offeringsolid advice for the GM on how to handlethese problems. Maps are provided for allthe major encounter areas, makingHarkwood a complete package.

Along with the tournament events,there�s plenty to keep the characters alertand to leave them guessing as to what isreally taking place. The large amount ofinformation provided allows players tointeract with NPCs outside of the mainflow of the adventure and for GMs toeasily develop their own subplots andminor encounters.

Evaluation: Harkwood is a good ad-venture. Strong in medieval flavor, it isideal for players who like a low magicbackground to their adventures. Plus, itmakes an ideal starting point for anyGURPS Fantasy or medieval campaign.While lacking a strong fantasy flavor,Harkwood is well structured and pre-sented, and I recommend it highly. GMs ofother systems looking for ways to include

D R A G O N 3 9

tournaments in their adventures will findit an invaluable aid. Harkwood is availablefrom Steve Jackson Games, Box 18957,Austin TX 78760.

Lords of DarknessSupplement and adventures for the

AD&D® game96-page perfect-bound bookTSR, Inc. $8.95Design: Ed Greenwood, Deborah Christian,

Michael Stackpole, Paul Jaquays, StevePerrin, Vince Garcia, and Jean Rabe

Editing: Scott Martin BowlesCover illustration: Jeff EasleyInterior illustrations: Karl WallerCartography: Dave LaForce

Lords of Darkness is an anthology thatincludes adventures and backgroundinformation dealing with most of the un-dead monsters commonly encountered inthe AD&D game. Although sold as aFORGOTTEN REALMS� setting accessory,it is useable with any AD&D campaign.

Before taking a detailed look at its con-tents, let�s take a quick look at what Lordsof Darkness sets out to achieve. The inten-tion is to provide short adventures thatcan be easily inserted into a campaign anytime a GM wants the players to encounterundead. Each of the undead featured inthe adventures has background informa-tion provided in the form of a short, fic-tional piece describing the undead inaction or else delivered in a monologue bya person knowledgeable about the undead.Many insights are provided into the crea-tion and drives of the various undeadmonsters. This style of presentation is farsuperior to the dry style adopted by manysupplement writers. Game rules follow,adding additional information arid clarify-ing existing game mechanics.

The book begins by discussing ways inwhich the more powerful undead crea-tures� energy-draining attacks can be madeless devastating to a PC�s hard-earnedexperience levels. There are many sugges-tions and options here that give GMs alter-natives to energy-draining attacks.

Designed to be easily dropped into anongoing campaign, the adventures aremainly dungeon crawls of one form oranother. Four of the adventures lack maps,which reduces their usefulness as simpleplug-in scenarios. Two adventures are setin castles that cry out for at least sche-matic diagrams to show their layouts.

The quality of the adventures also variesgreatly. Most are fairly good, but a few areso thin and underdeveloped that I won-dered why they were included. The ad-venture dealing with zombies is the worstof the lot. Set in a castle, it puts 1st-levelcharacters up against large numbers of4th-level opponents who are likely tostomp them into the ground. To be fair, Isuspect the suggested levels for this adven-ture are wrong, as 2nd-level or highercharacters are needed to give the heroes a

40 NOVEMBER 1989

chance of survival. This adventure alsocontains a magical sword, but no statisticsare provided for it. Instructions on run-ning the adventure are also far from clear.The adventure featuring shadows is littlemore than a single combat against a bunchof shadows. It�s not very inspiring.

Fortunately, the other adventures dis-play more imagination, and there are nicetouches showing how to stage undead anduse their abilities to good effect. The mum-mies� tomb and the lich�s lair are fine ex-amples of the dungeon designer�s art.

Of note are the new, optional HorrorCheck rules. Horror Checks are madeagainst characters� wisdom scores whenthey realize just how horrible a monsterreally, is. Using these rules, characterscannot afford to treat undead as just an-other monster type, since long-term ef-fects can result from failed checks.However, the system isn�t integrated intothe AD&D rules in a satisfactory manner,as characters will deteriorate to the stagewhere they are unable to functioneffectively�a situation contrary to thespirit of the game and more in keepingwith the grim tone of Chaosium�s CALL OFCTHULHU® game. Also, no tips are givenon how characters may counter theseeffects by magical means. It�s a laudableattempt to instill fear of the undead butnot sufficiently developed to be effective.

Of more use is the section that discussesthe effects that items and substances suchas cold iron, garlic, salt, and mirrors haveagainst undead. Creative GMs will able touse these to add extra depth to their ownundead adventures.

Evaluation: Lords of Darkness ex-pands greatly on the background of un-dead in the AD&D game and provides asource of short adventure settings. Ifyou�re looking for new necromantic spells,information on the ecologies of the un-dead, new ways to deal with them, plus asource of adventures, then Lords of Dark-ness is a worthwhile purchase. But its lackof maps and the underdevelopment ofsome of its adventures make it a merelyuseful rather than essential item.

Then there are the new spells for magic-users who choose to specialize in thenecromantic art. These add to a necro-mancer�s repertoire, making him moredistinctive and setting him apart from thestandard mage.

S h o r t a n d s w e e tGAZ 9 The Minrothad Guilds, by Deborah

Christian and Kim Eastland, and GAZ 11 TheRepublic of Darokin, by Scott Haring. TSR,Inc., $9.95 each. Trade has played a largepart in many science-fiction games, butrarely has it been more than an incidentalevent in fantasy games. Now, these twoD&D® game Gazetteers bring trading adven-tures into the forefront of fantasy gaming.The Minrothad Guilds are seaborne mer-chants, and Darokin specializes in land-basedguilds. Both Gazetteers cover life, society,and politics in their respective lands. With

rules regarding sea and land trading, fameand fortune can now be gained in waysother than mere adventuring.

GURPS Update, by Steve Jackson &David Ladyman. Steve Jackson Games,$5.95. In line with its policy of providingsolid support for its customers, SteveJackson Games has produced the GURPSUpdate. This 80-page book provides all therules needed to convert the 2nd editionGURPS Basic Set to the 3rd edition. It alsocovers the changes made in the rangedweapon rules for the GURPS Space, Hu-manx, Horror, and Japan supplements,letting GMs use these books with the 3rdedition rules. It�s useful if you have the2nd edition Basic Set and want to upgradeto the 3rd edition with a minimum ofexpense, but it is much more limited inuse if you already own the 3rd edition.Available from Steve Jackson Games, Box18957, Austin TX 78760.

Lords of Middle-earth, volumes I and II,by Peter Fenlon, Terry Amthor, and MarkColborn. Iron Crown Enterprises, $12.00each; and Creatures of Middle-earth, byRuth Sochard Pitt, Jeff O�Hare, and PeterFenlon. Iron Crown Enterprises, $10.00.Okay, Tolkien fans, these are for you! Fullof background information on the elves,mannish races, and creatures of Middle-earth, they are handy sources of ideas forI.C.E.�s MERP� game, other fantasy games,and lovers of Tolkien�s creation.

ASSAULT ON HOTH game, by Paul Mur-phy. West End Games, $25.00. On the iceworld of Hoth, Imperial Walkers are ad-vancing toward the shield generatorwhich protects Echo Base from planetarybombardment. Within the base, groundcrews desperately struggle to get theRebels� transports away before the Imperi-als reach the generator. In the ASSAULTON HOTH game, two players battle it outwith Walkers, AT-ATs, snow speeders,infantry, and laser towers.

This is an exciting board game that usesan innovative move and action sequence torecreate the battle featured in the openingscenes of The Empire Strikes Back. Thegame moves at a fast pace and is easy tolearn and play; all game rules are printedon the map sheets and on the Action Cardsthat determine whose turn it is to move orfire. Each game turn comprises a playthrough the Action Deck during whichtwo event cards are played. These includereinforcements for one side or the other,special cards adding to fire power, and theall-important Transport Away cards. Towin, the Rebel player needs to get fivetransports away before the Imperialplayer destroys the Shield Generator.

Add a few other neat touches such asLuke Skywalker�s Force powers, harpoons,and high-quality components, and thisgame adds up to a very impressive set ofrules. The ASSAULT ON HOTH game is

Continued on page 74

DRAGON 41

Winners, almost-winners, and close calls©1989 by John C. Bunnell

bested the sheriff of Nottingham throughbrute force or military prowess. Rather, hesucceeds at his craft by means of wit andguile, and the flair with which he relievesnobles of their gold is often as importantas the gold itself. McKinley properlyaccents these ideas by focusing firmly onthe immediate, human concerns of Robinand the men and women in his circle of

THE OUTLAWS OF SHERWOODRobin McKinley

Ace 0-441-64451-1 $3.95�My Robin Hood,� says Robin McKinley

at the end of The Outlaws of Sherwood,�is meant to be neither absolute nordefinitive�nor historically satisfying.� Yetfor all that, McKinley�s retelling of Sher-wood Forest�s familiar history is wise anddeeply satisfying, enough so that it is hardto imagine a version of the legend thatcould be discernibly better.

As noted back in DRAGON® issue #133,in connection with a less successful RobinHood adaptation, would-be retellers of thestories must distinguish their own versionsfrom the others not by taking their plotsin new directions but by bringing uniqueinsights and perspectives to the outlaw�salready well-known adventures. It�s acomplex challenge, but McKinley meets itadmirably; her novel demonstrates a re-markably clear understanding of the ele-ments that make Robin Hood subtlydifferent from most of today�s other leg-endary heroes.

That distinction is a matter of clevernessand humanity. Robin Hood has never

46 NOVEMBER 1989

friends. That doesn�t mean, though, thather novel is heavy with introspection;there�s also a healthy swirl of observanthumor as Robin and company learn tosurvive in Sherwood Forest and developreputations that quickly threaten to sur-pass the reality. One amusing (if revision-ist) point deserves note: In McKinley�syarn, Maid Marian�not Robin himself � is the outlaw band�s premier archer!

The Outlaws of Sherwood may not claimto be definitive. But it�s an extremely read-able, engaging account of Robin Hood�sadventures that turns the mythic outlaw

into someone readers can easily reach intoand empathize with. Gamers may wish toview it as an exercise in role-playing on

McKinley�s part; while that�s arguably trueof all fiction, it�s more easily perceived inthis case and serves as yet another illustra-tion of McKinley�s sure craftsmanship.

CATASTROPHE�S SPELLMayer Alan Brenner

DAW 0-88677-357-1 $3.95It�s fashionable to complain about the

�blurb� copy on the backs of paperbacknovels and the dust jackets of hardcovers,and there are always those who claim(justly or otherwise) that the blurb writersdon�t read the books they�re hired to sum-marize. Catastrophe�s Spell puts a newwrinkle on the problem. The blurb writ-er�s description of the tale is entirely toowell-written; it�s hard to see how readingthe novel could leave such a clear andcogent impression.

All the ingredients look terribly promis-ing. The apparent protagonist is Maximi-lian the Vaguely Disreputable, whose nameand profession (traveling sorcerer andbailer-out of friends in distress) suggestdebonair if stylishly inept swashbuckling.There�s the nameless hardboiled detectivehired to negotiate a ransom with the ex-cessively mysterious Creeping Sword. Andthere�s Zelzyn Shaa, who dislikes gettinginvolved in political-magical infighting butis very good at impromptu rescues any-way. Add to the equation a power-hungrydeath god or two and a bit of theatricalspeculation on the quantum mechanics ofmagic, and you have the potential for afuriously high-powered caper yarn.

Author Mayer Alan Brenner doesn�tquite pull it off, though not for lack oftrying. The problem is that Catastrophe�sSpell reads like the third or fourth adven-ture in a series, yet there�s no indication ofany prior adventures anywhere, whetherin magazine short stories or earlier novels.It�s a technique that works for SherlockHolmes tales (to pick an example) because

readers know who Holmes is ahead oftime. For Max, Shaa, and Brenner�s name-less investigator, it leaves readers frus-trated, wondering what they�ve missedand whether they�re missing some of thebest jokes.

In effect, Brenner has simply tried to telltoo much story in one book. By them-selves, each of the three lead adventurersis appealing. There are some authenticallyspectacular special-effects scenes, and themagical theory has an air of appealingpseudo-authenticity. But in the space avail-able, Brenner doesn�t have enough time todevelop any single element to memorableheights, and so the book leaves the impres-sion of six or seven incomplete projectsstacked erratically atop one another.

Catastrophe�s Spell is likely to be popu-lar, for much the same reasons thatAD&D® game modules like the round-robin Greyhawk Castle are popular�the�chaotic whimsy� genre seems to be invogue. That�s too bad, because it mayencourage Brenner to keep writing chaoticwhimsy instead of refining and focusinghis skills on more tightly conceived andconstructed stories. The potential is there,and failing to make use of it would be aregrettable waste of ability.

THE SCHOLARS OF NIGHTJohn M. Ford

Tor 0-812-50214-0 $4.95A great deal of John Ford�s fiction�his

Star Trek novels, his contributions to theLiavek shared-world series, and the fea-ture story in the recent collection CastingFortune�revolves around drama and thetheater. The Scholars of Night takes thisfascination with stagecraft into the nebu-lous realm between espionage and aca-demia, and it emerges with a convolutedtale of shifting loyalties and many-layeredmanipulation. The blend of Elizabethanand modern spy puzzles occasionallybecomes difficult to untangle, but this isone of those books that remains fascinat-ing even if you get lost once or twice onthe way through.

In addition to the theater lore, whichfocuses on a manuscript that may or maynot have been written by Shakespeareancontemporary Christopher Marlowe, Fordworks in a gaming motif. History profes-sor Nicholas Hansard orchestrates a meanKINGMAKER game (�Are we still on thesubject of a cold beer?� �It�s up to Paul andParliament.�), and the internationallyprominent members of a regular DIPLO-MACY game group may also be involved inreal-life spy intrigues.

The combinations and permutations justkeep multiplying. The Scholars of Night istwo very different kinds of spy novel atonce. On one hand, a full range of high-tech weapons and deadly assassins put thebook squarely in the realm of James Bond(and TOP SECRET/S.I.� game) thrillers; Onthe other, Ford�s distant yet intimate prosepulls readers under the skins of his char-acters, giving the book the sort of vast

�literary� flavor usually associated withJohn LeCarré and Len Deighton.

Two factors emerge as the novel�s chieflimitations. First, the use of the Marloweplay as the key to a series of vital pass-words violates the rules of real-worldspycraft (�Never name anything aftersomething to which the first item has adiscernible connection.�). Ford also neverquite answers the question posed toscholar-protagonist Hansard: Are the playand its modern parallels authentic, or isthe manuscript an elaborate forgery, possi-bly written purely to enhance the espio-nage operation in which it figures?

The other �problem� is that The Scholarsof Night is far too effortlessly written toappreciate easily. The plot and pace movequickly enough that you may be halfwaythrough the book before you realize thatyou�re reading much too fast to under-stand all the convolutions and literaryreferences. Of course, that�s a difficultyhardly worth complaining about. JohnFord demonstrates with this tale that somekinds of writing ability transcend genreboundaries, and that his is one of them.

SHADOW GAMESGlen Cook

Tor 0-812-53382-8 $3.95This is less a review of Shadow Games

than a series of observations about thenovel and its author. If that sounds compli-cated and wishy-washy, so be it.

One: Glen Cook�s novels are popular. Ihaven�t kept a formal tally over the years,but a lot of people have mentioned Cook�swork to me as good material either to reador review. That�s particularly true of hisBlack Company cycle, of which ShadowGames is a part. And Cook attracts re-spectable attention from reviewers, too;even those who dislike individual bookstend to sound apologetic in their criticisms.

Two: Cook is very good at evokingatmosphere. This latest Black Companynovel is definitely a case in point. Thelands through which the legendary merce-nary troop travels are keenly portrayed,as is the Company�s ever-restless collectivepersonality. It�s said that professionalsoldiers never really feel at home any-where, and in this respect Cook�s charac-ters are true-to-life. (On the other hand,the tribesmen and city-dwellers the Com-pany encounters on its travels often seemjust as tense.) Cook is versatile, too. Thetone of the Black Company tales is quitedifferent from that of his Garrett books,about a hard-boiled human detective in ahighly multiracial fantasy setting.

Three: Cook�s presentation of militarytactics feels skillful. Under the reluctantleadership of Croaker, the Black Companymust face and survive a variety of authen-tic battle problems: how to overcome asubstantially larger force, how to survive(and gather intelligence) in unfamiliarsocieties without getting lynched, and soon. All these are handled with a skillfulcombination of cynicism and logic, as well

as plausible attention to details.Four: Notwithstanding the above, I don�t

find Shadow Games pleasant reading. I�mbeing blunt here: I find Cook�s approach tomilitary fantasy disquieting at best�aportrait of a world in which violence andchaos exist largely for their own sakes,with no end in sight and evil powers thatreincarnate as casually as most peoplechange their socks. For me, reading aboutthe Black Company is a bit like flying toBeirut for a peaceful vacation.

But that�s a subjective reaction, andCook�s writing is technically good enoughthat he doesn�t deserve a bad review sim-ply because I don�t like the book. I expectthat quite a few gamers, especially thosewho go in for large-scale battles and minia-tures gaming, will find Cook and the BlackCompany far more to their taste than I do.

A DIRGE FOR SABISC. J. Cherryh and Leslie Fish

Baen 0-671-69824-9 $3.95One of the greatest debates in fantasy

gaming has always been whether gunpow-der and firearms can coexist with magicwithout fatally unbalancing the campaignin question. A Dirge for Sabis exploresmuch the same issue and emerges, notsurprisingly, with mixed results. Cherryhand Fish weave a skillful narrative aroundintriguing characters, but in the largercontext, the world they create suffersfrom a kind of logical schizophrenia.

The story concerns a small cadre ofmetalsmith-engineers whose adopted cityis about to be overrun by an invadinghorde. They�re on the verge of perfectingthe cannon but lack the patronage andfunding to put it into production quicklyenough to do any good. Instead, they fleenorthward, behind the enemy lines, set-ting up shop near a quiet village andslowly rebuilding their lives and crafts.New adversaries appear when the existinglocal �chapel� launches a subtle campaignof rumor and curse-magic designed todrive the newcomers away.

