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Nuts! Try just going to eBay and searching for: "D&D Dungeon Final Issue Original Art AUTOGRAPHED" Item #: 180159059732
The link is acting goofy. I don't get it.
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Sorry about the shameless plug, but to commemorate the last issue of Dungeon, I'm selling the original art from that issue's index. This 8.5 x 12" ink illo features an All-Star Dungeon group shot including: Duke Chupo
... And, it's signed by me and most of the Paizo editorial staff! Bid early and often.
I'll talk to Erik today about the particulars. He's seen a press copy of the book. I haven't yet. If Paizo gets them in time, I'll definately shoot over there and sign away.
F yeah! Forget adventuring, I think we have a future in the arena. And to think it all took only 24 seconds.
The portrait of Abilard's Band, from happier times, is now featured on my blog, The Last Human Ghost, under the heading "A Nerd Indulgence". Tyralandi was elsewhere in the magazine during this shoot.
Hee hee. James, ever the master show man . . . You guys will utterly PLOTZ when you find out what happened. I even have an illo waiting to go in the final issue of Dungeon that pays homage to Abillard's Band of stalwart heroes. But it has SPOILERS! It will be posted on my studio blog as soon as James brings us up to date.
Well, we are playing this Thursday. SOMEONE will have a new character. We're now in-between calamities, so I'm sure something terrible will come up.
Also, what do I have to do to get Kyle to autograph it? I can probably sign a whole mess of them once they are in. I'm frequently at Paizo for Erik's Age of Worms campaign.
And I'm STILL going to use some of the charachters in a campaign. Someday... You'll be pleased to hear that Downer: Wandering Monster includes a detailed map of Oubliette, with adventure hooks a-plenty. There are no solid plans for Downer beyond Dungeon #150. On one hand, I'm a little burned out, and the unstructured nature of Downer's multiple plots makes it a pain in the butt. I've painted myself into a couple of corners. Without Dungeon's WotC license, I'm not as free to fling poo in the "real" D&D universe. On the other hand, Downer kind of becomes my default fantasy license. It could get A LOT weirder. You would get to see a lot more of Downer with a six shooter and an umbrella, riding a magic bicycle through the underdark, collecting bounties on mushroom people. Maybe its just like a planet in some science fiction universe, or like a microverse in an atom, man ... But seriously, it will be a money thing. It's too much work to do for the heck of it. I'm on good terms with Paizo, so we'll see how the first Downer collection sells. I've got some time to plan a project with the lessons of Downer. I'm interested in revisiting my old "speed racer in space" comic from the mid-nineties Swerve. I dunno. We'll see.
Why is Downer even helping Kalro? He's spent the last couple of comics talking about how much he hates him. I mean, I understand that the comic needs to be wrapped up in six more pages, but it seems kind of out of place. Did I miss something? That's actually explained in the Downer Critical Threat write up in #138. Kalro has raised Downer from the dead 2-3 times, and Downer owes him for it. Kalro also runs an Underdark thieves' guild, and the business keeps Downer living reasonably comfortably.
Yeah man, what Peruhain said. SPOILERS BELOW: Much of this was revealed to Lord Mayor Garriok by Shkiv, mount of the Slaad lord Yugorhl (sp?) A cabal of epic level players including the infernal patron of cheaters, Queen Wench, an Autarch named Goalkeeper, the Copper Dragon Kroiph, the rakshasa crimelord Kalro and a Chronotyrin competed for the post God of the Game. Each had a pawn who was tasked with transporting a token to Sigil. The token was the Uolok, the legendary offspring of a Slaad and a Modron. At the culmination of the competition, the one who feasted on the Ulolok would ascend. Once Downer and Ba'Roosha arrived in Sigil, Ba'Roosha was revealed to be the Cuprilarch pawn of Goalkeeper. She snaked the Ulolok (aka Piglet), and set summoned Ferrumachs on our hero, Downer. Once he escaped, a strange airship in the sky led him to the contest's climax, on the rolling inn, the Funicular. The ship belonged to the rabidly aetheistic Ethergaunts. Kalro secretly summoned the Gaunts to disrupt the contest, and curry their aid in his struggle in the Underdark with the worshippers of Lolth. Kalro also betrayed his ally, Queen Wench, leaving Kalro to assume control of her armies in the Underdark. Goalkeeper, confronted by the Ethergaunts, who subdued Kroiph, and Benzinger Kalro, grudgingly accepted a draw. The Ulolok's power was to be shared between the survivors. Enter Downer, with his usual swagger, who proceeded to take a big bite of what he didn't realize was his beloved pet (sort of.) BTW I'm putting up some Downer original art on Ebay this weekend. I'll keep you posted.
