Sketches

 I wonder what these sketches could be for?

Hey, what's going on in here?

 

It seems the Mad Scientist is working on something secret in his laboratory of horrors... I wonder what it will be? Is it anything to do with Warriors of the Red Planet? Something even more nefarious? Stay posted...

Warriors of the Red Planet RPG now available

-Whew-! That was a fair bit of work, but Warriors of the Red Planet RPG is now online ready for purchase. I decided to go with Lulu for now.

Remember this is a Beta edition, it has gone through multiple edits, still you may find occasional typos, some unclear passages, and some areas that could use a little more fleshing out. But it is at the point where it needs to be viewed and played by more people so we can get that feedback. (and please, discuss your experience with WotRP on our forum here: Platemail Forum)

While it may not yet be absolutely perfect, it is a damn fun read and I think you'll have a blast.

Right now it is only available as a print-on-demand book, but I verified the quality is very good. You will be happy to have this in your library.

For information on where to buy it please visit the Original Edition blog.

UPDATE: now available in PDF as well as print @ RPGNow.

Warriors of the Red Planet update

A quick update on WotRP here.

Post Kublacon Thoughts

Kublacon is my favorite gaming convention in the San Francisco bay area, and this year was no exception. The show, by all accounts, broke attendance records and there was a lot of activity at our booth all weekend.

For more about Warriors of the Red Planet RPG see my blog post here: http://studiodenmark.blogspot.com/2014/06/post-kublacon-thoughts.html

Warriors of the Red Planet alive and well at Kublacon

I'll be at Kublacon Game Convention in Burlingame CA this weekend. I have Warriors of the Red Planet RPG (beta edition) available at my table, along with a limited edition portfolio of 5 paintings inspired by Princess of Mars and used in the WotRP RPG.
If you plan to attend or are in the area stop by and say hi.

Cheers.

The Problem with Mapping Barsoom

I have been trying for a while now to create a decent map of Barsoom. Consulting various sources, taking notes from the books, looking at the many other homemade maps available online. One thing becomes rapidly clear. There is no definitive map of Barsoom. Contradiction after contradiction abounds. Even the books seem inconsistant - though it is harder to tell with words compared to actual pictures.

Time is running short and it looks like I'm going to have to just pick what I like best aesthetically  and create a map that works best for a semi-sandbox style game to flesh out the Barsoom-inspired Mars campaign section of the book.

Here are just a few examples of Mars maps floating about the interwebs.

One of the better maps came in the John Carter Warlord of Mars boardgame/wargame by SPI:

Another one I like is from the almost-RPG John Carter Adventure Handbook published by Heritage models:

But, of all the various maps of Mars out there, by far one of the worst is the one in the ill-fated Warlord of Mars published by TSR - which was quickly rescinded for copyright violation:

This is a very interesting topic, worthy of several posts, so I'm sure I'll have more to say about it in the coming days as I finish up the version of this map for WotRP.

Discuss this on the WotRP forum, where I'll be posting more details and images.

WotRP Preview - Egg of Crepsys

So far we've mostly previewed characters and creatures and some ships, I wanted to post something really strange. While it is listed in the creatures section of Warriors of the Red Planet, it is really just a great adventure hook.


Egg of Crepsys

An Egg of Crepsys appears to be a fist-sized iron egg that is warm and faintly pulsing to the touch. While the origins of the Eggs are unclear, it is rumored that within each gestates a member of a race so far above humanity that they may as well be gods. Thus far, none have hatched as far as anyone knows...

You can view the rest of the description and stats on the Warriors of the Red Planet forum.

Fighting Man

This screenshot from the page featuring the Fighting Man gives you an idea of what the book interior will look like. This is from the full color edition. It looks like there will be two editions of the book: a basic black & white version, and a deluxe full color version. We'll provide more details as we get closer to publication. I hope you like.

Amtor

A lot of focus has been given to Burroughs' Mars adventures, but Warriors of the Red Planet spans the entire genre of Sword and Planet which was quite a popular genre in the early 20th century mostly thanks to Burroughs and those inspired by his work.