These engineers are apparently severalcenturies ahead of their time. The culturethey settle in is essentially feudal, empha-sizing barter over coin, and most of itspopulace looks on the engineers� activitiesas wizardry. Magic, meanwhile, iscommonplace�urban households keepwizards on staff, important objects andpersons are frequently warded against evilintent, and there is mention of farawayacademies where magecraft is taught.

Magic is also, however, curiously limited.�There was only ill-wishing and well-wishing, nothing else,� says the book in acrucial trial scene. The novel conceivesmagic as power exclusively of the mind,yet explicitly disallows such things asprecognition, telekinesis, or emotion-reading, while giving its wizards remark-ably clear insight into the structures andpatterns of mental energy. Another anom-aly: Given this narrow view of magic, whyare only the wizards versed in herb lore

DRAGON 47

and healing? The premise of Cherryh�s andFish�s world is specialization, but in prac-tice their characters� knowledge is notablefor its breadth.

The underlying paradoxes seriouslyblunt the real thrust of A Dirge for Sabis:the idea that knowledge itself is a form ofpower, and that small bits of insight canhave large consequences. There are toomany elements in the tale for the authorsto keep it tightly focused. That�s not badfor those who simply want an absorbingafternoon�s reading, and it�s an apt illustra-tion of the problems involved in balancingtoo many kinds of power in any setting.But as the first volume in a series titledThe Sword of Knowledge, it�s thematicallyweaker than it should be.

SWORDSPOINTEllen Kushner

Tor 0-812-54348-3 $3.95The usual labels just barely begin to

describe Swordspoint. It is arguably aswashbuckler, full of skilled swordsmen,richly garbed nobility, and dastardly in-trigues. It�s undoubtedly a romance,though decidedly unconventional. And it�sdefinitely a period piece, shot throughwith the conventions and patterns of ageneration of stylish theatrical drama(though not melodrama, as the book�ssubtitle suggests). But while EllenKushner�s novel is all of these, it conformsto few of the preconceived notions con-jured up by those adjectives.

The best word to describe the differenceis density. The usual swashbuckling adven-ture or Renaissance romance has an ef-fortless, light texture�one roads orwatches the story flow by with smoothease. You don�t have to work hard to dis-cern what�s going on; it�s all played out ininstantly accessible surface detail. Sword-spoint is another matter. Kushner�s proseis somehow far more intense, conveyingatmosphere, emotion, and texture onseveral levels at once. And the additionalcontent is packed so tightly into the textthat it can�t be ignored or passed over.Kushner doesn�t use more words, nor doesshe arrange them in discernibly differentpatterns. She simply knows exactly theright language to paint the richly detailedportrait she wishes.

That portrait is a picture of Richard StVier, a professional swordsman in a realmwhere professional swordsmen are valuedboth for their extraordinary artistry andtheir willingness to serve as surrogateduelists and assassins. St Vier is possiblythe best swordsman the city has ever seen,but as Kushner�s novel opens, he is aboutto become a pawn in a renegade lord�s plotto snatch the reins of government forhimself. Also tied to the scheme are themysterious Alec, St Vier�s closest friendand confidant; Michael Godwin, a younglord who dabbles in swordcraft; and thenoble house of Tremontaine, custodian ofmuch of the power sought by the Duke ofKarleigh.

48 NOVEMBER 1989

There�s no magic in Swordspoint, at leastnot of the spellcasting variety. If by magic,though, one means the gifts of sparklingwit, elegant storytelling, and an intimatecloseness to characters, then Swordspointis well-supplied indeed, and Ellen Kushneris a sorceress of no mean ability.

GAMEPLAYKevin J. Anderson

Signet 0-451-16236-6 $3.95At the end of the first book in the Ga-

mearth trilogy, I was puzzled and con-fused (see �The Role of Books,� DRAGONissue #147). Now I�ve finished the secondbook, and I�m less confused�but I stillhave considerable reservations aboutKevin Anderson�s depiction of the interac-tion between games and reality.

It�s certainly true that one can�t explainall of a trilogy�s mysteries in the first book.But some of the revelations in Gameplayshouldn�t have been delayed. There�s noreason, for example, for not making itclear from the first that Melanie the Rule-woman is a Gamearth character belongingto Melanie, the �Outsider� who is one ofGamearth�s four player/referees. Thistime, too, the Gamearth characters are farclearer in their references to (and relianceon) the Book of Rules, from which quotesare liberally sprinkled throughout.

What�s also clearer, though, is that thegame design of the Gamearth campaign ispeculiar in the extreme. If Anderson�sintent is to draw parallels between real-world RPGs and �real� fantasy realms, it�sa vision that isn�t likely to be realized.

Consider: Gamearth�s players handle aminimum of two characters at a stretch,and sometimes several. Most of the time,in fact, one player is running an entireadventuring party on his (or her) own.That�s a far cry from the usual RPG, wheregamers are encouraged to limit themselvesto single characters. Then there�s themultiple-referee issue. Most campaignsthat divide up game master chores do soin a spirit of cooperation, whereas Ga-mearth�s co-creators often work deliber-ately at cross purposes.

And those are just the external differ-ences. Gamearth is also the only RPGcampaign I know that�s designed as anunreal world in which the PC and NPCpopulace knows of its place in the largergame. TSR�s WORLD OF GREYHAWK® andFORGOTTEN REALMS� settings,Chaosium�s Glorantha, and countless oth-ers are all defined as worlds unto them-selves, no more or less real to theirinhabitants than our Earth is to us. Byextension, Gamearth is also unique indefining the players as its explicit gods.This last is a critical distinction; in mostcampaigns, the DM acting for an imagi-nary god must do so �in character� as thegod in question. But where the player ishimself a god, there�s no such constraintand thus no pressure to maintain internallogic in the campaign.

The problem is that Anderson�s premise

is intriguing only as long as it stays plausi-ble to the reader, As the differences be-tween real RPGs and the Gamearthconstruct become clearer, though, plausi-bility suffers and so does the impact of thebook�s climaxes. While the conclusion ofGameplay wields major-league pyrotech-nics, it leaves readers trapped squarelybetween the atypical game design and thestill-unanswered question of just who�srunning Anderson�s multiverse. The thirdbook may resolve the latter issue, butunless it also explains the former, thetrilogy will likely be a curiosity ratherthan a triumph.

Recurring rolesCatfantastic (DAW, $3.95) is a silly title,

and the cover art (though skillful) is irrele-vant. But the stories in this Andre Norton/Martin H. Greenberg anthology arediverse and winning, populated by felineswell worth meeting. Norton�s own tale isamong her best recent work. Donna Far-ley cleverly mixes tortoise-shell magic andthe secrets of lost socks, and MercedesLackey�s spacefaring cat contributes thebook�s best and truest one-liner. Appear-ances notwithstanding, this is a first-classcollection.

Unexpected directions mark the conclu-sions of two very different trilogies fromrecent months. Paula Volsky sidesteps thefull-fledged high tragedy hinted at earlier,as The Sorcerer’s Curse (Ace, $3.95) beginsseveral generations after the precedingvolume. It�s a mixed success; Volsky�s plotstake on a somewhat irritating repetitive-ness, but some of the tragic sense lingersin a solid climax. Meanwhile, PamelaDean�s The Whim of the Dragon (Ace,$4.50) completes the saga of the SecretCountry in intricate and somewhat bewil-dering fashion. �Trilogy� is a deceptiveword in this case; this third volume con-cerns the same plots and personalities asthe first two but treats them with matu-rity an order of magnitude more complexthan that found in the earlier books. Theeffect is rather like opening a collegephysics text after reading five chapters of a junior-high science book. Dean remains askillful writer, but the jump is unsettling,to say the least.

More reliable, oddly enough, are a pairof middle volumes. Revenge of the Val-kyrie (Ace, $3.50) tells a more cohesive talethan Thorarinn Gunnarsson�s previousSong of the Dwarves, but the Norse lorestill feels right, and Gunnarsson still has atleast one good saga left in his helmet. Thistime around, there are fewer gods and arace of quasi-immortal man-wolves; thedragon on the cover stays almost entirelyin the background.

Lords of Thlassa Mey (Del Rey, $3.95)continues Dennis McCarty�s cycle concern-ing Palamon, sometime knight of the god-dess Pallas and now king of Carea, inMcCarty�s vaguely Shakespearean style.The noble characters still converse in

Continued on page 87

D R A G O N 4 9

50 NOVEMBER 1989

©1989 by Hartley,Patricia, and Kirk Lesser

Dogfighting, from Vietnam to the Milky Way

Computer-game ratings

X Not recommended* Poor* * Fair* * * Good* * * * Excellent* * * * * Superb

52 NOVEMBER 1989

During the next year, you can expectmany programs to appear for 16- and 32-bit systems, particularly for the AppleMacintosh II, Apple IIGS, PC/MS-DOS, AtariST, and Commodore Amiga computers.You�ll also witness the continued growth ofvideo game systems. Both Atari and Segaplan new 16-bit systems, with Atari�s intro-duction being a very portable video game.There will be even more new products forthe Nintendo Entertainment System andAtari 7800 units.

A word of warning to those of you whohave been submitting game clues: We alsouse various on-line services for electronicmail and gaming. We�ve noticed that somereaders are downloading game hints frombulletin board services, typing them up,and submitting them to us with theirnames attached as the authors of thehints. Please don�t rip off game hints fromthose who have diligently studied andcompleted software games and haveposted their hints to help others. Whenyou mail a stolen game hint to us, and wedon�t catch the theft and your hint is pub-lished, you look extremely small in theeyes of other readers who know wherethat hint came from!

The �no rip-off� policy doesn�t apply onlyto game hints: Buy your software as well,When you illegally duplicate a game,whether from a friend�s disk or from anon-line bulletin board, you steal moneyfrom the game�s author. That author hasspent hundreds of hours coding the enter-tainment and, in most cases, is trying tomake a living from this extremely difficultwork. Sure, we argue against copy protec-tion of games, but if some gamers con-tinue to illegally duplicate games, whatchoice do the publishers have but to pro-tect their software? The simple answer isthat ethics apply to both buyer and pub-lisher. Let�s make this world a more honestplace to game in.

R e v i e w s

Sierra On-Line, Inc.P.O. Box 485Coarsegold CA 93614(209) 683-4468

Silpheed * * * * *

PC/MS-DOS version $34.95This dogfighting arcade event is guaran-

teed to, create joystick callouses. Availablefor PC/MS-DOS, Apple IIGS, Macintosh,

Atari ST, and Commodore Amiga micros,Silpheed returns to those days of yester-year when space arcade games requiredgreat concentration and numerous carbo-hydrates to wing your way to victory.Created in Japan, this high-action arcadegame by Game Arts is now distributed bySierra.

In 3032, an alien space shuttle is discov-ered orbiting Pluto. By duplicating itsstructure, Earth begins colonization of theuniverse, and the Milky Way Unionevolves. Unfortunately, a brutal outlawleader has stolen Gloire, a newly builtbattleship. He is now attacking the Union�smain defense base, and there�s no time toform a defense fleet. You�ve been selectedto pilot a Super Air Fighter SA-08 Silpheedprototype in an attack on Gloire. You mustacquire weaponry, fight wave after waveof enemy fighters, and finally engage indeadly combat with Gloire.

This is nonstop action from start tofinish. When you have fought one wave,you can receive servicing, extra weapons,and shields. There are four battle areas:space, above planets, in the fortress, andin the asteroid belt. Twenty successfulsteps (combats) are required before youface Gloire. You have many options, fromincreasing your ship�s destructive powerto making your ship totally invincible.Your ship�s cannons can also be directed inspecific fire alleys, or you can use auto-aiming that locates enemy ships and otherobstacles and eliminates them. Enemyopponents range from Kaile, famous forits suicidal attacks, to Lazel, a large fighterthat is almost impossible to defeat.

After concentrated play, you�ll soon seepatterns emerging for some of the attack-ers. We recommend that you concentrateon earning weapons in the first part of thegame and learn which weapons are themost effective for various battle scenarios.Silpheed is highly addictive, extremelycolorful, and requires hours of enjoyablepractice to master. We�ve been at thisgame for over 40 hours and still haven�tconfronted Gloire. The best advice anyonecan offer you is to learn from your experi-ence; you don�t get many second chances.

Three-Sixty Pacific, Inc.2105 South BascomCampbell CA 95008(408) 879-9144

Thud Ridge ***

PC/MS-DOS (EGA) version $39.95The war in Vietnam was highly depen-

dent upon air strikes by jet fighters andbombers. Not only did air supremacy helpstall enemy counteroffensives, but it alsoriddled supply lines on the Ho Chi Minhtrail. Now you can pilot a Republic F-105Thunderchief�a �Thud��to strike targetsat Mach speed while avoiding contact withenemy MiGs. Add SAMs, flak, and a MiGace known as the Grey Ghost, and youhave an idea of what �Nam air combat wasall about.

Three-Sixty has produced Thud Ridge, acombat flight simulator that presents theVietnam air war for computer pilots. Informat for PC/MS-DOS computers, ThudRidge presents 10 missions. The degree ofsimulation difficulty is decided by selectingeither Lieutenant, Captain, or Colonellevel. Should you succeed in completingMissions 1 through 3, you earn the BronzeStar. Completion of Missions 4 through 6earns you the Silver Star and promotion toColonel. Accomplish all 10 missions, and.you�ll join the ranks of the few who wereknown as Wild Weasel Thud Drivers.

If you�ve piloted other flight simulators,Thud Ridge won�t leave you tingling withrealistic screen displays. Thud Ridge doesoffer exciting forays into enemy territorywith far fewer commands to learn inorder to operate your aircraft. There is nodigitized sound, just tinny beeps that indi-cate weapons firing and so on. Control ofyour aircraft can be handled by joystick,keyboard, or keypad. The joystick orkeypad is used to direct the jet�s flight; thekeyboard lets you input other controlcommands.

The game possesses four basic screens,each offering different aspects of yourflight. By pressing the �1� key, for exam-ple, you can view the aircraft functionsscreen. The main display presents a real-time view of your Thud and the geogra-phy of the area over which you are flying,as well as weapons and firing information.As your plane has an automatic weaponscursor, you must be certain to look at thecursor�s shape to determine the rightweapon to use against a target.

Press the �2� key, and the Engine Func-tion Panel appears below your real-timegraphics display. Here, factors such as theengine and nozzle temperatures and fuellevels are presented on gauges. Other dataincludes your throttle, an afterburnerindicator (the afterburner enables you toescape MiGs), the elapsed time of yourmission, a radar-lock warning, and agraphic display of your Thud and theweapons remaining aboard. Also availableare a screen that shows you where SAMinstallations are located and a mapscreen. The latter display makes it easyto determine your course to the targetareas.

Thud Ridge is a flight simulator forgamers who haven�t taken the time to trysuch games before because of controlcomplexities. Thud Ridge is far easier tolearn than other simulations. It lacks thegraphic quality of other offerings but doespresent exciting and almost arcadelikeaction. A cut-out keyboard template wouldhave been useful for those who don�tenjoy reading manuals; thank heavens theuser guide is only 25 pages long,

A major drawback is that the gamerequires you to keep your original gamedisk in drive A even after copying the filesto your hard disk drive. This copy protec-tion is antiquated and leaves users in alurch should the original disk be damaged.

Capcom U.S.A., Inc.3303 Scott BoulevardSanta Clara CA 95054(408) 727-0400

Strider ****

Nintendo version $49.95Strider is the name of a secret group

that specializes in stopping evil whereverit arises. The assignment for the player,Hiryu, is to rescue a teammate from cap-tivity. Along the way, Hiryu discovers aterrible secret that could destroy theworld. He must put an end to this threatwhile armed with a cipher and a swordthat shoots plasma arrows.

The game is played in two differentlocations. One is the home base of theStriders, called Blue Dragon. From here,Hiryu can not only analyze disks that hepicks up from various locations on Earth,but he can also be transferred to differentcities as well. Hiryu can move, jump, anduse his cipher on the many enemies thathe faces. Some locations in the cities areaccessible only with one of five keys, andHiryu may have to return to a city severaltimes before the game is completed.

Along the way, Hiryu accomplishes aspecific task by destroying an enemy or byrescuing a person. He gains experiencelevels that add to his health and energypoints. Energy points are expendedthrough the use of power tricks such asshooting electric balls, healing, and warp-ing back to the Blue Dragon. Hiryu canalso pick up energy and health points fromdefeated opponents who leave capsulesbehind. Three types of boots, if found, canalso help Hiryu: magnetic boots that allowHiryu to climb with ease; aqua boots thatgive him the ability to walk on water; andattack boots that slay enemy agents.

This is a good arcade game for the Nin-tendo Entertainment System. There are afew places where you might get stuck, butotherwise we found the game quite easyto play. We finished the game in five days, and that is the only reason why this gamehas a four-star rating instead of five stars.The graphics, story, and sound are excel-lent. You can save your games, and (thanksto a password feature) no one else canchange your game-in-progress. Strider is adefinite must-buy for Nintendo gamers!

News and new products

If you use an Atari 2600, Atari 7800, orAtari XE video game system, hang on toyour I/O device. Atari (408-745-2000) hasannounced 20 new games for these sys-tems. Barnyard Blaster and Sentinel arefor the 7800�s Light Gun option. Other7800 titles include Commando, Ikari War-rior, Xenophobe, Planet Smasher; NinjaGolf, Mat Mania Challenge, White WaterMadness, and Mean 18 Ultimate Golf.Their retail prices will range from $18.00to $35.00. For the 2600, you�ll find Off theWall, Road Runner, Radar Lock, Ikari

DRAGON 53

Warrior, White Water Madness, StreetFighter and Motorodeo, with Rampage andDouble Dragon being released by Activi-sion. Sentinel and Shooting Arcade willalso be available for the 2600�s Light Gun.Prices are $10.00 to $18.00. For the AtariXE, there�s Commando, Super Football,Tower Toppler, Xenophobe, Midi Maze,and Deflektor; prices are $20.00 to $35.00each. According to an Atari spokesperson,there will be nearly 200 Atari game titlesavailable by the end of this year.

Broderbund Software (415-492-3200) hasannounced that two of its award-winningprograms, The Ancient Art of War andThe Ancient Art of War at Sea, have beenupgraded to support VGA and full, 16-color EGA graphics on PC/MS-DOS ma-chines and compatibles. Additionally, allon-disk copy protection for those gameshas been removed.