I thought downer was an annoyance - bad art, incomprehensible story, and incredibly disjointed. I ... don't know how to feel about that. Going back and gathering stuff for the first Downer book is kinda painful. Part of me wants to re-do everything from the start. But, you do something for like 4 years and you can't help but get better. Nothng like learning on someone elses dime.
Could someone please point me to the stats for Draconians? I feel like I've looked in all the monster books. How awesome would a master index be?
How much (if any) new content will be included? I'm working on that stuff now. What do y'all want. I think we have 8 or so pages to fill.
I've got a pretty good one in the chamber, but it turns out, suprise, writing adventures is a lot of work. Perhaps it will come to pass, but I'm always so bloody crushed by too much wok as it is. Feast or famine is the curse of the freelancer.
Please don't misunderstand. There is nothing game related--just vaguely Downer-ish "hip young people".
Me! Kyle Hunter. Last year I did all the cartoon avatars for the phone and website; a couple of the wallpapers too. Erik Mona just got a new phone, and I got to check them out in use for the first time. Sorry to toot my own horn, but it was a pretty big gig, and the images are otherwise anonymous. I'm always curious how other illustrators/cartographers supplement their income in the real world.
What, Downer confusing? I actually meant that Downer agreed that he WOULD take of the neogi problem. My bad. Strangely enough, I'm drawing those scenes right now.
I don't think its policy, or anything, but I recall on some project being asked to tone-down the digital feel of some maps I'd produced. Perhaps I overstated it. I think Jason England's lovely maps blur that line. Painterly, but pretty hi-tech. My best hand drawn stuff was the recent Challenge of Champs. Honestly, the way I'm doing it is a little too work intensive. I basically generate digital maps in Illustrator, and hand draw over blue-lined prints. Ow, my aching arm! In fact, I have a big WotC project I should be working on this weekend, and I'm really trying to streamline the process somehow.
I actually did half those maps -- the hand drawn parchment-y ones. Having looked a lot at the original module maps, I think you're remembering them as better than they were. That was certainly the impression I came away with when I looked at them for the first time in 20 years. At the time, they were super-revolutionary, but there are a lot of technical problems with them. Some levels don't seem to line up properly, and parts are just-plain confusing. They are drawn on a kooky, almost-isometric angle, not a proper 30 degree projection. A few years ago, Dragon published some very nice maps of the castle. The challenge is balancing hand-drawn maps with the more digital Chris West-style stuff. Some at WotC want to keep conspicuously digital maps to a minimum. I haven't seen the final, but I think this is the first delve-format project.
Dram Cicaeda is now Scout 5/ Fighter 2 (I needed the bigger Hit Die and an extra feat.) He is also the only member of the party with ties to the militia. He'll soon be a Sergeant, and the medals he's acquired helped us bypass the bribes on our way into Greyhawk. He's been hitting for about 15-20 points an arrow with Skirishing and Shot on the Run. Recently he had an old broken Dueragar great spear repaired Seems to be +2 with a 2/day +2D6 Negative Energy damage, and its probably evil. Though Dram is one of the more "good" members of the party, I'm sure things will get hairy enough that he'll start using it with Spring Attack. I love his 50' movement! He has some loyalty to the party now, as they saved his unconscious body from being taken down into a Lizardfolk larder. He also, despite an 8 Charisma, brokered the peace with the Twisted Branch lizards in the Mist Marsh. With Taan of all people! I think Dram's the only one who gives a crap about the people of the region, and their general safety.
I wonder why it's always Mike and Wes. The rest of us have pretty solid survival strategies built into our character concepts. Dram skirmishes and makes the most of a 50' movement, Mobility, Shot on the Run and Spring Attack to get the hell out of there. He also has a bandolier of healing potions since he's often cut off from teh party. Dai-Jin generally attacks from range, and doesn't care enough about the rest of the party to put herself in danger. Demon Boy usually stays hidden, but has a knack for the perfect spell at the perfect time to save our butts. Gar has a high AC, and doles out the most front line damage. He may soon bite off more than he can chew. I think he may be the next to die. Taan is a great weasel, and talks his way out of a lot of trouble. He isn't particularly attached to the party either, so he doesn't take a lot of risks (with his own life.) Tyralandi could go next. She usually spell casts, stays out of the fray, and has undead under her thumb, but gets in a lot of weird trouble. She's toying with potentially explosive magic. I'll let Mike and Wes speculate on why they always get the short end of the stick.
