Gamers, rally to Kobold Quarterly!

When I first heard about KQ, I was deep in my cups lamenting the death of Dragon. I presumed KQ would be nothing but a pale shadow of the great dragon, a faltering, lackluster fanzine without spirit or intelligence. When I heard Wolfgang Baur was behind it, however, I got myself a copy. And rarely have I been so delighted to be so utterly wrong!

Kobold Quarterly has spirit. KQ has spunk. KQ has verve. KQ has top-flight authors and wonderful articles. The Erik Mona interview in Issue 1 asks all the questions I could wish for and secures fascinating answers. The interview of Wayne Reynolds in Issue 2 hits one of the few luminaries I’d rather hear from than Mr. Mona! Skip Williams’s “Ask the Kobold: Q&A” continues Dragon’s great Sage tradition; reading it felt like coming home. Nicolas Logue’s Barghest Ecology nails one of my favorite monsters. John Ling’s “A Kingdom for My Horse” enriched my favorite character class. But foremost among all the articles is Tim & Eileen Connors’s “Belphegor, Prince of Laziness,” which presents perhaps the most intelligent, though-provoking take on a devil I’ve read in any article or sourcebook. And the Aaron Acevedo’s art for “Belphegor” is luscious. (But why is Belphegor French??)

Now let's hope for more original art, some short fiction, and (holding my breath) one or two short, top-flight adventures!

In the aftermath of the death of Dragon and Dungeon as print magazines, it’s an enormous relief to see bright, imaginative works like Kobold Quarterly picking up the tradition. Go Wolfgang! Go KQ! Gamers, rally to the Kobold! Twenty years from now, I want to look back across my great (and colorful!) collection of (monthly!) KQ issues with quiet assurance that KQ has been the best gaming magazine ever published. It’s small, but it’s fierce. And it’s on its way!

Back at Gen Con, I sat in a PF Changs with Tim and Daigle and Tim expressed concerns about how to make a demon subtle yet compelling. I love that this guy pretends to have creative dilemmas. What a knockout punch of an article. Not to fail to compliment the other authors as well let me call KQ2 another grand concert by Wolfgang's brigade.

Love the energy, creativity and grass roots feel to this. Long live the Kobolds!!

As I was sadly perusing my Dragon collection from years past recently, I was struck with how the production values were scant in the early days, but the articles were meaty. Dragon was a magazine by fans for fans. I feel like I am back in the early days of Dragon when I read Kobold Quarterly. Fantastic articles with information that can be used by almost anyone. Are the production values equal to the final days of Dragon? No. Does this matter? No. This scrappy little 'zine is what it is all about. Articles by the fans for the fans. Buy it and you won't be disappointed.

Cool issue. Love the Assassin (great replacement for D&D's PrC or Thieves' World base class), the alternate abilities for Paladins. The ecology was a nice read, as the interview of WAR.

Good stuff all around. Keep up the good work!

A great little replacement for the much-lamented Dragon magazine, KQ2 offers quite a lot of punch for an amateur production. Filled with interesting sketches (the avatar of hunger is particularly evocative), guest articles by some of the most famous names in the business (Greenwood, Grubb, Williams) and some very intriguing ideas, KQ fills a niche that needs filling. Reminiscent of the early days of Dragon, but with more spelling errors, the magazine is laid out in a simple but pleasing manner and can be easily printed. The article on Belphegor is worth the price of admission alone, and despite poor editing the overall value is quite good and the articles generally beefy enough to sustain interest. Recommended for those who miss their monthly Dragon fix.

This black-and-white shoe-string production may only come out once a season, but this kobold ate the electronic Dragon for breakfast and spit out the bones. What Baur lacks in fancy polish, he's made up for by lining up some of the best authors in Dragon's history. Some of the missing pieces of issue one have been rectified in this second offering, which now features letters to the editor as well as many more authors (poor Baur must have been frazzled writing half the first issue himself!). With offerings in purity (paladin) and ruthlessness (assassin), the crown jewel of issue 2 is an article by Tim and Eileen Connors: "Belphagor, the Baron of Laziness and Invention." I hope as much as anyone that Dragon flies again as brightly as it used to, but I'm glad to know the Kobold-in-chief is busy at work in the mines producing this masterpiece in the meantime.

I recommend the print version, which is great for reading away from the computer (my usual choice)!

This magazine has great articles and is a fun read. There is stuff I'll definitely use DMing, including a cool Ecology of the Barghest for those of you who need to know more about this Goblin Fiend for your Pathfinder adventure!

This magazine has great articles and is a fun read. There is stuff I'll definitely use DMing, including a cool Ecology of the Barghest for those of you who need to know more about this Goblin Fiend for your Pathfinder adventure!

I also recommend the print version, which is great for reading away from the computer (my usual choice)!

A transcript of the review will not fit in this box. However it can be found at: http://purpleduckcreations.blogspot.com/2007/10/digital-front-review-corner -kobold.html

And on the 5th episode of the Digital Front Podcast.
http://thedigitalfront.com/