From Electronic Arts (415-571-7171)comes Decisive Battles of the AmericanCivil War, Volume Two, which offers a newgraphics system for EGA/VGA users forhigh-quality screen displays. The gameincludes scenarios for the battles of Get-tysburg, Chickamauga, Chattanooga,Gaines Mill, and Stones River. The systempresents battles with authentic detail andflavor. Created by the affiliated label Stra-tegic Studies Group, this is for PC/MS-DOSmachines at $39.95.

Another new SSG offering distributed byElectronic Arts is Fire King, an action/adventure game for the Commodore 64/128 at $29.95. The game starts with thedeath of the Fire King, ruler of the landand presumed to be its most powerfulwizard. The land is plunged into chaosand a mystery must be solved. You mustjourney through the land while fightingthe creatures of chaos that threaten tooverrun it.

Omnicron Conspiracy has appearedfrom Epyx (415-366-0606). In this humor-ous game, you become a Star Police Cap-tain, Ace Powers. His assignment is to bustan intergalactic drug ring; he must findthe alien drug lab, ferret out the evil Men-tants, and stop a mad scientist. There areover 250 rooms to explore, many ex-tremely weird characters, and some genu-inely entertaining dialog. All selections aremade from icons and dialog with joystick/cursor controls; there is no laborioustyping of commands. In the manual, play-ers will find tips and hints, including in-depth solutions. The game is available forPC/MS-DOS computers at $49.95.

A graphic text adventure, The TwilightZone, has been released by First RowSoftware Publishing (215-662-1400). Thisgame takes the player into another dimen-sion; the story starts with the player in hismessy home but weaves him into a typi-cally complex plot with a typical TwilightZone ending. There are over 85 graphicscreens. The game is available for PC/MS-DOS computers for $39.95.

Infocom (617-492-6000) has releasedArthur: The Quest for Excalibur. This is

54 NOVEMBER 1989

the latest graphic, interactive-fiction titlefrom Infocom and casts the player as theyouthful Arthur on a quest for Excalibur,the legendary sword that will make himKing of England. Excalibur has been stolenby the evil King Lot; to win it back, theplayer must develop the kingly qualities ofwisdom, chivalry, and experience, whichwill also prove him worthy of the throne.This must be done within three days orLot will usurp Arthur�s legacy. There aremore than 100 graphics that evoke imagesof medieval England. Arthur offers fea-tures such as Merlin�s crystal ball (whichreveals helpful, on-screen hints), an �undo�command that lets players rescind eventhe most foolhardy decisions, and optionalon-screen mapping. It�s available for theApple Macintosh and the CommodoreAmiga for $49.95, and for Apple II and PC/MS-DOS systems for $39.95.

Konami Inc. (312-215-5100) and its sub-sidiary, Ultra Software Corporation, havereleased three new titles. In Teenage Mu-tant Ninja Turtles, the four heroes in thehalf-shells go up against the evil Foot Clanwith lightning-fast ninja moves to protectthe sewers of New York. Defender of theCrown is a medieval adventure that chal-lenges the player�s skills of strategy andstrength with daring swordfights andjousts. The Adventure of Bayou Billy con-tains a lot of zappin�, shootin�, and drivin�,being the first video adventure to combinethese different game elements.

A matched pair of computer games isbeing offered by Lucasfilm Games (415-662-1800). Both are based on the movie,Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Theaction game captures many of the film�sbest chase and fighting sequences. Thegraphic adventure parallels Indy�s questfor the most precious magical amulet inthe Western world, the Holy Grail. Bothgames are faithful to the plot, look, andpersonality of the film. The graphic adven-ture is available for PC/MS-DOS, Commo-dore Amiga, and Atari ST machines for$49.95. The action game is available forthe C64/128 for $29.95 and for the Com-modore Amiga and Atari ST for $39.95.

MicroProse Software (301-771-1151) hasintroduced a new arena of armored landwarfare with its release of M1 Tank Pla-toon for PC/MS-DOS machines. This simu-lation recreates combat in the M1 Abrams,the 63-ton main battle tank of the U.S.Army. However, with this offering, you areput in command of four tanks at once, in atotal of 16 battle positions. You can call inother forces to aid in the battle, includinginfantry, helicopters, jets, artillery, andother tanks. M1 Tank Platoon takes placein a 16,000-acre battle zone with zoomingmaps to show whatever is visible tofriendly forces. No retail price has beenset as of this writing.

Mindscape (301-771-1151) has releasedseveral new products: Road Blasters, 720°Infiltrator, The Last Starfighter, and Road.Runner In Road Blasters, you must sur-vive the ultimate contest of futuristic

warfare as you spin around turns andblast opponents with lasers in this electri-fying version of the arcade smash hit. In720°, you shoot around hairpin curvesand over the locals of Skate City. In Infil-trator; you command a state-of-the-artchopper. The Last Starfighter places theplayer into that classic science-fictionmovie. And there�s Road Runner, withWile E. Coyote, in a fast-paced arcadegame with the clever animation and excite-ment of the arcade hit.

Shinobi (from Mindscape) offers ninjamight and magic as you confront an armyof evil terrorists. Use your ninja stars tofend off thugs, mongos, and green ninjas;use ninja magic against the evil Ring ofFire. This adaptation of the coin-op hit isavailable for the C64/128 at $34.95, for theCommodore Amiga and Atari ST for$49.95, and for PC/MS-DOS computers for$39.95.

Gauntlet II is now available from Mind-scape. It has over 100 challenging mazes,with color graphics, smooth-scrollinganimation, digitized sound effects andvoices in all versions but the C64/128, andan instant add-a-player feature. Thisshould be another hit for Mindscape. It isavailable for PC/MS-DOS, C64/128, Com-modore Amiga, and Atari ST computers.

Mindscape�s Captain Blood offersscience-fiction fans a new dimension ingaming by incorporating award-winningvisual effects and a new icon language.Fractal and vector graphic techniques areused to produce amazing illustrations.Digitized music and sound effects occur asyou explore more than 32,000 planets. Youmust search the galaxy and interrogatealiens to track down the five clones thatare draining your energy force. CaptainBlood is available for the Atari ST, Amiga,and Macintosh for $49.95, the Apple IIGSfor $44.95, the C64/128 for $34.95, and theIBM and its compatibles for $39.95.

It looks as though the Nintendo Enter-tainment System (NES) has caught thefancy of more than gamers. AT&T is saidto be looking into the feasibility of sendingNintendo games to NES systems via tele-phone lines. Imagine what the phone billswill be if this comes to pass! Parentsthought they had problems with theirchildren�s phone bills already!

Knights of Legend is coming from OriginSystems (603-644-3360), with the industry�smost comprehensive combat system. Thegame leads the player on a dynamic jour-ney through a medieval world of intrigu-ing quests. There are over 30 towns toexplore with hundreds of unique andcolorful personalities to meet along theway. This game also features the firstmodular design in a fantasy computergame. Five additional modules areplanned, each with its own distinct quests,characters, creatures, and countrysides.Knights of Legend will be available forIBM-PC/Tandy/compatibles, Apple II series,and C64/128 computers for $49.95.

The first book in the Silicon Valley im-

print series from Osborne/McGraw-Hill(212-512-3851) is Falcon Air Combat: AFighter Pilot’s Guide to Falcon, the F-16Flight Simulator. Written by Pete Bonnani,this book discusses Spectrum HoloByte�sflight simulator and shows players how tofly an F-16 while engaging in air-to-groundand air-to-air combat. The author is aformer F-16 pilot and weapons/tacticstrainer with the U.S. Air Force. The sec-ond book is The King’s Quest Companion,by Peter Sears, which is a guide to accom-pany the series of four King�s Quest gamesfrom Sierra.

Sega (800-USA-SEGA; 415-742-9300 inCalif.) is rolling out a new arcade videosystem utilizing 16-bit technology: Genesis.Genesis will not only allow gamers to playtheir B-bit cartridges on 16-bit machines withthe Power Base Converter, but also allowsthem to also experience state-of-the-art highdefinition graphics, full-spectrum color,stereo sound, and lifelike animation. Amongthe software titles coming for the Genesisare Altered Beast, Space Harrier II, SuperThunder Blade, Tommy Lasorda Baseball,Thunder Force II, and Ghouls ’n Ghosts.

Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap, thethird adventure of the series, is comingsoon for Sega systems. You�ve beaten theMeka Dragon but have been cursed by itsghost. Now you�ve changed shape�into alittle dragon. Only the Salamander Crosscan turn you back into a man, but beforeyou find it, other monsters will changeyour shape as well.

Storm Across Europe and Red Lightninghave been released by Strategic Simulations,Inc. (408-737-6800). The first game is astrategic-level World War II game that en-compasses the entire conflict in Europe. Upto three players control every facet of thewar, with the computer able to control theAllies or the Russians. Multiple scenarios andthe ability to change starting levels for eachcountry allow for endless variations. StormAcross Europe is available for the C64/128for $59.95. Red Lightning depicts a conflictin central Europe between NATO and War-saw Pact nations. Modern air and landweapon systems are included, such as theSoviet T-80 tank and the U.S. F-117 stealthbomber. Every vehicle and aircraft is ac-counted for in this brigade/division-levelgame, available for the Atari ST and PC/MS-DOS machines for $59.95.

Rambo III is coming from Taito. Thisrole-playing adventure sends the player ona desperate mission to free Colonel Traut-man from a heavily guarded fortress inthe desolate plains of Afghanistan. Usefulitems left by a careless enemy help Ramboaccomplish his goal and defeat an entirearmy. Available the C64/128, Atari ST,Commodore Amiga, and PC/MS-DOS ma-chines, this game will cost from $29.95 to$37.95, depending upon format.

Clue cornerThe Bard�s Tale III (Interplay)

The most effective party for completing

this excellent game should include onehunter, one monk, one bard, one rouge,two conjurors, and one magician.

The greatest hurdle in completing thegame is the killing of Brilhasti ap Tarj.Should this be managed, the old man willaward 600,000 experience points. Thisalso affords you a method of awarding thisnumber of experience points an innumera-ble number of times through the ReviewBoard process.

In Gelidia, cast the appropriate spells onthe magic walls, but be careful whenfighting the Black Wizards.

In Lucencia, listen carefully to theflower ballad and note the effects of eachrose. The flowers must be given under theright circumstances. The Rainbow Dragonis a pushover; collect its blood and use iton the roseless rosebush.

In Malefia, beware of monsters! Spellpoints are used up quickly here. Find theseven statues and use their respectiveitems on them. Ignore what they say. Afteryou have found all of the statues, a doorwill appear on the 3rd level. This leadsdirectly to Tarjan!

Corin BlackRoslyn, Dunedin, N.Z.

Battletech (Infocom)1. When you start the game, invest your

money in DEFhes stocks, which will getyou the most money. Take your trainingmissions at the school, but be sure topurchase a flak vest and an infernoweapon before entering training missionseven or eight; during one of those mis-sions, there will be a little surprise foryou. Try and escape the Citadel quickly,but you must make it out with the Chame-leon Mech.

2. Head north to the Starport. When youreach the city, put your money back inDEFhes. You should meet Rex at the Kuritainaugural hall. If you go to the Mech-it-Lube and ask to become an apprentice,you should meet Edward, the tech. He willhelp you scavenge mech parts in the field.In my opinion, never use your own mechsin arena combat.

3. Explore the countryside around Star-port; there are several small towns in thearea. There is also a town at coordinates54.00 and 50.80; do not go there until youdiscover and kill the traitorous CrescentHawks member. Finally, search the medi-cal records in area hospitals for a medic(one who is not a traitor). When you haveRex, Jason, Edward, and a medic, improveyour mech skill (through combat),Edward�s tech skill, and the medic�s medi-cal skill to their maximum values.

4. When you reach the inventor�s hut inthe northern part of the continent, yourgroup must answer all his questions togain entrance to the Star League cachenearby. Remember to search for JeremiahYoungblood�s Phoenix Hawk LAM in thecache. When you reach the final door,descend the ladder. You will be in a roomthat is a map of inner space. When you

touch the correct planets (see the instruc-tion manual for the Draconis Rift), thecomputer will give you the white card foruse in the Hyperpulse generator, and you�llwin the game!

Tom FoottitNo address given

Curse of the Azure Bonds (SSI)In Tilverton, have a Knock spell ready in

the good thieves guild. Cast it on the Wiz-ard Locked door that leads to the treasureroom. In the sewers, attack the trolls whoask if you are Bonegrinder. Avoid the trollswho are feeding crocodiles as they haveno worthwhile items. In the Firekniveslair, there is a large, secret-door complexthat is safe to rest within. Have yourmages cast Protection From Normal Mis-siles before the final battle and pick off themages with Magic Missiles. Be certain tocheck the armory first, however.

Garth PricerNo town given, PA

If you are just starting to play, you havetwo methods of using an adventuringparty: You can use the prerolled party, oryou can make your own. If you want tomake your own party, have at least onepaladin, a thief, a cleric, and a magic-user.You may wish to add a ranger, too. Thelast slot you can probably fill with a non-human, multiclassed character. I suggestyou not include any elven characters; oncean elf is slain, he or she is gone�permanently!

In Zhentil Keep, there are a lot of magi-cal items. There is a magic shop whereyou can buy some new items such as aDart of the Hornet�s Nest. Don�t break intomany houses. You may also meet OliveRuskettle, a female halfling Bard.

Be careful in Haptooth Village. There area lot of drow soldiers about, and an efreetis running loose as well.

Don�t try to fight anything that is at leasttwo times your current level in hit dice.The hit dice are displayed in your Adven-turer�s Journal next to each creature�sname. (This advice applies to ettins, too.)Black Dragons are easy, so don�t worryabout them!

In the sewers of Tilverton, be wary oftrolls and crocodiles. There is one newmagical item called the Girdle of theDwarves.

Max LeeArcadia CA

Might and Magic I (New World Comp.)In Sorpigal, in the northwest corner of

the intersection near the passage to theoutdoors and the stairs down to the ca-vern (look on your map if you don�t under-stand what I just said), there is a secretdoor. Beyond that door is a man who willteleport you to the town of your choicefor only one gem. Also, in the Soul Maze,turn your map upside-down to find outSheltem�s name.

David M. ZeuschnerSierra Madre CA

DRAGON 55

The answer to the riddle of the IceQueen is a human emotion. Be certain tovisit her and answer her riddle twice.

The Silver Message offers clues onwhere to raise your statistics.

Castle Doom is at Mt. Doom; aroundcoordinate A-l.

Behind one of the walls at the Inn of Al-gary is a Swze Pit. Jump in as many times asyou wish for encounters. It�s a great placefor training low-level characters.

A few answers to Trivia Island riddles:Q: Who has lost his sight?A: Og.Q: Who is the voluptuous one?A: Lara.Q: Who be ye?A: I be me.

All of the passwords that Heratio theHarper gives you will eventually (if put inthe right order) give you a vague clueabout the Clerics of the South.

The Dungeon of Dusk has many levelsand connects with Castle Dragadune.

Make sure you get the Gypsy to readyour character�s signs if you ever hope toget the Coral Key.

Wyverns carry much gold and offermuch experience.

Be friendly to the Aliens; you gain noth-ing by being hostile to them.

Sean and Andrew SimMississauga, Ontario

Wizardry V (Sir-Tech Software)On level 5, near the entry to the Mad

Room, is a secret passage that leads to arope down to the 6th level and to a healingpool that can bring back dead characters.You can also reach this passage by makingit through Mystery Theater.

this tradition. If you have completed aquest or have noted an important clue inyour current game, pass it on to: TheLessers, 179 Pebble Place, San Ramon CA94583. Your fellow gamers appreciate it!Until next month, game on!

On level 1, the laughing kettle is foundnot in the northeast corner but near N23E22. Do not attack it!

When facing Evil Eyes (level 6), Katu, tryto steal an item.

The Ring of Skulls increases armor classat the expense of aging your character.

Both the Scarlet Robes and EmeraldRobes are aligned magical protections.

For the bronze key, look up Ironose.For the ice key, look on level 6 in an

apparently empty pavilion.For the Bag of Tokens, you�ll need to

shut off the conveyor belt.On Level 4, beyond the white field, is

another of those magic pools. This onerequires payment prior to use, but it alsocontains a Skeleton Key.

Gregg SharpBuckeye AZ

That�s it for this month. Don�t forget tosubmit your own original game hints.Most letters we receive are extremelythankful to everyone who has helped anadventurer through a game. Let�s continue

56 NOVEMBER 1989

SageContinued from page 9

I have a book that says longneedles were sometimes used inassassinations. What are the statis-tics for needles?

Treat them as chopsticks.

What kind of property does asamurai get at 9th level? How muchproperty does a jito get?

Samurai do not get property at 9th level;they get the great kiai and followers. Theyare offered stewardship, not ownership,of various properties at earlier levels. Ajito (the stewardship offered to a 7th-levelsamurai) generally manages one to threevillages for his daimyo.

How much does Oriental equip-ment weigh? How large and heavyare grenades?

Use the figures for the nearest equiva-lent from the regular AD&D rules or reallife. Rope or clothing, for example, weighsthe same no matter where it is made.Grenades are about the size and weight ofa flask of oil.

If a character loses a family heir-loom or weapon, is he obligatedobligation to regain it or die in theattempt? Must he commit suicide ifregaining the item is impossible?

The character simply loses 5 points ofhonor (or 10 points if he is a samurai). Thecharacter is under no particular obligationto regain the item. The DM might chooseto assess a further honor loss (2 points forrefusing a challenge) if the character doesnot attempt to regain the item, or the DMmight make an honor award (5 points foraccomplishing a great deed) if the charac-ter successfully regains the item. No char-acter is ever obligated to commit suicidedue to loss of honor, though any characterwith a negative honor score is immediatelyremoved from play (see Oriental Adven-tures, page 35).

In �Sage Advice� in issue #122, yousaid that the to-hit roll required forthe special martial-arts maneuverLeap should be made against AC 10.Does this apply to to-hit rolls re-quired for other maneuvers, such asWeapon Catch?

No. In general, combat special maneu-vers require a to-hit roll vs. the armorclass of the target character. The targetcharacter in a Weapon Catch is the charac-ter holding the weapon that is to becaught.

