Dragon #91

Let’s just start with this amazing artwork. I have got to find one of these steampunk sailing/flying ships. This art is amazing. Nothing like a ship on a storm tossed sea. It is great.

The Goristro Revealed - E. Gary Gygax

This is still early days of the AD&D game, and being that was written over 40 years ago, and alas there was no internet. I guess it is allowable to say that mistakes were allowed in the game. I don’t have much to say. It’s new monster that was supposed to be included somewhere but was missed.

Realistic vital statistics - Stephen Inniss

This is a typical article from the early RPG scene. Everyone was trying to shoehorn reality into the game. Mr Innis is trying to use real world statistics to generate “believable” heights and weights to various races. It is an interesting idea, but in a world full of magic, I just don’t see any use for it. Read it, enjoy the history, and if you want, include it in your games.

The ecology of the leucrotta - Ed Greenwood

Ed was writing a regular column back then on the ecologies of various monsters from the game. This series provided some really nice adventure hooks, and ideas that could be incorporated. No longer did you need to worry about why a certain monster did what monsters did.

“Those who, for some reason, must dwell near the known haunts of leucrotta are prepared for a raid at any time, and they quickly learn not to engage in conversation with anyone whose face they cannot see.”
Ed Greenwood

Nine Hells Revisited - Ed Greenwood

If you had a high level party looking for a lot of fun, there is a lot here. It is good article on the nine hells, the inhabitants and the environments of the various hells. This is well thought out, and well written. It really descibes the various levels, and gives you a lot to work with. Mr. Greenwood does a good job of pointing out that you should not expect to make a full-scale assault and win. And don’t even think about taking any of the treasure you find. The devils do not take kindly to looters. I think there are some good adventure ideas here. Don’t use these as ways to make your PC’s ultra powerful. Use them as adventure hooks to take your pc’s to new and different places.

No player should ever be able to boast of his or her character slaying Asmodeus in his very throneroom in Nessus, or for that matter, outsmarting any archdevil!

Eight devilish questions - Ed Greenwood

Ed wrote two other earlier articles on the Nine Hells in Dragon #75 and #76 respectively, and is often the case, people had questions. Mr. Greenwood does his best to answer some of them. If you read the earlier articles, you might have had some of the same questions. How exactly does a rope trick work in hell? How does a devil’s teleport without error actually work? Well read it and you will know.

Chronicles: a novel idea

Anyone reading this will be familiar with the Dragonlance Chronicles. If you aren’t, you should go and read them right now. I recently reread the Dragons of Autumn Night, and I still love it. It’s a great adventure story. The characters all have nuance, and backstories, and problems.
Tracy Hickman came up with the idea of writing a series of novels and adventures. It was/is an interesting idea. The novels and the adventures don’t quite line up. I was a little confused after reading the first three DL adventures after reading Autumn Twilight. Some things just needed more fleshing out?
This article is a bit of the history and how the whole thing came about. Very interesting look at the early days of TSR and some of the most famous names in D&D history.

Treasure Trove - Various Authors

People love magic treasure. My favorite being the Dagger +1/+2 vs. Dolphins. Daggers made by the sahuagin to combat their most hated foes: The dolphins. Not sure how useful it would be especially if you are not lawful evil.

Spies’ Advice - Penny Petticord

Did you ever play Top Secret? Yeah, me neither. People had questions, the author answered them.
The Galil is so accurate because that is the way its statistics fit best into the TOP SECRET game rules for gun design.

I love the it is the way it is, because that is how we wrote it attitude. It’s a game, games have stats, use them or don’t. It’s your game. You don’t need permission to play it how you want. Everything is an abstraction. If you don’t like the abstraction, don’t use it.

“Does anyone here speak Aslan?” - Joseph Bernedetto Jr.

Here we have an article on learning languages in Traveller. The ideas are universal though. You could take the ideas as presented, tweak them a little, and have a language learning structure for any RPG. Plus think of all the fun you can as a DM if the PC’s suddenly show up in a far off land and can’t just buy everything off the shelf?

Day of the Juggernaut - William Tracy

Presented in this article is a nice little scenario for Star Frontiers. It uses the Knight Hawk rules, which add in space ship combat. Can you stop the evil Sathar from bombarding the planet and killing all the inhabitants?

The Marvel-Phile (Cloak and Dagger) - Jeff Grubb

Presented here are Clock and Dagger for TSR’s Super Hero RPG. and some new rules for drug use. Very 1980’s I feel like.

Careers in Star Law - Alex Curylo

This is another article on Star Frontiers. This time about playing law enforcement in the century. Once again, these ideas really transcend the game system, and could be useable in all kinds of places. I wonder what police in Faerun would look like?

Don’t Leave Home with them! - Scott Hutcheon

A lot of the articles from this era were all about treasure and “magic” items. This time for Gamma World. These items would work well in any sci-fi setting. I do feel some of them are really overpowered, but I remember playing back in the day, and we were murder hobos all the way. Grab as much treasure, and experience and kill everything in sight.

The Rune and the Dragon - Lawrence Watt-Evans

This is an interesting story of fiction. I don’t want to give too much away. But our pluckless adventurers realize they are not the stuff of legends and flee from a dragon. I enjoyed it.

The Shogun game: Such a deal - Paul Smith

A review of the Shogun card game. Sounds like the author enjoyed it. Sometimes the prices back in the day don’t translate well.

The retail price of $12.95 is a little steep

The Butler didn’t do it - Ken Rolston

A review of various games that tried to be mystery RPG. The nice thing about this review was how it gave you permission to take ideas from various places and put them all together to learn to be a better player and DM.

Dragonmirth

Last but not least you can be entertained by a series of comics. I am particularly enjoying Snarfquest. Our intrepid hero has no clue what is going on, but he always manages to get a little better at the end.