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By Editor T. Rob Brown
MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin (March 4, 2008) -- Although some may joke that he didn’t make his final savings throw, none can argue with the major impact Gary Gygax had on the world of fantasy.

Unfortunately, the genius that co-created the world-famous Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game system along with Dave Arneson, has died at the age of 69. Gamers the world over will miss the creations, sage gamer advice, and new worlds he might have created. Credited as the creator of the ever-popular Greyhawk setting, which for much of its life, was the cornerstone world of Dungeons & Dragons. Eventually, other worlds created by other game designers were added to the mix. Gygax’s main world spawned a series of Roleplaying Gamers Association (RPGA) adventures under the title “Living Greyhawk” that ran almost up until the present.

Gygax was a common sight at major conventions like GenCon in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he often was one of the main guests of honor due to his major contributions to gaming -- often he is referred to as the father, or one of the fathers, of fantasy roleplaying. His work has been spin-off into a theatrical movie (Dungeons & Dragons), a TV movie also released direct-to-DVD (Dungeons & Dragons II: Wrath of the Dragon God), an animated TV series, card games, comic books, and so much more.

By Editor T. Rob Brown
INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (Aug. 16, 2007) -- During a special announcement at GenCon Indy, the veil of secrecy surrounding the possibility of a Fourth Edition to Dungeons & Dragons began to lift.

Key Wizards of the Coast design research and development team members (Bill Slavicsek and Christopher Perkins) announced the 2008 release of the game’s fourth edition at "The Best Four Days in Gaming." The new edition will still be part of the d20 system but will be more streamlined.

The following changes were announced: Thirty levels, easier to DM, defined roles, new power sources, resource management, and new encounter design. Fourth edition is divided into four key parts: The physical product (books, miniatures, etc.), organized play (such as RPGA games and special events like the Worldwide D&D Game Day), the community (through the new Gleemax), and digital offering (D&D Insider).

The new D&D Insider went live online shortly after the announcement was made. The new E-zine includes the types of things players came to expect from Dungeon and Dragon magazines. In addition, it offers expanded content, behind the scenes, designer commentaries, podcasts, and an E-version (a PDF of the books players buy, which will include a product code to access the download).

Of all the announcements, the addition of official Wizards of the Coast PDFs for the hardcopy buyers received the largest applause from attendees.

The online resources are expected to have a populated database to add new functionality to the tools that are there. D&D Insider is supposed to have new articles three times per week and monthly digital issues combining all that content. The online tools will include encounter and dungeon builders and a monster database.

Currently, D&D Insider is in preview mode and is free. Later, there will be a fee. Subscribers can utilize applications that offer such things as a D&D game table where players can join in online games whenever and wherever they want. Voice chat and text chat will be available as well. The map can be drawn on and digital miniatures are used for movement. DMs can call up images for handouts.

If you sign up for D&D Insider soon, you might be eligible to playtest Fourth Edition.

What will Fourth Edition be like? Many of the hints Wizards of the Coast gave included a more streamlined system -- which is exactly what they did with Star Wars Saga Edition. It is quite likely that some or many of the changes to that game will also be unveiled as new changes to D&D.

By Editor T. Rob Brown
AT RETAILERS (June 13, 2007) -- Rather you dreamed of dominating worlds with an Imperial fleet, protecting them as the Rebellion, or participating in the Clone Wars, your time is now.

Wizkids, known for their Pirates of the Spanish Main TCG, HeroClix, and MageKnight games, has released another game that’s sure to sell well and grow in popularity: Star Wars Pocketmodel TCG.

So what makes this game special other than being yet another game bearing the Star Wars franchise? Consider it a hybrid CCG and miniatures game, if you will. Learning from the success of Wizkids’ highly-popular Pirates franchise, they mastered the plastic constructible collector card game, and have now brought that knowledge to the Star Wars Universe. Yet, that’s not where the appeal of this game ends.