There is a large honor penalty fora ninja who allows his true identityto be discovered. Is there any pen-alty for a ninja who allows the factthat he is a ninja to be discovered?

No. A ninja always uses an alias and

58 NOVEMBER 1989

keeps his real name and the details of hisfamily history secret. Ninja should try toconceal the fact that they are ninja, butthis is not a necessity. Hiding a ninja�s truecharacter class is very difficult in a cam-paign. It is not impossible, however, so theDM may assign a minor penalty if it leaksout; - 1 honor point is plenty.

At the very bottom of page 50,there appears to be an introductionto a table. What happened to thetable?

The text at the bottom of page 50 refersto table 55, which is located immediatelyabove the text.

Isn�t a lajatang a two-handedweapon?

Yes, the lajatang entry in table 49 (page41) should be boldfaced.

What is the conversion rate be-tween non-Oriental gold pieces andOriental tael and ch�ien? What aboutcopper, silver, electrum, and plati-num pieces?

Table 46 (page 38) gives conversion rates.Gold, electrum, and platinum are notaccepted as currency in Kara-Tur, so thesecoins must be sold for the market value ofthe metal in them. The market value ofone gold piece is 2-7 (1d6 + 1) tael (see page38). Extrapolating, a platinum piece isworth 11-30 (1d20 + 20) tael. The marketprice of gold and platinum varies indepen-dently, so it is possible for the price ofplatinum to be low while the price of goldis high. Electrum is mostly gold, so itsprice varies with the price of gold: anelectrum piece is worth half the currentvalue of a gold piece.

A ninja-to can have a secret com-partment in the hilt. How much canbe held in the compartment?

The compartment is very small; it canhold one dose of poison or an item the sizeof a finger ring or coin.

What are the rules for Orientalcharacters fighting with a weaponin each hand? What is the limit ofthe kensai two-weapon ability? Ob-viously, a kensai can�t use twokatanas�or can he?

The rules are the same as those for non-Oriental characters; see the 1st EditionDMG (page 70) or the 2nd Edition Player’sHandbook (page 96). Any Oriental weaponthat is the equivalent of a dagger or handaxe can be used as a second weapon (seeOriental Adventures, table 48, page 41). Akensai�s second weapon must be a daggeror hand axe (or an equivalent).

Can a character with high dexter-ity spend extra slots on fightingwith two weapons and avoid thetwo-weapon penalty?

No. Only kensai of 7th level and above

have the ability to fight with two weaponsat no penalty.

Page 8 says that a ninja gains a10% bonus for high dexterity, butpage 19 says he does not. Which iscorrect?

Page 19 is correct.

Table 13 (page 14) says that ninjacan use any weapon, but a footnotesays that they must learn only ninja-preferred weapons. What happenswhen a high-level ninja has learnedall the ninja weapons?

A ninja can learn nonninja weapons intwo ways. First, he can use slots from hisother class. Second, once he is proficientwith all ninja weapons, he can choose anyweapon.

What are the statistics for a badgerhengeyokai (mentioned on page 13)?

A badger is a �raccoon dog� in Orientalparlance. The raccoon dog is listed ontable 11 (page 12).

What is the initiative modifier fora character who knows iaijutsu?

There is none. The character simply hasthe ability to draw or change the weaponat no penalty. The character also has abetter chance to surprise opponents undercertain circumstances. See Oriental Adven-tures, page 99.

DRAGON 63

64 NOVEMBER 1989

ForumContinued from page 7

this does not require a party of all-evil charac-ters. Chaotic characters will certainly reasonthat the king has more than enough wealth, andthat they are free to take what they wish. Goodcharacters may be doing this for the greatergood of all mankind, working with an evil orneutral character grudgingly to achieve thisgoal. (How often do utterly scrupulous agentsget chased by the police in games such as theTOP SECRET® game?) Neutral characters couldbe doing it for those reasons and many others.As a matter of fact, the only character whocouldn�t be caught in that situation is a lawfulone (unless it was all a mistake).

Daniel Reardon attacks any and all evil-alignedcharacters. I agree with him that the purpose ofthe game is to have fun, but I don�t think thatdemands that everyone must promote coopera-tion and teamwork. Why, then, do we also playcomputer adventure games and solo modules? Ithink the lure of adventure and excitementattracts us. If everyone is good, and no one ischaotic or evil, then all the characters are eitherneutral good or lawful good. What kind of role-playing can you get out of that? Conflictingpersonalities may make good role-playing, but itwon�t last through a campaign.

Thus, both good and evil characters andadventures have their values. Chaotic neutraland lawful neutral characters are often morefun to role-play. As a matter of fact, there areonly two alignments that I believe are not con-ducive to enjoyable role-playing and adventure.First, the strongly chaotic-evil character is theembodiment of destruction, the essence of themaniacal character that the good-promotingplayers are against. It might be possible to playa watered-down version of that alignment, suchas a sometimes-unpredictable evil character or asomewhat cruel chaotic neutral. Actually, cha-otic evil is not the ultimate evil. Neutral evil ismore so; it doesn�t care about law or chaos, onlyevil, much as neutral good (not lawful good) ispure and total good, and true neutral is un-tainted by anything. That brings me to the otheralignment I am against: true neutral. Such acharacter rarely gains any of the enjoyment ofrole-playing, and such personality traits as�aloof� or �selfish� can show different aspects ofa neutral alignment while still allowing good,chaotic, evil, or lawful beliefs. After all, chaoticneutral means totally chaotic, neutral good istotally good, etc., so what is neutral neutral?Druids should be lawful neutral, chaotic neu-tral, or neutral good, depending on how theycarry out their duties.

All the published campaign worlds are neutraland provide adventures for anyone. Surely GaryGygax, Ed Greenwood, Margaret Weis, TracyHickman, and the rest know what they�re doing.Any adventure in any part of any world is madenot by the DM but rather by the players andthus by their alignments, the ultimate expres-sion of their beliefs.

Toby MyersHamilton NY

I bought my latest issue of DRAGON Magazine[issue #145], and as always I was reading �Fo-rum� when I came across the letter by MichaelTownsend in White Hall, Md. I wrote this letterto show there still are people who care thatthere are lone players out there. Here are sometips on how to bring a group together. First,come up with a flyer telling what game you areinterested in playing and what type of player

(serious or casual) you want. Then copy thismany times (at about $0.10 a photocopy, this isnot bad). Then take these copies to bookstoresand hobby stores that sell the game you play.Ask if you can leave some copies at the register(if anybody buys something, he will see them).Also, if you are buying game supplies and younotice another person buying supplies, strike upa conversation. See if this person wants to getinto a game or has friends who play. The more,the merrier! That�s how I meet my friends.

Steve WilliamsLakeland FL

Given the focus on castles in issue #145, Iwould like to present what may be a somewhatunusual perspective on the place of castles in anAD&D game fantasy world. The central idea ofthis perspective is that medieval-style castlesand the AD&D game are in many ways incom-patible.

Castles evolved as methods of defense in ournonmagical world because, until the advent ofgunpowder, they were virtually impenetrable.Unlike what is seen in movies, on TV, or infantasy novels, castles almost never fell toassault. Prolonged sieges and starvation or aninternal traitor who opened the gates wererequired for them to fall. This was the onlyjustification for the outrageous expenditures inmoney, time, and manpower the average castlerequired. Large castles could take as long as fiveyears to build, if not longer, and only greaternobility and royalty could muster the fundsnecessary (often through oppressive taxes).

Castles were impenetrable simply becausetheir walls were impossible to pass. Walls couldnot be climbed without the use of ladders orother siege equipment; a very small number ofmen could easily repel 10 times their numberattempting to go up and over a wall. Sapping(tunneling under a wall to remove its support)was the most effective means of assaulting amedieval castle but was extremely hazardous tothe attacker and not very reliable, especially ifthe castle�s foundation was deep in the ground.Catapults and trebuchets had little effect againstwell-designed and well-maintained walls. And,obviously, no one could fly over the top.

In an AD&D game world, all of these advan-tages are abrogated. A 1st-level thief has areasonable chance of climbing any wall, and hisskill increases to almost certain success as heincreases in levels. No such ability existed orexists in our world. Granted, a thief can notclimb a wall carefully guarded by vigilant men,but an invisibility spell is a quicker answer. Allof this does not mention the second-level magespell, spider climb, making success at climbingan actual certainty. A small squad of invisiblethieves could easily climb a castle wall in thedark of night and open the gates�and once thegates are open, the citadel is virtually destinedto fall. The whole idea of a castle is to defendwith fewer men than are necessary for attack.

But why bother to climb the wall when flightover it is so easy? Pegasi, dragons, spells, flyingbrooms�the list of possibilities available in theAD&D game is far too long for delineation here.It takes little imagination to conjure myriadforms of misery to inflict upon those foolishenough to guard a castle. A squad of pegasi-mounted men might easily hold a gate longenough for the main army to punch through tovictory. A mage could fly over the castle dump-ing fireballs, cloudkills, and other forms of painon the castle�s inhabitants. The magic-user neednot even fly over the castle to gain attack lanesfor his spells; a second-level levitate spell shouldeasily raise him high enough to gain direct line

of sight to the castle�s interior. The walls becomeless of a value as an enemy simply ignores themin the launching of attacks.

Perhaps flight is not possible in your world, orpegasi are far too rare for this to be an option.Still, the castle is not spared. If we cannot goover, we can go through. A knock spell couldeasily open the gates without internal assist-ance. The mage simply moves to the gate underthe cover of an attack or invisibility. If the gateis wizard locked, use dispel magic or find amage four levels higher than the caster of thewizard lock. Disintegration could easily open ahole or gate, or contribute to the underminingof a weak wall (the fifth-level spell passwall isdesigned for this exact purpose). Perhaps sum-moning aid is best; an earth elemental will makeshort work of most castle walls. But who needsto summon aid? Find an umber hulk and charmit (using the fifth-level spell charm monster).And this goes without mentioning the possibili-ties of the really powerful magic. May your DMnever conceive of the idea of making your castlea target of a holy crusade with the services of ahigh-level cleric. Trot out an earthquake spelland scratch one castle. Five years of money andwork are destroyed for almost nothing exceptthe 10 hours the cleric spent to memorize thespell (oops, forgot the pinch of dirt, piece ofrock, and lump of clay�material components).In case you have not read the earthquake spelldescription lately, that�s 5d12 of structuraldamage, folks. The area of effect is probably notbig enough to take out the entire castle, but itwill make a very big hole in the wall.

And still we are not finished. Tunneling underthe castle is now much easier. Both dwarves andorcs are more skilled miners than men, not tomention the charmed umber hulk or any otherof the numerous underground tunnelers outand about in the AD&D game. Disintegrate andpasswall work here as well.

Granted, most of the attacks I have mentionedhave potential defenses: archers for the flyingunits, dispel magic on the passwall or charm, oilon the walls for climbers, etc. That defensesexist is not the issue. The key element is that theinitiative lies with the attacker, and the defendermust know the form of the attack to preventand counter it. This means your castle is only asgood as your intelligence about the enemy. Yourenemy also has another advantage in that hecan simply hold his most devastating attack andforce you to waste your resources defendingagainst skirmishes. That 3rd-level mage tryingto knock your gate may be only a nuisance, butyou must stop him or the gate is open and yourthroat is slit. When you are out of dispel magicspells, your castle is history. And if you�reloaded up with dispel magics, how are you tocounter the ruin your enemy will cause with hisfireballs?

Castles were never meant to be assaulted,because there was no successful attack formagainst them. If you had a castle, your enemyhad to starve you to death to defeat you, andthat required time�time he would have tospend looking over his shoulder watching for arelief force. If a relief force caught him bysurprise, he could find himself trapped, espe-cially if there was a sortie from the formerlybesieged force in the castle.

It is not my purpose to say no AD&D gameworld should have castles. Rather, I would liketo suggest DMs think carefully about includingcastles in their worlds. Given the medieval levelof physical technology in most campaign worlds,castles would still require huge expenditures intime and money but would offer far fewer

advantages. They are easily assaulted with low-powered spells and individuals; a team of 3rd-level thieves and magic-users will wreak havocwith the average castle. In many ways, the priceis not worth it. Indeed, given the problemsinvolved, it�s possible that walls and castles asdefensive structures might never have devel-oped in many AD&D game worlds. The inhabit-ants of these worlds would spend theirresources on training their armies and recruit-ing and training spell-casters. With the additionof BATTLESYSTEM� rules, peasant levies be-come unattractive in an AD&D world. Morale iscritical to absorb magical and unusual attacks,and peasants have little morale. Standing profes-sional armies, however, are extremely expensive(just ask your Congressman).

Castles are not built today because the tech-nology of our world has advanced far enough torender the stone wall useless as a defensivemeasure. I suggest the magic of the AD&Dworld renders them equally useless:

No name given

I have just finished perusing a copy of theAD&D 2nd Edition preview [in issue #142] thatdescribes the dramatic revision changes, andissue #143 in which one of our Canadian breth-ren laments that all those sophisticated AD&Dgame players out there refuse to take himseriously because he is a mere follower of D&Dgames. My decade-plus of role-playing experi-ence compels me to submit an opinion, widelyheld by my contemporaries. This opinion isreally quite concise: �PHBT!�

AD&D game players are weenies and bedwet-ters; no self-respecting D&D game aficionadoneed beg their indulgence. Our battle-scarredgroup of graybeards has been involved in a veryadvanced style of play since early 1976, whenwe immediately grasped the power and poten-tial of one of the opening lines in the originalrelease: �[These] are guidelines to follow indesigning your own fantastic-medieval cam-paign� [from Men & Magic, page 4). Straightjack-eted dabblers in the AD&D game and theirpitiful reliance on external structures to aidthem in negotiating the lovely, intricate laby-rinth of role-playing are commonly the object ofridicule in the rarefied atmosphere of ourgatherings. It was with contempt and loathingthat we greeted the AD&D game with its exe-crable shift from �imagination rules� to �rulesreign.�

A refreshing trend seems to be emerging,however. The AD&D game preview, page 14:�This is part of our goal of increasing playerchoices and encouraging you to make the gameyour own.� It�s about time. You fellows have a lotof catching up to do. Perhaps this is the peres-troika of the AD&D game?

Michael HenitsRome, Italy

with Eric M. PaulsonLondon, England

and Gregory H. GrahamColorado Springs CO

I would like to disagree with Ms. Reynoldsletter in issue #144. Although I do agree thatmany of the AD&D game rules were taken fromthe original D&D game, and that the D&D gameis a very good one, it is not better than theAD&D game!

I think that the AD&D game is better than theD&D game because the latter is illogical. Sayingthat a halfling cannot pursue thieving activity issimply stupid. Even the D&D material states

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66 NOVEMBER 1989

that halflings engage in thievery (GAZ 8 TheFive Shires, in particular.) Although some peoplecould criticize the AD&D game because of itsrestrictions on certain races taking certainclasses, the game system has logical reasons(e.g., dwarves cannot be druids because theydon�t live in the woods). Besides the ridiculousrace restrictions, the D&D game also has fewerspells, a smaller monster selection, and fewerclasses in general.

The evidence above should prove that theAD&D game is the better game. I do think thatthe D&D game is better for the less-serious role-players who like a simpler game and easiervictories.

Joseph D�AmicoWallington NJ

Hurrah for Ivy K. Reynolds in issue #144, forher views on the D&D game! Long have I satwatching people belittle this marvelous system.

Weapon specialization has always been aproblem with the AD&D game, as no one is ableto agree on how it should be utilized. Theweapon-mastery structure in the D&D MastersSet presents a colorful comparison to the blandchart offered by its newer companion [in Un-earthed Arcana]. Weapon mastery allows acharacter to carefully chose which weapon tomaster by allowing certain benefits to thecharacter when he has reached a certain rankof mastery. These can be reviewed for the besteffect to the PC. It also gives the player a senseof ability by ranking a PC as Basic, Skilled,Expert, Master, or Grand Master of his chosenweapon. The weapons are closely examined bygiving only abilities that would suit. One canhardly imagine a thief with a dagger trying todisarm a fighter with a halberd!

The AD&D game�s weapon specializationimbalances play at higher levels. Charactersnaturally become more proficient with weaponseven though they are not technically learningany new, specific techniques with them. This isunrealistic to a degree that cannot be ignored. Acharacter may be a brilliant swordsman, but heis not going to suddenly become more powerfulovernight simply because he advances in level.The weapon-mastery system requires much of aPC who wishes to learn it. He must have thecorrect amount to pay his teacher, but thatdoesn�t guarantee that he will be able to find ateacher who is genuine (characters would besurprised at the number of charlatans whomight attempt to harm them). Also, as a PCadvances his weapon mastery, it becomes in-creasingly hard to find acceptable teachers, andthe chances to learn are much less. Theseadventures [to find teachers] could be extraordi-narily dangerous, allowing the character toprove that he is worthy.

Anyone who has ever used the D&D systemmight have noticed that magic-users are allowedto gain levels of mastery just as fighters can. Ipersonally allow this but with a penalty to themagic-user. As he trains, he gains no experienceand loses 100 points of experience per day thathe neglects his magical studies. This is thepenalty one faces for such endeavors. This isnot that perilous considering that the magic-users in the D&D game have the choice of onlyone weapon, the dagger, and so are much morelimited than their AD&D game counterparts.Players may feel that the AD&D game is asystem that largely depends on skill, but what Ihave said only proves otherwise. After all, a fun,

balanced, and realistic game is much better thanan unbelievable campaign with unlimited powerat the player�s fingertips.

Robert MorrisonCalgary, Alberta

The June editorial (issue #146) very muchdisturbs me. While I am hoping Roger intendedit as a thought-provoking entry instead of as aprediction, it certainly begs a good deal ofdiscussion. Let me start out by refuting thebasic premise of the editorial: A computer RPGis not an RPG. It is instead just what it is�aseries of magnetic particles which, when inter-preted by a disk drive, performs a given func-tion. Think about the name RPG: It stands forrole-playing game. Most certainly, there is no�role� involved in a binary program. Role-playing involves a deep interaction with analternate persona, most often referred to as acharacter. This persona must interact with bothits player and the master of the game, and theplayer and master must interact. In the case oftraditional RPGs, that master is the gamemaster�DM with regard to the AD&D game.When a so-called computer RPG is played, thecomputer becomes the master. I fail to see howthe computer�s actions could ever be referred toas interaction. Everything the computer does isby a program, which is given and known. Evenrandom events are predictable; one knows theywill be random. In the person-to-person RPG,the essence of spontaneity is still there. Theplayer never knows what the GM might do next;the DM might use a table or use a die roll, oreven make something up on the spot! Com-puters cannot and never will do so. Thus, theessential ingredient for the very existence forRPGs is missing: interaction.