Wow. Neat response. So I'm 36 years old, and it took me this long to kinda realize that style is a highly subjective thing. I really REALLY love the music I'm into, and to this day, I have a hard time accepting that not everybody digs the early '70s Welsh folk-rock. It's OK that not everybody likes Downer. I'll be the first to admit that really it's an excercise in style--my take on very non-twee D&D. Frankly, I wish I was a better artist, but I've done pretty good doing the Mignola/McKeever/Hewlett thing. I wish I could start it all over and take more time--take it more seriously. As it is, I'm always late. God bless Sean, Drew, Erik and James for their patience and stunning good looks. On the website: I have over two years of the best intentions. I really want to get it all up, but then I got to do all the work, self-promote for real work, learn Flash, get all the lettering from Sean, watch TV, play Civ IV, take out my old lady, etc. I have loads of original Downer art waiting to go up on Ebay, but I'm always to bloody swamped with other junk. So anyway, nice to hear some of y'all are converts. Lisa S. made a nice point of giving me a thumbs up the other day while I was skulking around Paizo's halls for Erik's D&D game. If you don't like it, you always have Drzzzzt.
My party's cleric is an advocate of mental clarity, and took Mind and Healing as his domains. He's all about counselling and arbitration--lots of diplomacy. I'd like the church to be allied with Pelor in SCAP. I'm stuck however, on the god. Do any human/demi-human gods have Mind and Healing as domains? Suggestions?
(hoping 'Downer' isn't the name of a national sports hero of any kind...) No, but "Kroiph" is. I generated the stats for Downer for the article; he was never a PC. I gave him the extra feat to compensate for the lack of spell-like abilities. And he does have the gold of a PC of his levels.
Well, I know these things happen, and James Jacobs was upstanding enough to alert me to the error. But I actually did the maps and handouts for the Challenge of Champions, not the inimitable Mr. Lazzareti. Dangit!
I actually don't have the article in front of me, but unless it changed, it was: Downer Tarantula CR11
The big crunchy parts are the rules for his wings and Gravedigger's Skull. There are lots of details on his life before the comic picks up.
Guess not :( Mind you everyone would want it anyway :) As the artist, it's OK with me if Gary wants to turn any of my mini-monsters into avatars. You have my blessing.
Awesome! Thanks everyone.
I seem to recall a piece of equipment, goggles or lenses, that enabled drow to ignore their daylight sensitivity. I don't remember if it was magical or not. It wasn't in the Underdark book. Did I dream this, or has it been statted up?
I was going to put this in the TV section, but it's just sooo very D&D. And I never read that section, so I assume no one else does. Korgoth of Barbaria on Adult Swim is so freaking awesome I don't even want to do Downer anymore. Watch it now! It is Frazetta-tastic. It cuts to everything truly cool, violent, satanic, hilarious, 1970s, and MACHO about ol' D&D.
Privateer Press' new game Hordes has a race that would make decent githyanki, the Skorne Praetorians. Adding the serrated ears would be a pretty simple green stuff project. In teh Paizo store: http://paizo.com/store/byCompany/p/privateerPress/hordesMiniaturesGame/theS korne/v5748btpy7oz3
The DMG states donning the Monk's Belt, if not a monk, ". . . grants the AC and unarmed damage of a 5th-level monk. This AC bonus functions just like the monk's AC bonus." Is this just the +1, or does the wearer also get their WIS bonus added to their AC, as a monk would? For that matter, what kind of bonus is the monk's bonus to AC?
The most hard-core way to have levels permanently drained is to die multiple times and be resurrected/raised from the dead each time. You can pretty much fix with magic any other kind of level draining. That would actually do the trick perfectly! Thanks James. I wasn't thinking about the inherant connection between losing levels and Negative Energy.