Not only does each booster pack contain four to eight ships (in a mixture of commons, uncommons, and rares -- though a rare is not guaranteed in every pack, just like the Pirates boosters), but also six collector cards that affect the outcome of the game. In most modern miniatures games, each miniature includes a card but the card merely reflects the capabilities of that particular miniature and otherwise has no game effect. Instead, the Pocketmodel TCG system incorporates cards that also come in a mixture of commons, uncommons, and rares, which modify game play each turn. In addition, they have incorporated Objective cards in a similar concept to the old Star Trek and Star Wars CCGs by Decipher.

Through the use of Objective cards, players no longer have to destroy all of the enemy fleet in order to win the game. By destroying all three of your opponent’s objectives you can also win. This system allows for new and different strategies than used before in some CCGs or in some miniatures games. In addition, this game is smooth and handles well in short sessions -- it’s sure to please tournament fans as well as the casual gamer who likes to get in a game or two on occasion. You don’t need to take complicated measurements for space travel -- instead, WizKids made it simple and to the point -- there are only three regions of space: Your zone, your opponent’s zone, and the contested zone. After all, there’s hyperspace in Star Wars anyway, right? Why boggle the game down with unnecessary complexities? Keep it simple and therefore, keep it fun!

Already, powerful ships like the Millenium Falcon are selling for a pretty penny on ebay. If trends hold, this could be one of the hottest new games of 2007. WizKids has already brought out foil alternate cards for tournament support and are available at some retailers -- it appears they are ready to back this product with a community, tournaments and good prize support. For the hardcore gamers, this type of extended support can make or break a game.

Another little-known fact right now is that Imperial Power-Up Packs have variant rare cards, depending on where you purchase the box set. The Imperial Power-Up Packs include the following exclusives: Darth Vader’s Imperial-class Star Destroyer (from Episode IV: A New Hope), a rare; Darth Vader’s Lambda-class shuttle, an uncommon; two Talon Squadron X-wing starfighters, commons; and several common TIE fighter models. In addition, there are 30 cards. Of these 30 cards, every Imperial Power-Up Pack includes three exclusive uncommons, one each of: Boarding Party, Tractor Beam, and Admiral Piett. Those cards bear a "P" before their number to designate them as exclusives. There are three other exclusive cards, all rares, available as well -- but acquiring them all will require serious collectors to purchase the Imperial Power-Up Pack three times, each time from a different retailer. Currently, players can purchase the hobby store pack which includes three copies of the Meditation Chamber card. Reportedly, Target and Wal-Mart will each have three copies of a different rare (these rares are listed on the checklist). Since each pack comes with three copies of the exclusive rares, and one each of the exclusive uncommons -- a serious collector could purchase one from each of the three retailers and be able to field all three of each card in their deck (the constructible play deck is 30 cards, of which no card may be repeated more than three times).

For further information on which ships are included and which cards are available, check out our lists HERE.

By Editor T. Rob Brown
AT RETAILERS (June 6, 2007) -- Star Wars RPG fans have been waiting since a long time ago, yet not necessarily in a galaxy far, far away, for the return of the well-loved Star Wars-flavored d20 system. Now, the circle is complete.

When last we met news from Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro and publisher of the Star Wars RPG d20 line, in 2005 the support of the RPG portion of their Star Wars franchise rights had taken a complete backseat to the miniatures game. Despite the release of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, the company focused on its miniatures line and left the Star Wars RPG fans stranded in space without a hyperdrive -- they even canceled the RPGA Living Force campaign. Then, in early 2006, RPG stats were suddenly included with some of the company’s Star Wars Miniatures line products. This was followed up by an announcement at Gen Con Indy 2006 that they were working on a new Star Wars Roleplaying Game Saga Edition Core Rulebook, scheduled for an April 2007 release.

Despite some expected delays, the fruit of that labor is now on store shelves and in the hands of many die-hard Star Wars RPG fans. Initial reactions from the fans might have included, "another core rulebook?", "It’s about time they included Revenge of the Sith material," or "Where did armor class go?" The truth of the matter is that Wizards has completely revamped the rules system -- they’ve streamlined it, made it sleeker, faster to play, easier to create characters with, and made lots of changes that just might appear in upcoming versions of their more-popular Dungeons & Dragons RPG line.

By streamlining the classes down to five basic, starting classes, it might seem like they've taken options away from the players but in fact, the options are vast. Through the use of a new Talent system, each class has numerous variants via Talent trees for wide customization opportunities.