Tracy Hickman is the next contributor to theRPG discussion. According to Mr. Moore, Tracyclaims that it is harder and harder to get agroup together, but the computer is alwaysthere. As much as I admire Mr. Hickman�s workand ability, I must disagree with him on thispoint. Gamers who truly enjoy the game willfind time to play. I know that�s a bit overgenera-lized, but it is true. I would hope that spousesknew of their fiancees� hobby before evergetting married; thus, they should know that ittakes a little time every so often (and will beunderstanding about it). Jobs do not take up allof one�s time. Besides, how better to relax thanto play a game one enjoys in the company ofone�s friends?

Next on the agenda of the editorial is mentionof multiplayer computer games. These can befound in two varieties. The first is just a stand-ard computer game repeated so that more thanone player can take part at the same time. Thisstill does not fit the interaction mandate, as thecomputer still uses a set code for determiningthat action A causes result B, but merely does ittwice (or three times, etc.). The second varietyof multiplayer game is that of a network ofplayers hooked through modem. I grudginglyadmit that this could be considered an RPG,because it involves the computer only as amedium for communication. Basically, though,this variety is the same as having an AD&Dgame held over the phone but with print in-stead of voice communication. Not real exciting:no facial expressions, no secret notes, and�somewhat more importantly�no snacks �bor-rowed� from other players.

The concept of using the computer to aidDMing is brought up as a final word on thesubject. Sure, having all the information on diskwould be nice, but I did some quick calculatingand just the 1st Edition Dungeon Masters Guide,

Players Handbook, and Monster Manual I wouldtake up 5250K of memory (about 37 floppydisks). That’s only the basic information, too,and doesn’t even take into account all the sce-narios, characters, backgrounds, other books,etc. It also doesn’t take into account the com-puter! So space will still be at a premium. Also,when a question by a player was asked, the GMwould turn around, type a few lines into thecomputer, and spit out an answer, which wouldremove all the humanity. There would be noneed for the GM, and again the RPG conceptwould die. Game masters are needed to bringthe campaign to life using whatever methodsbest fit the moment. Computers cannot do thisand will most likely never do so, due to theimprobability of artificial intelligence reachinghuman levels. GMs are a special breed — theycan’t be reduced to the 0S and 1s of binary.

I admit I enjoy computer games as much aseveryone else, but the idea that they will re-place “live” playing is abhorrent to me. They canbe enjoyed but on a completely different scalethan that of real RPGs. To the editorial’s finalquestion, “Will computer RPGs eventually re-place ‘paper’ RPGs?” the answer must be NO. Ifthat happens, RPGs as a whole will vanish, justas the editorial’s title mentions, to be replacedby a square of plastic, some wire, and lots ofsilicon. A sad day it will be.

Despite all my ranting, though, I do agreewith one of Mr. Moore’s comments. We can allhope that DRAGON Magazine will be around towitness whatever may befall the gaming indus-try. Happy 13th!

Alan GrimesWarrensburg MO

I own Pool of Radiance and it is truly amazing.It captures all of the critical elements of theAD&D game and puts them all in a neatlywrapped package (with many extras). This wasa blessing for me as well as many other gamers,I’m sure, because players and DMs are in shortsupply up here in Canada.

As for whether or not computer RPGs willever replace textbook versions, I say no, or atleast not completely! I don’t think that a comput-erized version will ever replace taking out a fewAD&D game books while in the car for a six-hour trip.

Jason DunnCalgary, Alberta

“R.I.P: RPGs?” was an apt title for the editorialin issue #146. was talking about oblivion.Whether or not one enjoys computer games,they present a completely different challengefrom TSR’s AD&D or SJG’s GURPS® game, nomatter how sophisticated software becomes.The fun of role-playing lies in its creativity. TheDM can design exactly the adventure he wants,weaving together pet personalities, privatejokes, his acting talent, and favorite fictional orhistorical events. The players do the same withtheir characters. Then they add to each others’creations and inspire new ones. Anything thatremoves the game master kills this interaction.Nobody bothers to talk “in character” for acomputer. The machine simply presents dilem-mas, and the player resolves them. Personally, Iplay AD&D games to talk with friends and makeup stories, not to figure out puzzles. Further-more, role-playing is (or should be) cheap andcontrolled by the players. Computer gamingrequires expensive machinery and depends ontrained programmers. If paper-and-pencil gameswither, then the freedom and imagination ofrole-playing must vanish.

I trust that this is not inevitable. Role-playing

does not require any more time than tennis,fishing, following professional sports, or anyother adult pastime. Concise adventures of theDUNGEON® Adventures variety last only anhour or two and often have more coherent plotsthan thousand-room mega-mazes. We need adedicated core to organize conventions and thelike, but almost anybody can play or be a DM.

Of course all gamers grow older. And thatcolors our attitudes. Instead of lamenting ourmaturity, why can’t we take advantage of it?Most of us feel that the D&D game should begenerally accepted in the sense that basketballor Parker Brothers’ MONOPOLY® game are. Butdespite occasional TSR ads in nationwide maga-zines, role-playing still spreads primarily byword-of-mouth. Perhaps as we grow older, wecan introduce games to our adult friends andmake the hobby respectable at last.

Thomas M. KaneFarmington ME

The implied overview of “R.I.P.: RPGs?” seemsto indicate that computer role-playing gamescan, or one day will, replace paper RPGs. This isnot only untrue but also unrealistic.

What person in his right mind would chooseto sit by himself in a room for eight hourslooking at a computer screen, perhaps afterfour hours talking to it as a leisure pastime, asopposed to sitting down with a pizza, eight goodfriends, and a role-playing game?

One of the most singular and least talkedabout advantages of a role-playing game con-cerns the people you meet and associate with.Individuals who play RPGs are of such diversebackgrounds and age groups that it doesn’tmatter whether you’re a top executive in amajor corporation or a high-school studentworried about his next math test. You share anexperience of fun and adventure together. Ifyou are friends at the beginning of a campaignin an RPG, by the end you’re best buddies. Ifyou don’t know the other people in the game,by the end of the first session you have justmade eight new friends.

Computer games are adventures for one ortwo people. A computer cannot adapt to theplayers’ needs as a GM can. With a computer,players are trapped as there’s no room forplayers to surprise the GM by doing the unex-pected. True, a computer may never have tostop to check a chart or rule, but it may alsonever make friends, laugh at your jokes, orshare a pizza.

Let’s face it: The one thing that makes RPGsfun is the human factor. If you’re frustratedwith a computer game, the computer can’t tellthat and it won’t give you that extra hint, clue,or push you could use right now in order tocontinue having fun. The computer can’t experi-ence and share in the satisfaction you feel afterbeating a particular monster, problem, or trap.

Best of all, once you finish a module, the GMstarts work on the next one. Since the adven-ture comes from his mind, it’s bound to beinteresting — and at no cost. A new adventure oncomputer means a new adventure disk and thatmeans $35 to $65.

In closing, computer RPGs are best as fill-insfor times when you don’t have a group to playwith or as a means of hanging on until you finda group of humans to socialize with. Computersmay be the world of tomorrow, but role-playinggames are the world of imagination, and com-puters have no imagination.

Derek K. LechmanPresident of the Arcadian

Guild Role-playing OrganizationWinnipeg, Manitoba

DRAGON 67

Heavy Spearorc (Tabletop Games/Alliance Miniatures) Photographs by Mark Hammergren

Lasers and mages and tanks�oh, my!©1989 by Robert Bigelow

Whenever I have spoken about a majorminiatures event in this column, the eventhas always been associated with either theGEN CON® game fair or GAMA�s ORIGINS�convention, Now it�s time to fill you in onthe details of an all-miniatures convention.

One of the largest miniatures groups inthe country is the Historical MiniatureGaming Society (HMGS), which hasbranches across the U.S. Its goal is toeducate the public about gaming withhistorical miniatures, as well as aboutminiatures in general, by promoting andrunning three all-miniatures conventions:Cold Wars in February, Little Wars inApril, and Historicon in July. Cold Warsand Historicon are always held on the eastcoast, and Little Wars is in the Midwest.

This year, I was fortunate to be able toattend Historicon as both a GEN CON

68 NOVEMBER 1989

game fair representative and as vice presi-dent of HMGS Midwest. The conventionwas held in Harrisburg, Penn., on thefourth weekend in July. Harold Johnson,Dale Ridder, and I piled into a car for the16-hour trip, arriving at the Penn Harrishotel on Thursday. Historicon took up theentire convention facility there, about24,000 square feet. There was a dealersarea for about 70 vendors, all selling dif-ferent miniatures-related products: mod-ern and World War II troops, tanks, ships,and soldiers of all types and scales; siegegear; buildings; trees; and rules and acces-sories. We could have come home with atrailer full of merchandise had not com-mon sense prevailed.

The gaming area was about 12,000square feet in size. Among its constantlyshifting tables were 125 different minia-

tures games�fewer than at the GEN CONgame fair, but here over 115 of theseevents were scenarios with an historicalfocal point; the GEN CON game fair hadabout 75. As was done at the GEN CONgame fair, most games were set up atintroductory levels so anyone could play.

One of the most popular games at His-toricon was Minifig�s LIMEYS AND SLI-MIES game. This game is loosely based onship-to-ship combat during the Age of Sail,with battles fought using armed andcrewed 25mm ships, either individually orin fleets. You can attempt to tangle rigging,kill an enemy crew, or board ships. Extradetails included sandbars, cities, docks,and gun positions surrounding the area.This game adds a whole new dimension tothe term �plundering and looting.�

Another interesting game was a combi-nation role-playing and miniatures eventin which I was lucky enough to partici-pate. In this scenario, Germany conqueredEngland in World War II. Two childrenfrom the Royal Family were missing. TheGermans were to recover the children andcrush the resistance army by destroyingits weapons factory. The Italians, whowere actually American spies, were to findthe children and take them away. Theresistance meant to kill German troopsand retain the children. I was assigned tobe a German mole who was supposed tolocate the resistance HQ and weaponsfactory. As it turned out, I was hired intothe resistance and found the factory. TheGermans died, the partisans died, theItalians left, and the Royal Family had toescape with the town �madame,� who wasactually an SAS agent.

Games Workshop�s WARHAMMER�40,000 game was played, as were severalSF games using 20mm figures. Naval bat-tles abounded; some of the most famousencounters in history were reenacted,often with different results than historygives us. Cannons thundered as a 6� × 20�Napoleonic battle was relived. Civil Waractions, both American and English, wererefought. But the best of them all wasDuke Siegfried�s walk through the mostfamous colonial battles in the Zulu War.His exacting scenery and step-by-steplecture made you feel like you were reliv-ing the events of Zulu Dawn.

If you want to explore history withminiatures or attend one of our conven-tions, contact: Mike Montemarno (HMGS�East Coast), 8808 Greens Lane, Randalls-town MD 21133, U.S.A.; or Robert Bigelow(HMGS�Midwest), c/o Friend�s HobbyShop, 1411 Washington Street, WaukeganIL 60085, U.S.A. Mention that you saw thisin DRAGON® Magazine!

ReviewsThe first review was originally discussed

on the long drive back from Historicon.The author of this review is Dale Ridder,one of our club�s campaign masters whosehobbies are military history and gaming.

Dale has made contributions to IronCrown Enterprises as a consultant and isan active contributor to gaming publica-tions. His review is based on his historicalperspective.

Miniatures' product ratings

* Poor* * Below Average* * * Average* * * * Above Average* * * * * Excellent

TACTICA game * ½The TACTICA game, by Arty Conliffe, is

billed as a �complete rules system whichsimulates the battlefield tactics of ancientarmies.� More accurately, it is the start of arules system for ancient warfare. In itsfavor, it is the first set of rules I have seenin which the majority of illustrations arecolor photographs, and the overall appear-ance of the rules is first class; larger com-panies should take note. The rules are alsowell furnished with diagrams illustratingthe various rules and restrictions covered.In these respects, this game is far superiorto other miniatures rules that I have en-countered. However, the TACTICA gamehas its problems, and these lie in twoareas: rules quality, and the concept of thesystem itself.

The rules would clearly benefit from acareful editing job by someone who wasinitially unfamiliar with the system. Thesingle most glaring reason for this is theuse of �melee dice.� Melee dice are used todetermine casualties inflicted by units incontact. The number of melee dice usedfor infantry units, on which the gamefocuses, is never given. In order to findout this fact, one presumably must call orwrite the author.

Another problem lies in the manner inwhich unit deployment is handled. Onpage 4, the rule for initial army set-up saysthat deployment is drawn on a scale mapprior to play and revealed only when playbegins, with all units placed precisely asindicated. Yet on page 11, under the rulesgoverning movement and deployment, it isstated that the game �affords a Generalwith the opportunity of discovering wherethe enemy is and then moving and deploy-ing to face him.� As there are very severerestrictions on movement in these rules,the requirement for secret deploymentrenders it impossible to discover wherethe enemy is prior to committing one�stroops.

Dwarf Battleset—Warriors (Grenadier Models)

Some desperately needed rules are miss-ing, too. The final five armies listed in therules are essentially cavalry: Byzantines,Arabs, Ostrogoths, Sassanid Persians, andVandals. There are no rules governingcavalry vs. cavalry combat. This is a mas-sive hole for a game that claims to be �anaccurate portrayal of the historical battle-field systems used.� There are minor prob-lems as well. At best, the rules are only a

start toward a system.The other major problem area is in the

concept of ancient warfare as described inthe game. The basic assumption here isthat the only units that counted were theheavy infantry. From this assumption, therules are skewed so that no other unit caneffectively compete. Yet, when you look atthe historical record, heavy infantry wasnot the be-all and end-all of ancient war-fare. Light infantry and skirmishers,which in the rules are very unhistoricallyrestricted to the same speed as heavyinfantry, could and did wreak havoc onheavy troops; see the defeat of the Spar-tans at Sphacteria and Lechaeum forproof. Many of Alexander the Great�svictories were won by his superb use ofcavalry. One looks in vain for a diagram ofthe tactics used by the Byzantines, so

thoroughly explained in Sir CharlesOman�s The Art of War in the Middle Ages.Army organizations and table set-up arerigidly fixed, making it virtually impossibleto accurately recreate historical battles�the key test for any historical rules sys-tem. There are other difficulties as well,which limits on space forbid discussing.

Having said all this, what is the benefitof this game to the fantasy miniaturesgamer? The chief benefit is that the TAC-TICA game does a good job of introducinga beginner to the problems of ancientwarfare (which can include large-scalefantasy warfare as well), thanks to the useof diagrams and pictures within the rules.The TACTICA game, used with morewidely accepted miniatures rules or boardgames on ancient combat, would be anexcellent way to begin fantasy miniatures

Dwarf Battleset—Command (Grenadier Models)

70 NOVEMBER 1989

gaming on a large scale. The cost of theTACTICA rules is $19.95, and it may beordered through your local hobby shop.

Feathers tone�s CompleteWargaming *****

Every hobby has its special people, thosewhose names are virtually synonymouswith that hobby. In miniatures gaming,one such person is Donald Featherstone,who has for years helped people learnhow to use miniatures in gaming. Some ofyou may remember Don from the 1988GEN CON/ORIGINS game fair; he was afeatured guest, and his talks were almostalways filled to capacity. Many of thepeople who came to listen were role-players who wanted to see how wargames were played.

Don now has a hard-cover book that Imust recommend to everyone who isinterested in learning more about histori-cal miniatures gaming. Featherstone’sComplete Wargaming has 192 pages ofcolor, facts, and simple rules. He begins byexplaining why people play war gamesand gives definitions of some commongaming terms. He provides insight intohow to get the best possible use out of hisbook. Best of all, the reader is treated toan abundance of pictures, maps, and side-bars on the topic of miniatures war games.

The battles covered in this book extendfrom one of the earliest battles ever re-corded, the battle of Kadesh in 1288 B.C.,to battles of World War II. Also includedare engagements from Roman and medi-eval times, the English Civil War, theAmerican Revolution, Napoleonic wars,the American Civil War, British colonialwars, and airborne and armored battles ofmodern times. Each section contains abrief history of one battle, troop listings,and scenery tips.

The book starts out with generic minia-ture rules that are simple to use. Eachscenario adds to these rules only what isneeded to run the battle in question. Thissystem allows you to run a fast gamelasting a couple of hours (what mightnormally take you a week to play withother rules). It would be easy to photocopythese rules or to put them on index cardsto use for similar scenarios.

The only problem with this book is theweird order in which many of the battlesare inserted. Instead of placing battles inchronological order, they seem to be or-dered according to the popularity thatthese periods enjoy with gamers.

I highly recommend this book for itslarge number of rules sets and numerouscolor and black-and-white pictures. It costs$29.95, but it provides a better total valuethan most rule books and games producedtoday. It is available through your localbookstore or hobby shop and is publishedby David & Charles, Newton Abbot, Lon-don, England.

72 NOVEMBER 1989

Scotia Micro Models32 West Hemming StreetLetham, AngusScotland DD8 2PU

SIMTAC, Inc.20 Attawan DriveNiantic CT 06357

SF-11 Heavy Multi-TurretedTank ****

Since the introduction of tanks by theBritish in World War I, armor has played agrowing part in military history�and inminiatures war games. The heavy tankcovered in this review follows the conceptof �bigger is better.� The miniature is1/300th (5mm) scale and is massive even atthat size. It is 2 1/8� long, 3/8� wide, and 7/8�high. It comes in 10 pieces and requiressome assembly with either epoxy cementor cyanoacrylate glue. Eight of the piecesare turrets; the other two form the mainbody of the tank. The first main-bodypiece is a solid structure with four regulartank bodies joined together to form oneplatform base. This base contains the holesfor the turrets and has a fire-control sta-tion mounted between the forward tur-rets. The treads and suspension are clearlyvisible on this unit, as are fusion tanks anda sort of jet exhaust in the rear. The sec-ond main-body part is the massive super-structure for the tank. This fits on the firstpiece and contains rocket launchers, crewquarters, observation ports, and hatches.