Amtor is the name given for Venus in the Carson Napier of Venus series. While not quite as good as the Mars series, they were still rip roaring fun, particularly Pirates of Venus. This map of Amtor was drawn by Burroughs himself and was used as the end covers of the original hard back editions.

WotRP - The Mentalist

MENTALIST

Mentalists are individuals with unnaturally prodigious mental abilities. As Mentalists gain experience, they hone their prowess and add more options to their suite of powers. Mentalists may use any weapon, though they typically scorn much besides an ornamental dagger or pistol, and wear only the lightest armor, such as basic harness.

Mentalists roll 1d6 for each HD (max 10).

Mentalists may use a number of powers per day equal to their level before needing to rest and regain their strength. Mentalists with a Wisdom of 13 or higher may add 1 to the numbers of power uses per day. This usage may consists of any combination of the powers they know, so long as the total does not exceed their daily limit.

Mentalists with high Charisma may add their Basic Ability Modifier to powers that require a roll to-hit or damage.

Note: Due to the limited number of powers available to any individual Mentalist, one Mentalist may be very different from the next, making them as unpredictable as they are powerful. Upon gaining a level, the Mentalist may choose to “unlearn” a known power and choose a new one of the same level in its place.

Level XP              HD    Title           Powers per day (by level)

1       0                1       Aspirant     1/

2       2500           2       -                 2/     

3       5000           3       Initiate       2/1

4       10000         4       -                 3/2

5       20000         5       Seer           3/2/1

6       50000         6       -                 3/2/2

7       100000       7       Adept         3/2/2/1

8       250000       8       -                 3/2/2/2

9       500000       9       Savant       3/2/2/2/1

10     1000000     10     Mindlord    3/3/2/2/2/1

Hi-Res Photos from Mars

Unless you've been hiding under a (Martian) rock, you know the Curiosity Mars Rover touched down on Mars a couple of weeks ago. Its been sending back some pretty amazing hi-res images of the landscape surrounding the landing site. More photos available here.

Only a matter of time before a Banth wanders by....

Two Posts in Two Days? Crazy!

More Warriors of the Red Planet Creatures.

Arcris
AC: 7[13]
HD: 2
Atk: snout-stab
Dmg: 1d6
Save: F2
Move: 240’(fly) or 60’(crawl)
The Arcris is a flying predator with a single delta-shaped wing and a long, needle-like blade for a snout. They typically hunt in groups of 3-12. While the most common species is ochre, there is black variation that is nearly invisible after dark.

Armae
AC: 7[13]
HD: 1d3 hit points
Atk: bite
Dmg: 1d4+poison
Save: F1
Move: 150’
Armae are orange, beetle-like creatures that typically live in the shadows beneath rocks or within ruined buildings or wrecked ships. They are scavengers, but are not above running down live prey when they have the advantage of numbers. Their scything maws are mildly poisonous; victims bitten suffer a -2 penalty to attacks unless a save is made. They typically gather in swarms of 10-40.

Warriors of the Red Planet update!

It has been a long time! I must admit the John Carter movie took the wind out of me, I wanted it to be SO good, but it was only 'just ok'. Worse yet for Burroughs fans it totally failed on the character of John Carter himself. The noble gentleman of the South willing to dive into adventure and danger for his beautiful princess was reduced to a gold-grubbing reluctant hero.

The movie wasn't a total bust, but it failed on enough levels that fans and the uninitiated alike were turned off. Bad move Disney & Andrew Stanton!

However, we drive on undaunted to achieve our goal of making the best Sword & Planet RPG every devised by man! The eminently talented Al of Beyond the Black Gate has delivered a document of unparalleled brilliance, passion, and knowledge of this most venerable of science fantasy genres - and I have taken the responsibility of illustrating it with illustrations worthy of its subject matter! So, where have I been?

Glad you asked.

This has been an eventful summer. I've taken the duty of art direction for not just one, but two of Kabam's hit titles: first The Godfather and then Edgeworld. The work of an art director is more than you would think. While the conductor doesn't play First Chair Flute, he must understand every instrument and it's place in the orchestra to make beautiful music. I hope that these games are well art directed.

