Dragon Emblem RPG is a table-top game designed with inspiration from games such as DCC, Metamorphosis Alpha, World of Warcraft, and others. There are several classes and races each with unique abilities and traits to help create balanced groups. The game includes a background story and a 16-adventure campaign that the players can delve into. New weapons, armor, relics, treasures, and gruesome creatures await the brave adventurers. All book purchases through Lulu grant me revenue, and other locations grant me none. As a result, if purchasing through Lulu, it is considered a donation to me, my family, and future projects I may endeavor on. Likewise, a portion of the revenue will be used to compensate those who have assisted me with the production of this game, which includes anyone that gave me ideas or advice, to those that assisted with playtesting.
In Dragon Age, a pen & paper roleplaying game of dark fantasy adventure, you and your friends take on the personas of warriors, mages, and rogues in the world of Thedas and try to make your names by overcoming sinister foes and deadly challenges. Based on the video game franchise, this Core Rulebook includes the full rules for the Dragon Age RPG under one cover for the first time, including the Adventure Game Engine.
All three 4th Edition core rulebooks in one handsome slipcase. The Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game has defined the medieval fantasy genre and the tabletop RPG industry for more than 30 years. In the D&D game, players create characters that band together to explore dungeons, slay monsters, and find treasure. The 4th Edition D&D rules offer the best possible play experience by presenting exciting character options, an elegant and robust rules system, and handy storytelling tools for the Dungeon Master. This gift set provides all three 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons core rulebooks (Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual) in a handsome slipcase that looks great on any bookshelf.
The Reverse Design series looks at all of the design decisions that went into classic video games. This is the first installment in the Reverse Design series, looking at Final Fantasy VI. Written in a readable format, it is broken down into six sections examining some of the most important topics to the game: How narrative elements, specifically the design of the fourteen player-characters, was the critical constraint which shaped the game’s production How the game broke with numerous RPG traditions in order to focus on plot and characterization, while still maintaining mechanical depth How the systems were designed to allow the player to use any combination of characters with equal levels of success Key Features Comprehensive definitions of key concepts and terms, introducing the reader to the basic knowledge about the study of RPG design Summary of historical context of Final Fantasy VI how it came to be, how it diverges sharply from the class-based design ideas of older RPGs, and what systems in uses to replace those old ideas Extensive collections of data and data visualizations explaining how Final Fantasy VI’s systems work, how those systems evolve across the course of the game, and how the overall game systems were designed to be balanced easily
This hilarious collection of over 300 puns, one-liners, and classic jokes dedicated to the fun of RPGs is perfect for you share with your fellow gaming compatriots! Why don’t dragons like to eat paladins? They taste lawful. Laugh out loud at over 300 zingy one-liners and eye-rolling puns with this collection of tabletop-based humor, dedicated to the fun of RPGs like Dungeons and Dragons, Pathfinder, and more! A Dragon Walks into a Bar gives you hours of funny content that will keep you smiling. Whether you use them as inspiration for your level 20 comedian bard to crack wise during battle or if you just want a giggle in between turns, this book has everything you’ve been looking for.