This vehicle has uses in many SF gameshaving combat vehicles. For example, thistank can be used as an Ogre Mark III forSteve Jackson Games� OGRE® game, as aground tank for FASA�s CENTURION�game, or as a ground support unit forinfantry in FASA�s BATTLETECH® game.

This miniature does have some short-comings. The bogie and tread assembly inmy model has out-of-round spots on thelower wheels and a few areas where thebody did not fill properly when it wascast. Inspection of the miniatures at myshop reveals that two models out of six onhand have the same problems. In addition,mold joint lines run right through thesides of the lower tread sections, andspecial care must be taken to avoid remov-ing important details. Additionally, youmust use filler putty to make the bodyappear solid, as there are some smallmolding differences between the parts,resulting in gaps.

I highly recommend this model for itsversatility and excellent price ($4.50). Withvery little work, you can make this vehiclethe star of many games.

Ral Partha Enterprises, Inc.5938 Carthage CourtCincinnati OH 45212

ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS®miniatures# 11-003 Human Magic-Users ****# 11-007 Elf Magic-Users * * * *½

Mages are an essential part of any fan-tasy role-playing party and are importantfigures in any collection. Just as there aremany types of mages to fit players� needs,there are literally hundreds of differentmage figures, dating back to the old Mini-figs line. Into this melee of magical minia-tures, Ral Partha has launched its newmagic-user figures for the AD&D® game.Each Ral Partha adventure set containstwo figures, one male and one female,with similar equipment and clothing.

The human male in #11-003 looks morelike a shaman than a mage. He stands withhis arms raised above his head, clutching astaff in his right hand and a crystal ball inhis left. He wears an open vest with a widebelt having two daggers close to thebuckle. His legs are bare except for hisknee-high boots. The facial features arewell done, with a short, slightly roundedbeard. His face has a look of concentra-tion, and his mouth is open as if chanting.The hair is long and flowing with a head-band visible in the front. Musculature isgood on the entire figure.

The human female wears a bikini-typecostume and stands with her staff leaningon the ground, but is otherwise outfittedthe same as the male (there are somemarked physical differences, of course).

The male figure has some problems.There is a large amount of flash that goesfrom boot to boot and must be removed.The staff over his head is visibly joined tohis hair and should be separated. Themold line running up his left side has anoticeable separation in the belt, and thefront and back halves of the belt, vest, andleft arm are off center. It will take somecareful filing to set this right. The female,on the other hand, is very good and haslittle flash.

The male elf mage wears a light metal orbraced leather shoulder protector andholds a dagger in his left hand. His righthand grips an ornate staff extending awayfrom him at an angle. He has bracers andpuffed-out sleeves, with a jerkin coveringhis chest and sides. His legs are bare ex-cept for his ornately fringed boots. The elfstares straight ahead; his high cheekbonesand slightly slanted eyes stand out. Hisears are covered by long flowing hair,which is tied in back and bound with aheadband. The musculature is very good.

The female elf also wears a jerkin withshoulder pads, though without blousedsleeves. She wears a bracer on her rightwrist and clutches her staff with thathand. It appears that she also has spell-casting equipment hanging on her belt. Acape is draped on her back. This elf doeshave some problems. She has a verysquare and full face, not the thin andangular face usually associated with elves.Her long hair reaches the ground and isbound in two places; the highest of the

two ties is too small and appears to cut thehair off at that point. The worst problemis the mold-joint line on her right legwhich, because of its location, leaves littleroom to do the work needed to fix it.

Even with its defects, my personal pickwould be the elf pack, whose figures canbe used as either elves or humans. The elffigures also look like they could storemore spell components. Both human andelf packs are good, even if they needwork. Each pack costs $2.50.

Grenadier Models, Inc.P.O. Box 305Springfield PA 19064

Grenadier Models UK Ltd.19 Babage Road, DeesideClwyd, WalesUnited Kingdom CH5 2QB

9003 Dwarf Battleset ****Dwarves have a long history of having to

fight to maintain their property. It is onlynatural for them to have a standingarmy�and Grenadier has now given us aunit to spearhead this army. This set con-tains eight different fighting figures and acommand unit. The only other dwarvenset with a command unit and similar ap-pearance is the �Bugman�s Rangers� setfrom Games Workshop, consisting of 17plastic 25mm figures for $29.95.

All of these figures have full-length chainmail coats ending just above the ankles,with mailed gloves reinforced with bandsat the joints. All except the drummer carryaxes, but each figure has his weapon in adifferent position: held at the ready, cut-ting, or blocking. Each set of chain mail isslightly different, some having patches andholes: The helmets and boots are different,too, and some figures have shields andsupplies. Some faces have guarded looksand glares; others show surprise. Beardsdiffer in length, form, and texture. Variety is the watchword.

The command unit consists of a drum-mer, colors carrier, and officer. The colorscarrier�s axe is slung behind his back; he isbent as if placing the colors. The officerpoints ahead and has his axe slung overhis right shoulder. He has badges on hishelmet and cape; his pose suggests leader-ship. The drummer, who beats cadencefor the troops, beats a large strapped-ondrum. Unfortunately, the drumstick detailis poor and detracts from the miniature.

These are good but, sadly, not fantasticminiatures. Each figure had some flash orvisible mold lines. Some chain links arefilled, and the flag is molded is such a waythat it will be very hard to paint. Theseare little problems, but they make thedifference between an excellent set and amerely good one. The price for the set is$8.95, and it�s worth it.

Alliance MiniaturesP.O. Box 2347Des Moines IA 50310

OR 30 Heavy Spearorc ****Everybody�s favorite simple villain is the

orc, and there is always room for differentand well-made orcs. Enter TabletopGames, an English firm represented in theU.S. by Alliance Miniatures. The figuresubmitted was the OR 30 Heavy Spearorc,from their Black Orc Fighting Series. Thefigure stands ¾� tall in a crouched defen-sive position with a long spear. The spearpoint is lashed to the pole. The orc hasbare feet, but he wears chain mail withplate mail at the arms, wrists and legs. Theplate shows good detail, with appropriategaps between pieces. The orc also has ahelmet that protects very little of his face.A long fur coat is draped from his shoul-ders, wrapping around the back of hisfeet, and is held to the mail by two un-adorned clasps. His shield is round andplain. The hands� detailing is good, withvisible joint and muscle structure. His faceis creased in a scowl, with eyes squinted,jaw thrust out, and tusks extended slightlyover a thin slit of a mouth.

Some things are poorly done and needwork. The outside surface of the shieldhas some small pits; also, the mold doesnot quite line up, producing an unevensection on the shield�s bottom. This can befixed by running a file carefully over theshield, unless you want the shield to lookbattle damaged. You also need to work onthe inside of the shield (the one reallyweak spot on the miniature) which seemsto have a chain mail look�a continuationof the orc�s uniform. This needs to beremoved. The other points are minor. Amold ridge at the top of the helmet mustbe removed, and the spear needs a betterpoint.

I like this orc and feel he will be a goodaddition to my orc army. These figurescome one to a pack for a reasonable $1.25each. The flier also mentions Wolf Riders;with the recent Games Workshop priceincreases, these will be a welcome additionto the market. We will attempt to obtainthese and let you know.

Elf Magic-Users (Ral Partha Enterprises) Photograph courtesy of Ral Partha Enterprises

Heavy Multi-Turreted Tank (Scotia Micro Models/SIMTAC) Photograph by Mark Hammergren

DRAGON 73

GamesContinued from page 40

available from West End Games, RD 3, Box2345, Honesdale PA 18431.

LIGHTSABER DUELLING PACK game, byAlfred Leonardi. West End Games, $12.00.Ever play with any of the LOST WORLDgame books? If you have, you�ll knowwhat these books are all about. In thispack are two booklets and two charactercards. One book contains illustrations ofDarth Vader wielding a lightsaber, usingthe Force to fling objects, being sliced inthe leg by another lightsaber, and so on.The other book shows Luke Skywalker insimilar but not entirely identical situations.Using the two books, two players battle tosee who wins the duel. Each turn, maneu-vers and attacks are chosen from thecharacter cards. The players cross-reference the numbers to see the results.The duel continues until one character hasrun out of Force Points. Once the systemhas been grasped, play proceeds rapidlyand makes a large number of optionsavailable. Games are usually over withinminutes, so we�re looking at a quick diver-sion rather than a full evening�s gaming.Even so, this game is a lot of fun. It�s avail-

able from West End Games, RD 3, Box2345, Honesdale PA 18431.

COMMAND DECISION game, by FrankChadwick. GDW, $12.00. Forget yourfantasy and science-fiction settings, andtaste the thrill of World War II combat inthe COMMAND DECISION game. Usingslick rules and playable in real time (oneturn equals 15 minutes), this is the best setof miniatures rules I�ve ever played.Clearly presented and capable of handlingcomplicated situations with a minimum offuss, it leaves other miniatures rules farbehind by giving the excitement of com-mand without the tedious administrationof the quartermaster.

The game even comes with its owncampaign scenario, �Stolberg Corridor,�which pits advancing American forcesagainst entrenched German resistance.Although possessing superior numbers atfirst, the Americans are working against atime limit as German reinforcements headtoward the front.

Some friends and I have been playingthis scenario on the average of every twoweeks for over a year now, and it hasremained tense and exciting throughout.Even at this late stage in the campaign, it�sstill touch and go whether the Americansare going to succeed. It�s a great value and

nicely presented. If you�re worried aboutcollecting and painting miniatures, use 1/300th scale figures; they�re cheap as wellas easy and quick to paint.

Bastogne, by Frank Chadwick. GDW,$8.00. This campaign supplement for theCOMMAND DECISION game introduces afew new rules and some background onthe German and American forces active inthe Ardennes in the winter of 1944. This isa big campaign and one that I look for-ward to playing.

74 NOVEMBER 1989

DRAGON 75

Illustration by Bill Willingham

At Close Quarters�Reality rules� for combat in the TOP SECRET/S.I.� game

by Jeffrey A. Sullivan and Bruce W. Onder

While the combat rules in the TOPSECRET/S.I.� game are more than ade-quate for most situations, some Adminis-trators and players might like a little morerealism in their encounters. Presentedhere for your consideration are a handfulof �reality rules� you can incorporate intoyour campaign.

Gun-drawing speedsNormally, a gun may be drawn during a

turn in which no other action is taken bythat character. However, the charactermay also make a combined action ofDraw/Attack, which results in the attackbeing made at ½ skill level. It stands toreason that, all other things being equal, agun holstered at the hip (a la the Old West)will be drawn and fired more quickly thanone holstered at the ankle or shoulder.

The Initiative Modifiers table herein issuggested to account for drawing speedsassociated with various holster positions.�Location� indicates the location of theholster, and �Penalty� refers to the penaltyapplied to the initiative roll for the roundin which the Draw/Attack action occurs.For unusual gun placements, extrapolatefrom the table. If you use this table, youshould also use the �Modifying InitiativeRolls� reality rule in the boxed set�s Play-er�s Guide, pages 63-64. In addition, agentsshould exercise forethought in stowingweapons; while the front waistband is afast-draw location, it is also very visible.The Administrator should take exception(and rightly so) if everyone keeps theirweapons in plain sight.

78 NOVEMBER 1989

Example A: Nick Li (Orion) bumps intothe infamous Tom Dobson (Web) during aroutine infiltration mission. Both agents gofor their guns in Draw/Attack actions.Nick has his gun holstered at the shoulder( - 1). Tom, on the other hand, is we�llknown for keeping a .45 with dum-dumslugs in his rear waistband ( - 2). Nick rollsa 6, adds 4 (his DEX bonus), then subtracts1 (the initiative modifier) to get 9. Tom alsorolls 6, adds 4 (he�s just as quick as Nick!),but subtracts 2 from his initiative due tohis gun location. He gets an 8, so Nickshoots first. Getting the jump on Tom mayjust have saved Nick�s life! Tom, should hesurvive this encounter, might rethink hisgun placement.

Ranged weaponsThose of us whose characters are highly

skilled in the use of ranged weapons, butwhose characters� hand-to-hand combatskill checks are embarassingly low, havewoefully regretted the ruling that statesno ranged weapons can be used in closecombat. The following is a reality rule thatallows such actions. Only one-handedranged weapons can be thus used, andonly until they need to be reloaded. Aweapon cannot be reloaded while a char-acter is engaged in close combat. Note thatthe use of guns and other ranged weaponsin close combat is a dangerous proposi-tion. In hand-to-hand combat, your oppo-nent can make a grab for yourpossessions. If the enemy you�ve beentrying to plug succeeds in wrestling yourgun from you, you�ve got problems!

Reality Rule 1: A character may useany one-handed ranged weapon (pistol,dart gun, etc.) while engaged in closecombat with other characters. Due to theharried nature of close combat, all attacksmade with the weapon at close quartersare at ¼ skill level (plus the point-blankbonus of +30). It is assumed that theopponent is either actively seeking tocontrol or avoid the firer�s gun arm. Inaddition, on a Bad Break, the ranged-weapon user has accidentally shot himself(the opponent jammed the gun into thefirer�s stomach at the last possible mo-ment, for example). On a roll of 96-98, thewound is superficial, causing only onepoint of wound damage to a randomlyrolled body area. On a 99, however, anormal damage roll is taken.

In this situation, agents cannot bump orcall shots. Prepared and braced shot bo-nuses do not apply, and scopes cannot beused. This is purely a �take it as it comes�technique. When the gun is empty, thefirer must choose a close-combat option(no reloading allowed).

Example B: Randall Scott (Orion, Pistol 2,total skill of 76) encounters martial artistXiao Mi (Web). Mi rushes forward as Ran-dall draws his gun. In the first turn, Ran-dall gets his only shot (Player's Guide, page76). Normally, on the next turn, Mi wouldforce him into close combat, but sinceRandall has a measly 25 in Basic Melee, hedecides to stick to his gun. In turn two,Randall needs a 49 to hit Mi [(76/4) + 30 =49] at point-blank range. But Randall rollsa 96�a light wound to himself! He rolls a 3

for wound location, and takes one woundto his abdomen (Mi wrestled his gun handinto a bad position). In turn three he rollsa 35, a hit to Mi’s left arm. Normally, Ran-dall could bump this hit two areas, butsince he’s in close combat, he must takewhat he gets.

The combat continues until one of thecombatants is neutralized or the gun isemptied. In the latter case, Randall mustthen select a close-combat technique.

Multiple actionsThe game system allows for multiple

actions to be chosen in a single turn ofcombat (e.g., Move/Attack). It is occasion-ally very important to know exactly whenin a turn each of the two actions occurs.

Example C: John Calhoun (Orion) isrunning for his life from the gun-totingassassin Mel “Whitey” Whiteford (Web).John’s movement allows him to run 50’ ina turn, and he is 25’ from a cliff fromwhich he plans to jump. Mel is hot on histrail, 25’ away. Mel chooses Move/Attack,and John chooses Move. Mel wins initia-tive. According to the standard rules, hewould close with John and shoot beforeJohn could move. What can be done?

Reality Rule 2: In a situation in whicha character performs more than oneaction in a turn, the character must listthe specific order in which he will per-form the actions (e.g., Move/Attack,Attack/Move, etc.). The first action occursat the point indicated by the initiative roll,including the optional modifiers for suchthings as DEX and injuries. Each subse-quent action occurs at a point equallyspaced between the rolled initiative pointand 0 (the end of the turn).

Example D: Mel (as above) rolls 8 for hisinitiative, and John rolls a 5. Mel makes hisfirst action (Movement) at 8, and his sec-ond at 4 (8/2 = 4, 8 - 4 = 4). Since Johnmoves at 5, he has a chance to escape. ItMel had rolled a 12. initiative or higher,both of his actions would have occurredbefore John’s, and the point would havebeen moot (12/2 = 6).

Expanded luck-point useIn the standard TOP SECRET/S.I. rules,

Luck Points can only be used to keep acharacter from being hilled or disabled.The following reality rule allows for anexpanded role of luck points in a cam-paign. [ This idea was discussed during thecreation of the TOP SECRET/S.I. game butwas discarded because of the potential forabuse by players. Administrators who usethis concept should be aware of this po-tential problem.]

Reality Rule 3: In addition to theirnormal uses, Luck Points may be used toensure that a character’s actions succeed.The player must state before an action rollis made if a Luck Point will be used to aidthe success of that action. The result ofusing a Luck Point is that the action willfail only on a roll of 99. Such a failure isnot a Bad Break; the action only failed.

Only one action may be so modified.Thus, a character may ensure that a lock

is picked, a message is decoded, a jump issuccessful, a prisoner is successfully inter-rogated, etc. In combat, the player mayensure only that his character’s attack hits.However, using other Luck Points after theattack hits allows the player to determinethe amount of damage done (within nor-mal limits) and where the attack hit (oneLuck Point each). Critical hits cannot beinflicted on an opponent in this manner.This rule may not be used to explicitly killa PC or NPC (although the result of theaction might be the death of said person).

Example E: Roy “Ug” Lee (Orion) runsinto the nefarious Doctor Fremdliebe(Web) in Holland. The evil doctor usuallycarries a customized rifle cane; indeed,Roy notices, the doctor swings his cane upas if he’s about to fire. Roy slips his own.22 Beretta autoload from his rear waist-band and grimaces as the doctor fires; thebullet whizzes past Roy’s ear.

“I’d better use a Luck Point to kill him,”Bill says. He knows that Fremdliebe isdangerous, and he doesn’t need or want adrawn-out battle.

“Sorry, it doesn’t work that way,” theAdministrator tells Bill, “but you can use a

Luck Point to hit him and another to domaximum damage.”

Bill elects to shoot without using a LuckPoint in hopes of hitting the doctor, but ithe hits he plans to use Luck Points toguarantee hit location and maximum dam-age. Roy does hit—and six points of dam-age are done to the doctor’s chest.

The Administrator looks at his records.The doctor has seven damage boxes. “Well,you hit him pretty good, but he’s still up.In fact, it looks like he’s getting ready toshoot again.”

Bill groans. Sometimes even the best ofluck is not enough.