I have endeavored to make great art for Warriors of the Red Planet, this does not come without the burden of time well spent working on the illustrations. You will have to be the judge of the quality.

I present to you a couple of the fantastic creatures from WotRP. More sneak peeks are forthcoming. Enjoy!

Anthipode

AC: 2[18]
HD: 3
Atk: 1d6 needles
Dmg: 1d4 per needle
Save: F3
Move: 120’
When not cloaked in its illusions, the Anthipode is an unsettling humanoid creature with writhing tentacles for arms and a smooth, featureless face with a single hole in the center of unknown purpose. Typically though, the Anthipode wraps itself in illusions, appearing to be a beautiful courtesan, savvy merchant, or whatever else would further its latest con game or provide its next fresh meal. When unmasked (typically by a physical assault), the Anthipode defends itself by shooting needle-sharp projectiles from its tentacles.

Arodel
AC: 7[13]
HD: 2
Atk: pike
Dmg: 1d8
Save: F2
Move: 90’
The Arodel are a race of crablike humanoids, typically living in tribal groups in the most desolate wastelands, though there are rumored to be a few actual cities inhabited by the creatures. They sometimes trade with civilized lands, though they often have somewhat unique interpretations of standard business deals that occasionally result in the consumption of those they trade with. Arodels favor the use of a motley array of pikes and other polearms.

These are just the black & white drawings. I plan to have all the illustrations in color and provide a low cost b&w as well as a premium color edition of WotRP if all goes well.

Thanks for reading!

More John Carter

Logan's found another one, long too!

In related news, my eleven-year-old informed me this morning that we'll be seeing this film on the imax, his treat :)

Some John Carter movie clips

Here are some new clips from the forthcoming movie that were posted over at Cimorra, my favorite German-language old-school gaming blog.




Warhoons taking orders from an effete, arrogant Thern (who must have lost his wig)? You've got some 'splainin' to do, Stanton...



Apparently this is when, in the film version, John first realizes he is on Mars. This confirms my suspicion that John gets to Mars in some other fashion than how he does it in the book: basically reaching out with his mind at the moment of his "death" to his patron planet - the god of war, as he has always been a warrior, for many normal human lifetimes. I wonder if that pesky Thern is involved in this, too?

Kudos on the "many karads of empty space" line, as well as using the names "Jasoom" and "Barsoom".



I always liked Woola, and Carter's relationship with Woola. This is my favorite of the three clips; good stuff!


Is it me, or is Kitcsh channeling the voice and inflections of Blade Runner-era Harrison Ford?

An avalanch of "authorized editions"

One of the side-effects of releasing a movie based on a book that is no longer copyrighted, is that apparently everyone and their mother has printed up a stack of their own "editions" of ERB's martian books. I noticed this while breezing through B&N yesterday. At least a dozen different editions.

Crazy.

The ones pictured above caught my eye, because if you look closely (clicking the image will make it bigger) at the ships in the sky on the third book from the left, you'll notice they are in the style of the forthcoming movies. A style of skyship I've never seen before. Peeking inside, these books are "Disney Endorsed" or something like that. So it makes me wonder if these covers are early concept art for the movie. I say early, because, short of the airships and Dejah's scimitar, nothing else looks like the movie previews. It kind of looks like Carter is wandering the bombed out ruins of WWII Berlin.

Plant Man

The final text for Warriors of the Red Planet has been delivered and the book is deep in layout. Normally it wouldn't take too long to lay a book out, but I'm also creating art for it. And the writing was so good I wanted to do a "AAA" job on the art. Well, AAA art takes time. If all goes well the book will be done by the time the John Carter movie comes out (wouldn't that be swell?!).

Here is a sneak peek of a page:

This is a typical page. The header pages have a full page illustration with a pull quote.
Layout is far from final. The way I work I set up everything into templates, so if I change the design in one place it can be updated everywhere painlessly. My goal is to have at least 1 illustration per page in the Monsters section, hopefully more time permitting. This will be a fairly heavily illustrated book when it is done.

In Layout

The document is blowing my mind. It is so well written and designed. I'm working on laying it out right now.

Martian pics from Mars Rover

All we need is for a Zodangan battle-cruiser to appear on the horizon!