I'm working on a Downer related project, and I need a little research help. Can anyone point me to some potent, non-evil, (preferably good,) creatures that can deal negative levels, or heavy-duty ability damage? I don't tend to play magic users. Are there many high level spells that would give a PC teh ability to do the same? To cut right to it, how can you have multiple levels permenantly drained? Thanks.
Actually, it's Vincent Furnier, according to Allmusic. Alice Cooper was the 17th century witch the band communed with via Ouija. I still have a copy of ythe old 70s Marvel Premiere that featured an "Alice Cooper" adventure. Something about rescuing a snake from an insane asylum.
I'm glad you liked it. Thanks. I'll own up to being a huge Naruto fan, but I tried to temper some that with honest-to-god research. I knew I was keeping all those back issues of Inside Kung-Fu, and Ninja! from the 80s for a reason. Ah the 80s, when you could prowl the roof of the local junior high in ersatz ninja gear without getting homeland security called on you.
To be fair, we should start a thread on the general D&D board re:Tech levels in D&D. to Fake Healer: I don't think anyone is forcing anything on you. Baseline D&D readily supports a gritty low fantasy. And it's not about "anime-ing it up". D&D rightfully adapts with the times, and the tastes of varied fantasy enthusiasts. Back in the 1970s, the most dominant influence on the game was high fantasy, ie LoTR and others. But I've heard even Gygax's core crew had someone who refused to play anything but a gunslinger. There are a lot more awesome ideas in the market these days. You may be interested to know that D&D has had a MAJOR influence on asian animation. Record of Lodoss war is a total homage to the game. It's pretty silly to dismiss an entire 50 yo genre. There's a lot going on in anime these days that you are remiss as a D&D fan not to check out. Sure, IMO Ranma One-and-a-half is about the worst thing ever, but to lump that in with, say, Samurai Champloo or Full Metal Alchemist is ill-informed. You're really missing out.
you're not really playing D&D any more. What? Sez who? The game is Dungeons and Dragons, not Sir Plague Victim Muddyboot's Fuedal Historic War Sim. Have you seen Spelljammer, Ravenloft, Planescape or Ebberon? Again, pretty much any technology could be EASILY reproduced through magic, alchemy or technology. In fact, a certain affinity for technology is the only cool thing gnomes have going for them, IMO. Tech is merely a plot contrivance. Where do you draw the line? No gunpowder, no nails, no women's suffrage? One of the most beloved 1st Ed modules, Barrier Peaks, had the players explore a wrecked spaceship. It's the duty of the DM to season the stew, and find a balance that keeps his players entertained. If dude wants to be an engineer ninja cowboy, let him. If it freaks out the general campaign worlds population, well, the peasants are likely to kill him anyway. as teh DM, you are teh invisible hand that moves the game. Tech varies wildly from setting to setting. If every building in a city is lit by magic, wow does that make magic a lot more mundane. Just make them gaslights, and it will be OK. Just a lot less "twee". And its still, 100%, unadulterated D&D. All that requires are some dungeons someplace, and some dragons. What's influenced the more modern D&D settings, I reckon, are videogame RPGs like Final Fantasy. Can't blame the industry for trying to evolve and stay competitive. In market shares, games like that CRUSH old school D&D. Feh! I won't sit back and let someone label me a D20 Modern enthusiast.
OK. Back on point. I like what highly unstable sticks of dynamite could do for a campaign. You'd have to be crazy to carry it, but oh the hilarity of Kobolds blowing themselves up.
it's not just Celts and Vikings and Frenchmen and Burgundians and Italians? I quite highly recommend Strange Creations: Aberrant Ideas of Human Origins from Ancient Astronauts to Aquatic Apes by Donna Kossy. There we also learn of the Reptoid, Dinoid and Pre-Cetacean (furry were-dolphins) influence on Europe.
Oh, and with simple spells like Warp Wood, seems unlikely that any single old school-ish weapon, like Mr. Gattling Crossbow, could really turn the tide in Epic warfare.