Initiative Modifiers for Draw/Attack Actions

Location PenaltyAnkle - 3Back (rifle only) - 4Coat pocket - 1Hip 0Pants pocket - 2Shoulder - 1Waistband (front) 0Waistband (rear) - 2

Illustration by Bill WillinghamD R A G O N 7 9

The GamersHave Chosen!

The winners of the 1989 Gamers� Choice Awards

The Gamers� Choice Awards for 1989were presented at the 1989 GEN CON®game fair in Milwaukee, Wis., on August11 at the MECCA arena. The presenters

Best Satirical Role Playing Game:MACHO WOMEN WITH GUNS game*(Blacksburg Tactical Research Center)

were Lorraine Williams and Jean Rabe.Votes were collected from gamers at con-ventions and through POLYHEDRON�Newszine, and balloting was administeredby the RPGA� Network.

Best Fantasy Game: GURPS game, BasicSet, 3rd Edition* (Steve Jackson Games).This game also won the 1988 ORIGINSAward for Best Role-Playing Rules.

Some of the winners have won otherawards as well. See �The Envelope,Please!� in DRAGON® issue #149 for thewinners of the 1988 ORIGINS� Awards.

Best Science-Fiction Role-PlayingGame: CYBERPUNK game* (R. Talsor-ian Games)

Best Family Game: MERTWIG�S MAZE�gamefolio (TSR, Inc.)

Best Other Category Role-PlayingGame: BULLWINKLE AND ROCKY�game (TSR, Inc.)

Best Role-Playing Adventure: CastleGreyhawk (TSR, Inc.)

Best Role-Playing Accessory (tie):Lords of Darkness (TSR, Inc.), andKara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (TSR,Inc.)

Best Historical Strategy Game: THEHUNT FOR RED OCTOBER� game (TSR,Inc.). This game also won the 1988ORIGINS Award for Best BoardgameCovering the Period 1947 to Modern Day.

Best Science-Fiction Strategy Game(tie): BUCK ROGERS�: Battle for the25th Century game (TSR, Inc.), andMERCHANTS OF VENUS game* (TheAvalon Hill Game Company)

Best Miniature Line: AD&D® MetalMiniatures (Ral Partha Enterprises).This line also won the 1988 ORIGINSAward for Best Fantasy or Science-Fiction Figure Series.

Best Computer Game: Pool of Radiance(Strategic Simulations, Inc.). This gamealso won the 1988 ORIGINS Award forBest Fantasy or Science-Fiction Com-puter Game, and it won the BeastieAward for the most popular computergame of 1989 (see �The Beastie KnowsBest� in this issue).

Best Play-By-Mail Game: HEROICFANTASY (Flying Buffalo, Inc.)

Best Professional Gaming Magazine:POLYHEDRON Newszine (TSR, Inc.)

Best RPGA Network Tournament:Scrap Of Paper, by Skip Williams andJean Rabe

ORIGINS is a trademark owned by the Game Manufacturer Association.

BULLWINKLE AND ROCKY™ & © 1988 P.A.T.WARD. All Rights Reserved.

THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER™ & © 1988United States Naval Institute. All RightsReserved.

BUCK ROGERS is a trademark used underlicense from The Dille Family Trust.©1989 The Dille Family Trust. All RightsReserved.

* indicates a product produced by a companyother than TSR, Inc. Most product names aretrademarks owned or licensed by the compan-ies producing those products. The use of aname of any product without mention of itstrademark status should not be construed as achallenge to such status.

DRAGON 85

EditorialContinued from page 5

woman; his lawyer claimed that the influ-ence of the TV series Kojak was responsi-ble. The claim was rejected, and thedefendant was found guilty.

You could create a list with any numberof similar cases, and you could add to itthe few incidents that are claimed to havebeen spawned by role-playing games. Forexample, a 19-year-old student inAsheville, Ala., apparently planned aconvenience-store robbery with twofriends while playing an espionage RPG. Astore clerk was shot to death during theactual hold-up in May 1985. The murdererwas sentenced to prison for life withoutparole. Do you believe that the game couldbe at fault? Do you believe that the stu-dent would have been fine if he�d never.seen the game?

We�re only scratching the surface of theissue here, of course. Several claims havebeen made that RPGs cause suicidal behav-ior, but these claims tend to fall apartunder close examination as the evidence isso fragmentary and loose. You could makea great case that good grades are harmful,if you use the same set of standards thatanti-RPG people often use in selecting theirown evidence. That McKee student wasnoted in the newspaper to be a �straight-Astudent� (Milwaukee Journal, September19, 1989; page 5A). The student who shotthe store clerk was a �high school honorstudent� (Milwaukee Journal, no dateavailable). At a student-relations meeting Iattended in high school, the story was toldof a student who shot himself to death ona baseball diamond; in his hand heclutched a letter of acceptance from auniversity and a copy of his high-schooltranscript (another all-A student).

You could also make an interesting casethat religious beliefs cause antisocial andcriminal behavior, but I�ve already donethat in a previous editorial, in DRAGON®issue #134. (Besides, we have Jim Bakker,who provides overkill on the issue.)

I think good grades and religious feelingare fine things. But if you play with thestatistics and are a little careless about theway in which you select and edit yourdata, you can �prove� good grades andreligion (and RPGs) are as bad as anythingelse. This kind of �evidence� selection ishow all the hoopla over the BermudaTriangle got underway a few years ago.Most of the ships that were claimed tohave been mysteriously lost there actuallyvanished during major storms at sea�allmention of which was dropped in lateraccounts of the same incidents.

The vast majority of people reading thiseditorial are, I assume, gamers who are asangry as I am about the way in whichRPGs are treated by a few well-meaningbut uninformed people in education, socialservices, and the media. Games are notalone in this abuse, as movies and records

also draw fire at times for their perceivedeffects on those who enjoy them. Variousschool boards and libraries across Americahave gained a certain infamy for banningbooks like The Wizard of Oz, HuckleberryFinn, or Anne Franks Diary of a YoungGirl for being bad influences on students.I�m surprised that more students don�tsupport such book bannings, as it wouldcertainly reduce the amount of homeworkthat would be assigned.

There will always be incidents like thosedescribed in this article. If you eliminatedevery possible game, book, record, ormovie that was connected with a badincident, none would be left. The presenceof these recreations is not the issue. Find-ing ways to identify and help those peoplewith serious mental and emotional prob-lems is the real issue.

How should you react to accusationsthat RPGs are bad for you? In my opinion,here are the two best things you can do:

1. Examine the evidence with a criticaland discriminating eye. Take time to thinkabout what you read or hear on the news.Does the reporting sound reasonable, ordoes it leave you wondering if a lot ofhype and paranoia are being used? Do youactually believe the rationales given for.why certain events took place? Can youfind more information on the topic that

will let you make an informed decision

about the matter? Don�t let others do yourthinking for you.

2. Be reasonable. If you are a teenagerand live with your parents, you will haveto accept their decisions (and yourschool�s) on whether or not they will letyou play RPGs. But if you are given achance to discuss the issue, make sure youare informed�and be on your best behav-ior when you discuss it. People are alwaysmore impressed when they are confrontedwith someone who shows all the signs ofbeing mature and responsible as well asbeing well informed.

If you are looking for material in sup-port of gaming, you might want to readtwo other articles on this topic: TracyHickman�s �The Ethics of Fantasy,� fromspecial edition #1 of GPI�s GATEWAYS�Magazine; and Frank Mentzer�s �SqueakyWheels,� from POLYHEDRON� Newszine#26. Both are worth the trouble to find.

As for me, if I really believed that RPGswere harmful, I would not be writing thiseditorial. I will do what I can to see thatthey stick around for a long time to come.

Use your head. And enjoy life.

86 NOVEMBER 1989

BooksContinued from page 48blank verse, but this time the emphasis ison a more action-oriented chase acrosssparse landscapes, in search of a movingcity and the dark powers trapped withinits walls. McCarty�s quirky writing is asintriguing as ever, and his characters areat their best here.

New series entries are as plentiful asgrapes in a winery. The Planet Builderssequence (Ivy Books; $2.95 each) is up to 10 books as I write (and may conclude atthat point), maintaining its above-averagequality throughout. To the extent thatthese novels can lure readers of the HardyBoys and Sweet Valley High (arrgh!) intothe SF/fantasy audience, they�re potentiallyof enormous importance�and they�re notbad reading besides. A short step upwardis Witch of Rhostshyl (Ace, $3.50), J. F.Rivkin�s third tale of mercenary swords-woman Corson and sorceress-noble Nycta-sia. Rivkin blends light adventure with atouch of more thoughtful conflict in ap-pealing fashion. And another step findsPrince of the Blood (Foundation, $18.95),in which Raymond Feist returns to theworld of Midkemia for a convoluted butcuriously unambitious tale of intrigue anddanger. Feist�s real distinctiveness hasalways been in his treatment of magic, butthere�s little spellcraft in this new novel,though what there is hints at a better bookto come.

DRAGON 87

DRAGON 89

Sonof the

UltimateAddenda

Just how muchLimbo can a superhero

swallow, anyway?

by David Edward Martin

Like the two previous �Ultimate Ad-denda� articles in this magazine (in issues#122 and #134), this article deals withreaders� questions about MA3 The Ulti-mate Powers Book, a compendium ofsuperpowers for the MARVEL SUPERHEROES� Advanced Set. First, however, Imust apologize to those readers who havepersonally written me and even includedSASEs for the replies. I am horrible atanswering letters�or rather, I am great atanswering letters, but I tend to lose eitherthe address or SASE of the person I amreplying to, or I just forget to mail myresponse.

What happens when a being withMG3/Internal Limbo uses that powerto capture another character whoalso has Internal Limbo?

I love topology: It�s so twisted. The an-swer to this depends on who used thepower first. If only the attacker (call him�A-Man�) used this power, the victim (let�scall him �V-Man�) is sucked in just like any

DRAGON 91

other target. V-Man�s own Internal Limbo(�Limbo-V�) remains unaffected, save thatits entry point is now located within thefirst person�s Limbo (�Limbo-A�).

If V-Man�s power was sufficiently strong,he could capture everything within Limbo-A. A-Man would then have a Limbo-Aempty of everything except for V-Man.Once V-Man has captured everythingwithin Limbo-A, a Red FEAT would allowhim to completely swallow even the emptyspace of Limbo-A. It would appear to A-Man that Limbo-A had completely van-ished, though the still-captive V-Man wouldbe present. The difficulty of the FEAT isdetermined by the rank of A-Man�s Inter-nal Limbo power. A final Red FEAT wouldenable V-Man to topologically reverse hissituation: Limbo-V would reach out andswallow A-Man, while simultaneouslyspitting V-Man back into the real world.

If V-Man has TS/Dimension Travel or devel-oped a Power Stunt whereby he can travelthrough his own Limbo and exit elsewhere,he can skip the above steps and use thispower to escape from Limbo-A. However,his power rank must be equal or higherthan the rank of the imprisoning power.

If both Internal Limbo powers wereused, simultaneously, an extraordinarilytwisted convolution occurs. The best ex-ample I can think of would be the DoctorWho episode in which the Master�s TAR-DIS materialized inside the Doctor�s TAR-DIS. Somehow the two extradimensionalfields warped around each other, with theresult that each TARDIS had the otherwithin itself. The Doctor�s TARDIS was inthe Master�s control room, while the Mas-ter�s TARDIS was in the Doctor�s controlroom. The trap was escaped only whenboth TARDISes simultaneously warpedaway from each other. In our example,both A-Man and V-Man would have tosimultaneously use their powers to ejecteach other and free themselves.

How far can a being with T9/Hyper-leaping go if he also has S25/Growth (Atomic Gain), mentioned in�The Ultimate Addenda� in DRAGONissue # 122?

The initial impression one has is that thedistance that being jumps will increase inlength. However, both the Atomic Gainand Atomic Growth powers increase thecharacter�s weight geometrically. Thisdecreases the distance an enlarged charac-ter can leap. In the case of a characterwho has only his normal strength to relyon, such leaps appear to decrease inlength in inverse proportion to the degreethat the character grows. For example, abeing enlarged fourfold could make leapsthat (to him) are only a quarter of thedistance he could leap at normal size. Inshort, if the character could leap 6� atnormal size, and then enlarges himself tofour times his normal height, he can stillonly leap 6�. When the character

92 NOVEMBER 1989

increases in size until he cannot leap far-ther than he can step, the character can-not leap at all and must walk.

When travel powers like Hyper-leapingare included, these proportionate de-creases in leap length are altered, at leastas far as the hero�s perception of them isconcerned. The rank of the Hyper-leapingincreases in the same manner as theStrength rank�that is, the rank gains a+ 1CS bonus for every 2CS of Growthrank above Feeble. For example, a personwith Typical Hyper-leaping and IncredibleGrowth can leap 10� at normal size, 20� atExcellent-increased size, and 30� atIncredible-increased size.

With Atomic Dispersal, the character�sleaps initially increase in inverse propor-tion to the character�s size. However, sincethe character�s density is decreasing, theleaps become harder to control. Windcurrents can significantly alter the lengthof such leaps and can even carry away alow-density hero.

How far can a being with Hyper-leaping go if he also has S30/Shrinking (Atomic Shrinking), takenfrom issue #122?

The following Hypothetical Physicslecture also applies to characters with theAtomic Loss form of Shrinking. Logically,the length of the leaps should decrease inproportion to the size of the miniaturizedbeing. However, since the character�sweight decreases with miniaturization,such leaps lengthen at the same time!Rather than burden players and Judgeswith a complex series of equations (whichI wouldn�t understand either), let�s just saythat from the character�s point of view,the leaps increase in inverse proportion tothe degree of miniaturization (e.g., shrink-ing to 50% of a character�s original sizegives leaps of 200% their original length),but this increase is negated because the

leaper is getting smaller, too. The endresult is that, despite the degree of minia-turization, the hero�s leaps are still thesame length when measured in the unmin-iaturized �real world.� For example, thehalf-inch Ant-Man and the normal-sizeScott Lang can both make leaps of 6� inlength, although such leaps would appearto Ant-Man to be 864� in length. Of course,in the light-weight miniaturized state, aircurrents will alter such leaps (the Judgemust rule on these effects in a game).

When the effects of Hyper-leaping areconsidered, the perceived distances in-crease even more, but the actual distancecovered remains the same. For example,consider the hypothetical villain Grasshop-per, who has Ant-Man�s shrinking poweras well as his own Excellent Hyper-leaping.At normal size, he can leap 30�, but whenhe is miniaturized to half an inch, thoseleaps appear to him to be 4,320� long butare still only 30� long.

Once the threshold to the Marvel Mi-croverse is crossed, all leaping movementassumes the same proportionate lengths inrelation to the moving character as suchleaps possessed in the normal-size uni-verse. Further miniaturization then startsthe whole cycle over again.

The distance leaped by a character withthe Atomic Collapse form of Shrinkingseems to shrink in proportion to the char-acter�s overall height, because his weightremains the same regardless of height.

What happens when a being hasP5/Hyper-speed but not a travelpower?

Hyperspeed increases the character�sreaction time and movement rate. In thecase in question, the hyper-speedster has aproportionate increase in his walking andrunning speeds, but not in the distances hecan cover. Limits on normal fatigue stillapply. For example, a relatively Typicalperson who happens to have Good Hyper-speed could walk at 40 MPH or sprint shortdistances at a speed up to 150 MPH, but hewould tire out after covering the samedistances that he could cover at normalspeed. Of course, you might develop aPower Stunt that enables a character torest at Hyper-speed. (I know that soundsoxymoronic, but the concept works.)

What happens when you haveboth Hyper-speed and T10/Hyper-running at the same rank?

I�ll amend what I wrote in the Hyper-speed entry in The Ultimate Powers Book,page 78. There I wrote that the Hyper-speed rank can be substituted for a lower-ranked travel power�s speed. Let�s add twooptions designed to make the runner moreequal to his aerial counterparts.

In option #1, the ranks of the two afor-mentioned powers combine to produce ahigher speed. For example, IncredibleHyper-speed and Remarkable Hyper-running combine to enable the hero to runat Monstrous speed (135 MPH).

In option #2, the presence of Hyper-

speed pushes the travel power�s speed anddistance covered from the land-speedcolumn to the air-speed column on theMovement Table (The Ultimate PowersBook, inside back cover). Thus, the pres-ence of Hyper-speed of any rank increasesa Remarkable Hyper-runner�s speed from90 MPH (the land-speed column) to 225MPH (the air-speed column). If a secondHyper-speed power is generated duringthe character�s creation, this can be usedto push the speed over to the space/extradimensional-speed column on themovement table. In the example above,our Hyper-runner�s speed would furtherincrease to 4,000 MPH.

What would be the FASERIP statis-tics of a character with EE3/EnergyDoppelganger, both with and with-out his own mind? What happens ifyou give him the F1/Berserkerpower?

The answer to this depends on the na-ture of the doppelganger and what powersare assigned to it. The doppelganger�sFighting and Agility ranks are the same asthose of the character, while its Strengthand Endurance are equal to the EnergyDoppleganger power�s rank. However, ifthe doppelganger lacks the means to solid-ify itself, its Strength rank is irrelevant.

If the doppleganger lacks a mind of itsown and operates under the hero�s direct

control, the RIP statistics are normallythose of the hero. If control is broken, thedoppelganger usually dissipates instantly.Independently minded doppelgangersrequire the player to generate new RIPranks for them.

In either case, the player must decidewhether the RIP statistics are merelyaverages for each doppelganger generatedor represent point pools that are evenlydivided among all doppelgangers simulta-neously operating. This should be decidedwhen the character is created.

Once that is settled, you can answer theBerserker question yourself given thespecifics of your situation. In the case of adirectly controlled doppelganger, theBerserker effect modifies only the dopple-ganger�s FASERIP scores (if the Berserkerpower is assigned to the doppelganger) orthe FASERIP scores of both the hero anddoppelganger (if the Berserker power isassigned to the hero).

Do you have any more questions aboutThe Ultimate Addenda and its superpow-ers? Send your comments, questions, andsuggestions to me, care of DRAGON®Magazine. I can�t guarantee I�ll answerthem right away, but I will read them.

