The new issue of Fight On, my favorite gaming magazine, is now available at Lulu. This one does not include my “Random Events Make You Say Yes” essay, which has been held over to #8. That issue is devoted to Erol Otus, which may inspire me to write a second piece devoted to how at Anonycon I was able to use the evocative player handout illustrations he did for The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan to let the players’ input do the work of improvising a trap/puzzle encounter. What better way to pass the time while you’re waiting for all that than to read and re-read #7? The robots at Lulu are printing mine at this very moment, but the table of contents indicates that it contains such delights as Adam Thornton’s “Wandering Harlot Table” and “One Time at D&D Camp” by Harnish & Robbins. Enter the code “HUMBUG” when you checkout at Lulu and save 10%!
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Charlatan
Eric Minton
maldoor
Greengoat
David Wellington
James Nostack
tavisallison
Do they still sell a pdf version of Fight On!?
Also, that is some great cover art by Peter Mullens. And it reminds me: I never remember that when PCs save themselves from a fall like that, they should be dropping the hell out of weapons, torches, shields, pet rats, etc.
Yes, you can get the PDF now instead of waiting for the print issue to arrive. This is a perfectly legitimate solution and an area in which my personal preferences may soon be over-ridden by running out of shelf space.
I have been agitating for carte blanche to force players to make more item saving throw rolls, but the consensus seems to be that to make that fun there would have to be a steady influx of awesome and crazy items just waiting to be destroyed at a similar rate. I hope to hit this zone when the campaign is higher level, on average, and perhaps adventuring in Limbo where weird magic detritus washes up routinely. For now I will content myself with the destruction of the PC carrying the items.
Oooh yes. Write more about your AnonyCon experiences and improvising.
How do you improvise a trap with the players? Doesn’t that remove the element of surprise? What’s your favorite source for illustrations?