I think both sides of the hill leading to the peak "most awsomest gaming experience" are pretty slippery. I grok your point. Lately, however, I've been enjoying rutting through some pretty stinky second edition stuff (ie Planescape and Spelljammer) and I have to admit, though I would have done it a lot differently, that stuff is pretty fun. Erik and I argued for a while about Spelljammer in particular. I think the idea of other planets in D&D are tres retarded. Why? With planar travel, the Far Realm, and other junk even "outside" of that, other planets seem SUPER redundant. That's the measure for me, if it's "new" let it in, but if it overlaps with something existant, we can do without. I prefer a Baron VonMunchhausen style flat earth cosmology, myself. But I digress. Using real world metrics in Fantasy (of any kind) is a mad endeavor. We quickly discovered that when trying to design a more realistic super-hero world for Mutants and Masterminds. How many times would NY city need to be levelled before people retreated below ground, living in terror of super heroes? Ninjas, cowboys, dinosaur riders, bombs . . . s'all good. Makes the campaign world easier for the players to relate to. "You mean we can raise the dead, but we can't send a letter through a postal system?" But I guess that's a gaming style issue. I have a bone to pick with the concept of exclusion in general.
I know that it's a fantasy game, but in my opinion, you have to draw the line somewhere. Really? Why? I've always struggled with this attitude. I have to admit that Ebberon is really growing on me, and I think it owes much of its success to breaking the bonds of rather restrictive historical/Eurocentric campaigns. With elemental driven mass transit, the press, individuals who live hundreds of years, and infinite planes, it strains credulity more to assume that some mad engineer hasn't come up with, say, the repeating crossbow. Heck, I think some underpowered race would have come up with gunpowder and simple firearms a long time ago. There was once a RIDICULOUS debate going on in the offices when someone insisted that the D&D universe wouldn't have the tech necessary to create nails. How do you reign that in? You don't. Guns are loud, prone to malfunction, difficult to buy ammo for, etc. I think elves, or whoever else seems un-gunnish, would have countered things like this in warfare with simple cantrips that prematurely ignite gun powder.
What I'm hoping for is an article that suggests various ways that 1st-level barbarians come into being, and give the DM an 'easy out' to explain things to his players, or a springboard for an adventure. For some reason, when I first read your post, I thought you were advocating 0-Level adventures. I have to start paying better attention.
I think that is interesting idea, but would only appeal to a very limited amount of gamers. Verasimilitude is just not what most people are after when they play. Most folk I know complain already about starting at 1st level. I think a character's first level in a heroic class reflects the fact that it takes a "special breed" to adventure. Those with right stuff have a destiny to be fulfilled. Starting ages are a matter of taste and character concept. A 50 year old first level cleric doesn't bug me too much, could just be a late bloomer or accidental adventurer, though it does raise the question of what he's been doing those 50 years. I suppose he should have a mess of Adept, but I don't think every corner of a campaign world needs to be so realistically fleshed out. A recent issue of White Dwarf ran an article on Low Fantasy that I thought relevant to this issue. An interesting, and more empowering for the players, way to capture young adventurers clawing their way to the top is to start everyone with either a level of Fighter or Rogue. I want to do this in a campaign where everyone starts as members of militia's platoon, and the CO dies, leaving the players on their own.
In many ways, JJ's/TS's journal is the backbone of our little game. Fitting as Tyralandi, more or less. recruited the party. In fact, are we just her pawns? Poor Dram is conflicted enough. Ultimately, it will be Tyralandi who tears the party assunder. Gar, our most "stable" member, doesn't know that TS killed Filge, and he does NOT truck with any dark magics. I think Tyralandi deliberately told Dram and Taan just to see Dram squirm. Taan doesn't care; he just seems to appreciate the carnage. Now Dramelo has to hide Tyralandi's indescresions from teh rest of teh party. I don't think Tasilo is a big Tyralandi fan either. Oh we're all going to die.
Thanks for the interest. I'm at the stage, after about 75 pages of Downer, that I personally would love a fully bound compendium. Ironically, shlepping those files to Kinko's to make a little DIY book is outrageously expensive (they really burn you with those two-sided color prints!) Certainly, robust interest on the message boards brings a Downer Collection closer to fruition. I've been promising getting issues al the way back to No. 1 up on my site, but it is tough to make the time. Such is the marginal existance of the journeyman pixel pusher.
Yeah, but the colors are all wrong. Where's the bright blue, yellow and red? Angry like a mandrill's butt!
Howdy. I need a little help. Erik Mona and I were talking about upcoming Downer stuff recently, and rilmani came up. According to EM, they looked quite a bit different in the Planscape books. Can anyone provide a detailed description of the Auramach illos, or better yet, post a pic? Muchas gracias. Erik lives right down the street, and has a pretty exhaustive library, but he won't be up for about three more hours.
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