Monday, September 25, 2017

Stepping back in time

So, as many of you may know, Gamehole Con V is coming up. It was iffy about whether I was going to be able to make it this year. Money is tight, and real life crises keep popping up. I was offered a way in for free, and I was glad to have that as a backup, but I still wanted to buy my ticket and be a player all weekend. To me, that’s where the fun is.

Well, long story short, we decided that, since Gamehole and Cary Cons are basically the only “vacations” I get each year, we would prioritize them. So, when the funds were available, I bought my ticket and registered for games. Which makes me a happy gamer.

This year, I wasn’t able to get into any of the “high end” games (I really wanted a Conan and/or Star Trek game), but I did fill my days with a lot of cool stuff. Below is my schedule.



A lot of familiar games, so that’s nice. But, the one I am most excited for is the Werewolf: the Wild West game.

Back in the mid-90’s I had moved to San Diego after getting out of the Army, and started school at a local community college. While waiting for class to start one night, I was reading a Forgotten Realms novel, and a guy asked if I played [D&D]. I said I did, but I was new to the area and didn’t have any friends to play with. He invited me to join his group who were playing something similar, but not D&D.

That weekend I was introduced to some people who would become some of my best friends, and to the World of Darkness, in the form of Vampire: the Masquerade. I gave it a good try, and it was fun, but I had a hard time wrapping my brain around vampires as “heroes.” Later, I was introduced to Werewolf: the Apocalypse, and I immediately fell in love. THAT was my kind of game! Unfortunately, we didn’t really get to play it much, as our core group changed membership often. But, I still kept up with the WoD games, and pined for giving them another go for years.

Last year, I had the idea of running a Werewolf game at Gary Con, but that fell through (mainly because I’m horrible about getting things written on time). I was going to put it off and do it at Gamehole, but the same thing happened. However, my idea gave my wife the WoD bug too, and since she loves running Con games, she decided to do an old-school Vampire game. Last night, our current gaming group gathered for a break from our D&D game (mainly because a few players were unavailable), and made Vampire characters for her to use as Pregens.

I was originally planning on joining in on her Vampire game, but I discovered that during her time slot there was a Werewolf: the Wild West game with openings. I am so excited for this. Mainly because Werewolf. Plus, it’s the Wild West (which has become a new passion since I started reading a lot of westerns lately). And the premise just sounds too cool to not do:

"It is 1859. A Garou has gone rogue, and is leading a pack of Bagheera through the South, killing humans, in complete violation of the Litany. The Litany is the law, and no Garou is above the law. Your pack will have to find the renegades and bring them to justice..."

Does that sound wicked awesome or what???

Yeah, I’m excited for this Con. But, I’ve never had a “bad” experience at Gamehole, so it’s to be expected. Anyone else going? This will be my fifth.

Friday, September 15, 2017

Basic Arcana

I was pleasantly surprised to get an email today from someone who bought my first product, Basic Arcana, and had high praises for it. He also asked about the possibility of a POD version. Honestly, I hadn't ever given that much thought.

Right now, Mutants & Marvels is the only product of mine that has a POD option, I believe.  And I don't think it has sold more than a couple of copies.  So, the idea of putting more products out there with that option kind of felt like a waste.

However, since I know I can probably get at least one sale, I'm considering it for Basic Arcana.

Now, as I am wont to do, I am wondering if there are any improvements I can make to the product before doing so. Any modifications that users would find useful? Maybe some new content to fill a gap?

As always, any changes I make will be reflected in the PDF version as well. So, if you bought that, you would be able to re-download it for free with the updated content.

Hmmm, things to ponder.

Friday, September 8, 2017

Bit of a change

You may have noticed a new link to the side for DMs Guild. That should lead to everything I publish there. Right now, it's still just the Martialist, but I have a few other irons in the fire.

Also, the Martialist is now PWYW. I did that because I noticed that most of the stuff of similar bent is priced that way. And I could use a boost in sales.

As I said, I have a few other 5E irons in the fire. But I'm wondering if maybe my time would be better spent working on non-5E stuff.  Or maybe even non-D&D (and/or clones) stuff.  So, is there a game you think I should look into?  I'm always up for trying new things as I can. And I seem to invariably find something I want to change or add to any game I play.

So, throw me some ideas, if you're so inclined.