The Reverse Design series looks at all of the design decisions that went into classic video games. This is the second installment in the Reverse Design series, looking at Chrono Trigger. Written in a readable format, it is broken down into four sections examining some of the most important topics to the game: Analyzes how the designers use gameplay to preserve and embellish the surprises in the plot Explains how Chrono Trigger is really two different games: the Tragedy of the Entity and the Comedy of the Sages. Highlights how the two games differ in terms of tone, linearity, player choice and in the pacing of their content. Key Features Comprehensive definitions of key concepts and terms, introducing the reader to the basic knowledge about the study of RPG design Summary of historical context of Chrono Trigger how it came to be, how it influenced other games, and how it manipulated players through expectations they had about the RPG genre Extensive collections of data and data visualizations explaining how Chrono Trigger’s systems work and how the game’s challenges increase in complexity as the player gets deeper into the content
Role-playing game historian Ben Riggs unveils the secret history of TSR— the company that unleashed imaginations with Dungeons & Dragons, was driven into ruin by disastrous management decisions, and then saved by their bitterest rival. "Ben Riggs manages to walk the fine line between historical accuracy and fun about as well as anyone and SLAYING THE DRAGON is equal parts historical accuracy and entertainment. It was an essential read for me while directing and producing the Official D&D documentary but I’d recommend it to anyone regardless of the subject material. It’s a wild and fun ride through the turbulent history of one the most influential brands in our lifetime." - JOE MANGANIELLO Co-created by wargame enthusiasts Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, the original Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game released by TSR (Tactical Studies Rules) in 1974 created a radical new medium: the role-playing game. For the next two decades, TSR rocketed to success, producing multiple editions of D&D, numerous settings for the game, magazines, video games, New York Times bestselling novels by Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman, and R. A. Salvatore, and even a TV show! But by 1997, a series of ruinous choices and failed projects brought TSR to the edge of doom—only to be saved by their fiercest competitor, Wizards of the Coast, the company behind the collectible card game Magic: The Gathering. Unearthed from Ben Riggs’s own adventurous campaign of in-depth research, interviews with major players, and acquisitions of secret documents, Slaying the Dragon reveals the true story of the rise and fall of TSR. Go behind the scenes of their Lake Geneva headquarters where innovative artists and writers redefined the sword and sorcery genre, managers and executives sabotaged their own success by alienating their top talent, ignoring their customer fanbase, accruing a mountain of debt, and agreeing to deals which, by the end, made them into a publishing company unable to publish so much as a postcard. As epic and fantastic as the adventures TSR published, Slaying the Dragon is the legendary tale of the rise and fall of the company that created the role-playing game world.
Fictional war narratives often employ haunted battlefields, super-soldiers, time travel, the undead and other imaginative elements of science fiction and fantasy. This encyclopedia catalogs appearances of the strange and the supernatural found in the war stories of film, television, novels, short stories, pulp fiction, comic books and video and role-playing games. Categories explore themes of mythology, science fiction, alternative history, superheroes and "Weird War."
Reviews over 400 seminal games from 1975 to 2015. Each entry shares articles on the genre, mod suggestions and hints on how to run the games on modern hardware.
Dungeons & Dragons. It’s the fantasy role-playing game first conceived over fifty years ago by the now-legendary company TSR ,which has enthralled millions of devoted gamers around the world for generations. It’s a test of skill, intelligence, audacity, and survival. But no D&D game ever played could compare to the stunning behind-the-scenes melee for power and dominance that was the true story of TSR. Slaying the Dragon chronicles the rise and fall of TSR (Tactical Studies Rules), how the brilliant and wild minds of the legendary Gary Gygax and his co-creator Dave Arneson gave birth to a game that would capture the imagination of outsiders and underdogs throughout the world. From its humble beginnings in the small town of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin to its emergence as a cultural phenomenon, TSR soon spawned an unlikely empire of games and geekdom—with Dungeons & Dragons leading the way—that was decades ahead of its time, inviting both hyper-devoted fans as well as hysteria surrounding the game’s supposed corrupting influence on America’s youth. TSR was in the news, in the money, and on top of the world. But success soon took its toll, with creative control and rivalries within the firm threatening the stability of TSR. Former allies grew apart personally and professionally, and the formerly fun, freewheeling firm founded by a band of misfits collapsed into a desperate struggle for survival. Despite attempts to grow in a changing market, setbacks and management decisions put TSR in a downward spiral in the 1990s which resulted in the company's death and then resurrection by the most unlikely of saviors. With author access to previously unreleased documents and insider stories, and interviews with former TSR employees and associates who witnessed the high-stakes machinations and maneuvering that would eventually seal the company’s fate, Slaying the Dragon is a fascinating, revealing tale of friends turned enemies, success and failure, and loyalty and betrayal that no roll of the die could predict... "Riggs has written a fascinating and dishy account of the business hits and whistling misses of a band of dreamers, writers, artists, and geeks... A must-read for fighters, magic-users, and even bards -- and everyone else, too." — Brad Ricca, Edgar-nominated author of Mrs. Sherlock Holmes and True Raiders"Far from a fluff piece on a beloved hobby, this book goes behind the GM's screen to take a hard-nosed look at the people and circumstances that first gave rise to D&D, then nearly killed it -- twice. Riggs takes you on a roller-coaster from boom to near bankruptcy, but never loses sight of the individuals involved, the good, the bad, and the geeky." — Marie Brennan, Hugo-Award nominated author of the Memoirs of Lady Trent series