Marvel Super Heroes and Marvel Microverse aretrademarks of Marvel Entertainment Group, Inc.Copyright ©1989 Marvel Entertainment Group Inc.All Rights Reserved.

Convention Calendar Policies

This column is a service to our readersworldwide. Anyone may place a free listingfor a game convention here, but the follow-ing guidelines must be observed.

In order to ensure that all conventionlistings contain accurate and timely infor-mation, all material should be either typeddouble-spaced or printed legibly on stand-ard manuscript paper. The contents ofeach listing must be short, succinct, andunder 150 words long.

The information given in the listing mustinclude the following, in this order:

1. Convention title and dates held;2. Site and location;3. Guests of honor (if applicable);4. Special events offered;5. Registration fees or attendance re-

quirements; and,6. Address(es) and telephone number(s)

where additional information and confirma-tion can be obtained.

Convention flyers, newsletters, and othermass-mailed announcements will not beconsidered for use in this column; weprefer to see a cover letter with the an-nouncement as well. No call-in listings areaccepted. Unless stated otherwise, alldollar values given for U.S. and Canadianconventions are in U.S. currency.

WARNING: We are not responsible forincorrect information sent to us by conven-tion staff members. Please check yourconvention listing carefully! Our widecirculation ensures that over a quarter of amillion readers worldwide see each issue.Accurate information is your responsibility.

Copy deadlines are the last Monday ofeach month, two months prior to the on-sale date of an issue. Thus, the copy dead-line for the December issue is the lastMonday of October. Announcements forNorth American and Pacific conventionsmust be mailed to: Convention Calendar,DRAGON® Magazine, P.O. Box 111, LakeGeneva WI 53147, U.S.A. Announcementsfor Europe must be posted an additionalmonth before the deadline to: ConventionCalendar, DRAGON® Magazine, TSRLimited, 120 Church End, Cherry Hinton,Cambridge CB1 3LB, United Kingdom.

If a convention listing must be changedbecause the convention has been can-celled, the dates have changed, or incor-rect information has been printed, pleasecontact us immediately. Most questions orchanges should be directed to the maga-zine editors at TSR, Inc., (414) 248-3625(U.S.A.). Questions or changes concerningEuropean conventions should be directedto TSR Limited, (0223) 212517 (U.K.).

❖ indicates an Australian convention.❉ indicates a Canadian convention.❁ indicates a European convention.

* indicates a product produced by a company other than TSRInc. Most product names are trademarks owned by thecompanies publishing those products. The use of the name ofany product without mention of its trademark status should notbe construed as a challenge to such status.

CONTRARY, November 10-11CONTRARY '89 will be held at the Parwick

Center in Chicopee, Mass. The convention willfeature military/strategy games, role-playinggames (including at least two RPGA™ Networkevents), and miniatures events. Preregistrationis $10 for both days or $8 for one day. Write to:CONTRARY '89, 933 Belmont Ave., SpringfieldMA 01108; or call Mark at: (413) 731-7237.

AU GAMERS CONVENTIONNovember 10-12

The Au Gamers are proud to hold the largestfantasy role-playing convention in New Jersey atthe Sheraton Tara Hotel, 199 Smith Rd., Parsip-pany NJ. Events will include RPGA™ Networktournaments, a charity game, a costume contest,a dealers’ area, and a miniatures painting con-test. Prizes will be awarded for best players andbest gamemasters. For reservations, call: (201)515-2000, ext. 5800. Mention the convention toreceive special room rates. Registration fees are$8 per day and $20 for the weekend. Registra-tion at the door will be $10 per day. Write to:Steven M. Scheel, Oakwood Village, Bldg #26,Apt #9, Flanders NJ 07836, or call: (201) 927-8097; or John Moir, 361 Vandervier Ave., Som-merville NJ 08876; or call: (201) 725-1257.

SCI CON II, November 10-12This science-fiction and gaming convention

will be held at the Holiday Inn Executive Centerin Virginia Beach, Va. Artist guests of honor areRon Lindahn and Val Lakey-Lindahn. Specialguest is Frank Kelly Freas. Events will includepanels, readings, video presentations, a costumecontest, an art show, gaming, and more. Mem-berships are $20 at the door. Huckster tables(which include one membership) are $100. Sendan SASE to: SCI CON 11, Dept. DR, P.O. Box9434, Hampton VA 23670.

ARMISTICE CON '89, November 11-12This gaming event will be held at the Horizon

Activities Center in North Olmsted, Ohio. Specialevents will include TRAVELLER*, CAR WARS*,BATTLETECH*, DIPLOMACY*, microarmor, andAD&D® game events, as well as Napoleonicminiatures, board and role-playing games, aminiatures exhibit, a miniatures-painting con-test, and 24-hour gaming. Registration fees are$12. One-day passes will be available for $7.Write to: ARMISTICE CON '89, c/o HorizonActivities Center, 30395 Lorain Road, NorthOlmsted OH 44070; or call Dave Smith or FranHaas at: (216) 779-6536 during business hours.

BAMACON 3.5, November 11-12This convention will be held at the Ferguson

Center at University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa,Ala. This all-gaming convention will have cashprizes. Absolutely no pets will be allowed. Writeto: Dave, P.O. Box 6542, Tuscaloosa AL 35476; orcall: (205) 758-4577.

GAMESCON (UK) '89, November 11 ❁This gaming convention will be held at the

Laindon Community Centre, Basildon, Essex.Dungeon Masters and players are required forAD&D® competitions. Contact Chris Baylis at tel:0268-419933, or write to: 67 Mynchens, LeeChapel North, Basildon, Essex SS115 5EG,UNITED KINGDOM.

PENTACON, November 11The Northeast Indiana Gaming Association

will be hosting the fifth annual PENTACONgaming convention in the Grand Wayne Conven-tion Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. Games willinclude an RPGA™ Network AD&D® tourna-ment, and BATTLETECH*, CAR WARS*, CHAM-PIONS*, CIVILIZATION*, DARKUS THEL*,MORROW PROJECT*, and SPACE: 1889* games.Other features are a painting contest and deal-ers’ area. Send an SASE to: N.I.G.A., P.O. Box11146, Fort Wayne IN 46856.

ROCK-CON XVI, November 11-12Over 1,000 people are expected to attend this

year’s convention, to be held at the RockfordLutheran High School, 3411 N. Alpine Rd.,Rockford, Ill. Hours are Saturday, 10:00 A.M. tomidnight; Sunday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. A newevent this year will be the painting competition,with numerous prizes. We expect over 15 majordealers. Admission is still only $5 for the entireweekend, with no additional fee for gamingevents. Send an SASE to: ROCK-CON XVI, 14225Hansberry Rd., Rockton IL 61072.

UMF-CON, November 11-12This role-playing and war-games convention

will be held at the Student Center of the Univer-sity of Maine in Farmington, Maine. Events willinclude TOP SECRET/S.I.™ and AD&D® games,DIPLOMACY* competitions, miniatures, boardgames, and contests. Also planned is anothermurder mystery. Admission is $5 per day and$2 per game. Send an SASE to: Table GamingClub, c/o Student Life Office, Student Center, 5South Street, Farmington ME 04938.

NOVAG-V, November 17-19The Northern Virginia Adventure Gamers will

host their fifth annual convention at the Carra-doc Hall Inn in Leesburg, Va. All types of adven-ture games are included, from historical boardand miniatures games to science-fiction andfantasy role-playing games. Vendors are wel-come. Write to: Northern Virginia AdventureGamers, c/o Wargamers Hobby Shop, 101 E.Holly Ave., Suite 16, Sterling VA 22170; or call:(703) 450-6738.

UCON '89, November 17-19This role-playing and strategy gaming conven-

tion will take place in the Michigan Union at theUniversity of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Eventswill include: live role-playing; dealers’ tables; amovie room; two AD&D® tournaments; andover 80 events including CIVILIZATION*, STARFLEET BATTLES*, DIPLOMACY*, THIRDREICH*, and historical miniatures games. Game-masters receive free registration if preregis-tered. Write to: The Michigan Wargaming Club,P.O. Box 4491, Ann Arbor MI 48106.

UK Masters 1989 AD&D® TournamentNovember 11-12 ❁

This tournament will be held at the WAR '89Convention at the Rivermead Leisure Center,Richfield Ave., Reading. Entry fee is £3.50 (£2.50for players with UK ranking points). Makecheques payable and mail to: Mr. C. Froud, 88Southview Ave., Reading, Berkshire, ENGLAND.Space is limited, so register early.

DRAGON 95

DALLAS FANTASY FAIR, November 24-26Featuring over 140 dealers� tables, more than

60 guests, and over 2,000 attendees, this fantasyevent will be held at the Marriott Park Central,7750 I-635 at Coit Road in Dallas, Tex. Attrac-tions will include two 24-hour video rooms,Japanimation, 24-hour gaming, four-track pro-gramming, a masquerade, an open con suite, anart show and auction, a charity auction, artists�and writers� workshops, autograph sessions,filksinging, dancing, an amateur-film festival, atalent show, and more. Admission is $15 for allthree days in advance, or $20 at the door.Single-day admissions may be purchased at thedoor; prices are $8 Friday, $10 Saturday, and $8Sunday. Write to: Bulldog Productions, P.O. Box820488, Dallas TX 75382; or call: (214) 349-3367.

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MACQUARIECON �89, December 8-10 ❖The Macquarie University Role-Playing Society

will host Australia�s largest role-playing conven-tion at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.Events will include AD&D®, PARANOIA*, CALLOF CTHULHU*, JAMES BOND*, TRAVELLER*,STAR WARS*, M.E.R.P.*, WARHAMMER*,SPACE: 1889*, JUDGE DREDD*, and boardgames and freeforms. Registration is $30 (Aus-tralian) for the weekend or $3 (Australian) persession with a $7 registration fee. Write to:M.U.R.P.S., P.O. Box 1577, Macquarie Centre,North Ryde NSW 2113, AUSTRALIA.

GAMEFEST �90, December 8-10The Gamemasters Guild of Waukegan, Ill., is

hosting this event. RPGA� sanctioned events arescheduled, as well as D&D®, STARFLEET BATTLES*, and BATTLETECH* games. Other eventsinclude historical and fantasy miniatures andboard games. Call: (312) 336-0790.

TRITICON I, December 8-11Students Tempted by Adventure, Fame, and

Fortune (S.T.A.F.F.) will host their first conven-tion at the Price Center on the University ofCalifornia�San Diego campus. Events willinclude AD&D® tournaments; BATTLETECH*,CAR WARS*, and COSMIC ENCOUNTERS*tournaments; DIPLOMACY*, HOW TO HOST AMURDER*, GAMMA WORLD*, TRAVELLER*,and WARHAMMER* games, and a live dungeon.Prizes will be awarded to tournament winners.Other events include open gaming, SCA demon-strations, a figure painting contest, a dealers�room, and a flea market. Registration is $10($8)before December 1, $12($10) at the door for theweekend, and $5($4) each day at the door. UCSDstudents receive the discounted rates in paren-theses; include ID number when registering.Write to: TRITICON I, Price Center, E-30, UCSD,La Jolla CA 92093.

WINTER FANTASY, January 5-7, 1990The RPGA� Network will sponsor WINTER

FANTASY 1990 at the Ramada Inn Airport atMilwaukee, Wis. Special room rates are availa-ble by contacting the hotel at (414) 764-5300.Sanctioned events include AD&D® Grand Mas-ters, AD&D® Masters, AD&D® Feature, AD&D®Benefit, MARVEL SUPER HEROES®, TOPSECRET/S.I.�, PARANOIA*, and other tourna-ments. Other activities include a writers� semi-nar, Saturday morning breakfast, Sundaybrunch, open gaming, and a dealers� area. Allgaming is free except for the benefit tourna-ment. Limited preregistration is available toRPGA Network members; contact Network HQfor a preregistration form. Registration fees are$10 to Network members, $12 to nonmembersuntil November 1. Afterward, fees for the entire

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weekend are $15. Send a SASE to: RPGA�Network, P.O. Box 515, Lake Geneva WI 53147.

WOTTACON �90, January 6The Guild of Melee and Magic�s second con-

vention will be held at Goldsmiths� College, NewCross, London SE14. Wottacon will have live-action, tabletop, and PBM role-playing, as wellas wargaming and board games. There will becompetitions, demonstrations, a large numberof trade stands and rooms in which to game.Write to: Alan Bishop, 127 Queen Adelaide Ct.,Penge, London SE20 7EB, UNITED KINGDOM;or call: 01-659-4857.

CHATTACON XV, January 12-14CHATTACON XV will be held at The Chatta-

nooga Choo-Choo, Chattanooga, Tenn. Accom-modations are $60 flat, $85 for sleeper carsuites, Guests will include Michael P. Kube-McDowell, Robert E. Vardeman, David Cherry,Danny Gill, Wilson �Bob� Tucker, Stan Bruns,and Dick and Nicki Lynch. Registration: $18until Dec. 1, $25 thereafter and at the door.Send an SASE to: CHATTACON XV, Box 23908,Chattanooga TN 37422; or call: (404) 591-9322(no collect calls, please).

NEW MEXICON I, January 12-14This science-fiction/science-fact con will be

held at the Las Cruces Hilton Inn. In addition togaming, featured are a variety of people fromscience and the arts to hold panel discussionsand give demonstrations and lectures. Con-firmed guests are G. Harry Stein as scientistguest of honor; Real Musgrave as artist guest ofhonor; James I? Hogan as author guest of honor;and Jim Davidson, Laurie Wiggins, Dr. MikeHyson, and Greg Kennedy as scientist guests.Author guest speakers will be Walter JohnWilliams, George Alex Effinger, Sonni Cooper,and James Theisen. Write to: NEW MEXICON I,Box 3836, New Mexico State University, LasCruces NM 88003-3836; or call Lew Maestasevenings at: (505) 522-0115, or Gaylord Teagueat: (505) 521-3828.

GAME-A-THON 7, January 14-15This 24-hour convention will be held at the

Town Center Hall, 11740 E. Telegraph Rd., SantaFe Springs, Calif. A variety of role-playinggames, board game tournaments, and miniatureevents will be featured, including AD&D®,CHAMPIONS*, PARANOIA*, SHADOWRUN*,STAR WARS*, GURPS*, AXIS & ALLIES*, CIVILI-ZATION*, EMPIRE BUILDER*, WARHAMMERFANTASY BATTLES*, WARHAMMER 40,000*,BATTLETECH*, and ADEPTUS TITANICUS*games. There will also be computer games,continuous movies, seminars, demonstrations, afigure painting contest, and a hucksters� room.Advance registration is $5 until January 8.Registration at the door is $7.50. Write to:GAME-A-THON 7, c/o Santa Fe Springs Gamers�Assn, P.O. Box 2434, Santa Fe Springs CA 90670;or call Callahan at: (213) 863-7893.

CANCON �90, January 26-28 ❖Come to Canberra, Australia, for three days of

miniatures and board gaming! Also role-play inAD&D®, CALL OF CTHULU*, MEGATRAVEL-LER*, RUNEQUEST*, ROLEMASTER*, MERPS*,CHAMPIONS*, and EVENTYDE* games, plusfreeforms and an RPGA� Network triad ofAD&D®, PARANOIA*, and TOP SECRET/S.I.�games. Write to: Canberra Games Society, GPOBox 1016, Canberra, ACT, AUSTRALIA, 2601.Non-Australian residents should send Interna-tional Reply Coupons, not SASEs; or call: +61-62-54-9926.

JACKSONVILLE SKIRMISHES �90February 9-11

SKIRMISHES presents this role-playing andwar gaming convention at the JacksonvilleMotel on the Riverwalk, 565 South Main Street,in Jacksonville, Fla. Room rates are $52 for oneto four persons. Events will include AD&D®game features, along with TRAVELLER*, STARFLEET BATTLES*, CAR WARS*, and SEEKRIEG*games. Other events will include board gaming,a KILLER* tournament, dealers, a miniatures-painting contest, demonstrations by the SCA,and many other role-playing and historicalevents. Hotel reservations may be made bycalling: (904) 398-8800. Registration is $18 forthe entire weekend. Send your registration feeto receive a program booklet. Write to: SKIR-MISHES, P.O. Box 2097, Winter Haven FL 33883;or call: (813) 293-7983.

GENGHIS CON XI, February 16-18Staged by the Denver Gamers Assoc., this

con�s activities include board games, role-playing, computer games, miniatures, auctions,and a miniatures-painting competition. Eventsinclude AD&D®, VICTORY IN THE PACIFIC*,CIVILIZATION*, KINGMAKER*, ADVANCEDSQUAD LEADER*, BATTLETECH*, JOHNNYREB*, NAPOLEONICS*, COMBINED ARMS*,EMPIRE*, and PARANOIA* games, with RPGA�tournaments, and the nationally known PUF-FING BILLY* tournament, a railroad gamecompetition. Registration is $15 for the weekenduntil January 31, $20 after that. Write to: Den-ver Gamers� Assoc., P.O. Box 11369, Denver CO80211; or call: (303) 443-3849.

WOLFCON III, March 2-4 ❉Wolfcon is back for its third year in Arcadia

University�s Beveridge Arts Centre. Some of theparticipants are: the Fantasy Field Trip Society,the Dr. Who Society Prydonian Academy, theMonty Python Appreciation Society, and TheStranger the Better club. There will also be twomovie rooms, work-shops, lectures and opengaming, along with movie, short story, costumeand art competitions. Preregistration: $10Canadian until March 1, $12 Canadian at thedoor. Write to: WOLFCON, Wolfville, N.S., CAN-ADA BOP 1X0; or call: (902) 542-7133.

EGYPTIAN CAMPAIGN �90,March 24, 25 1990

This convention will be held at the StudentCenter of Southern Illinois University at Carbon-dale. A wide variety of events are offered,including an RPGA� AD&D® tournament,miniatures judging, and a games auction. Prere-gistration is $8 for both days; one- and two-daypasses are $5 and $10 at the door. Send a SASEto: S.I.U. Strategic Games Society, Office ofStudent Development, Southern Illinois Univer-sity, Carbondale IL 62901-4425; or call: John P.Hults at (618) 457-8846.

How effective was your convention listing?If you are a convention organizer, pleasewrite to the editors and let us know if “Con-vention Calendar” served your needs. Yourcomments are always welcome.

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