For instance, in the Revised Edition players could choose between three Force-based characters: Force Adept, Jedi Consular, and Jedi Guardian. To streamline this class, there is just Jedi. Within Jedi, though, are talent trees for the Jedi Consular, Jedi Guardian, Jedi Sentinel, lightsaber skills, and so much more. You can now mix and match these Feat-like abilities to build your character just the way you want them.

Want to build a gunslinging scoundrel with awesome piloting skills like Han Solo? No problem, he's still a Scoundrel class. Perhaps you want to tailor your scoundrel to be more of the gambling type like Lando Calrissian? No problem, he’s still a Scoundrel class -- just taking different Talents than Han Solo would have.

The vast number of improvements and changes to this system are too numerous to list in this article. For a time, fans will be the learner. The best way to soak up the new system is to play the game with some friends or pick up the book and delve into its immersive chapters.

ALLEN, Texas (March 18, 2006) -- The Game Manufacturer's Association (GAMA) announced that Magnificent Egos boxed set MEO1018, Galladon with Rose Immaculate Steed received an ORIGINS Vanguard Award Nomination. The Vanguard Award category for Unique Game Products is reserved for game products and accessories that push the boundaries of current conventions.

Galladon is a multi-part, pewter and resin kit containing a scale model of the 6'7" paladin, Galladon, both standing with sword drawn and mounted with pennant/lance on his giant, celestial Clydesdale, Rose. The true centerpiece of the kit is the large warhorse clad in filigreed barding and finely detailed rose vines. The figure was designed by top fantasy artist Jason Engle and sculpted by renowned sculptor Sandra Garrity.

"We are ecstatic about this," Magnificent Egos President Chris Clark said. "The amount of detail and precision required really pushed both the artist and sculptor and required that we really stretch our production methods. It is fantastic to be recognized for our work and we are grateful to the Academy of Adventure Game Art and Design for the nomination."

MEO1018 Galladon w/ Rose Immaculate Steed is available from retailers now or at the Magnificent Egos website (www.magnificentegos.com). It is available to retailers through ACD, Blackhawk and Alliance Games. For more information about obtaining Galladon or promotional material for retail stores, please email Steve Creech (screech@magnificentegos.com).

Magnificent Egos, Inc is a Texas based manufacturer of fine pewter and resin, fantasy figurines for modeling and gaming. To obtain a catalog of their products, please email James Stubbs (nigerianoilminister@magnificentegos.com)

BioWare Corp. announces new studio
New studio recruiting for MMORPG project

EDMONTON, Alberta, Canada (March 13, 2006) -- Canadian videogame developer BioWare Corp. has announced the opening of a new studio, BioWare Austin, based in Austin, Texas. It is the second of BioWare’s studios and the first to be located outside of Canada.

BioWare Austin has already begun work on a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) title; the new game will mark BioWare’s debut in the massively multiplayer online space. BioWare has recruited some of the top talent in MMO and RPG development, both to manage the development efforts at BioWare Austin and to collaborate with the experienced team at BioWare Edmonton, to develop a game that combines the best of BioWare's great past games with a compelling persistent online experience. Joining the Austin team as lead designer is James Ohlen, BioWare's Creative Director, whose previous credits include lead or co-lead design roles on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Neverwinter Nights, Baldur's Gate and Baldur’s Gate II. Also leading the BWA team are MMO veterans Richard Vogel and Gordon Walton. Richard Vogel brings 15 years of experience to BioWare Austin, previously serving as VP of Product Development for Sony Online Entertainment’s Austin studio, as well as launching Ultima Online as a senior producer at Origin. Gordon Walton recently served as VP, studio manager and executive producer at Sony Online Entertainment as well as VP and Executive Producer at Electronic Arts.

"BioWare is committed to a seamless collaboration between our two studios to ensure the same high standards of quality and creativity our dedicated teams have always delivered," said Ray Muzyka, co-founder and Joint CEO of BioWare. "With our extensive heritage in the role-playing genre, BioWare Austin is extremely well positioned to innovate in the massively multiplayer online space for BioWare’s valued community of fans."

The new BioWare Austin comes soon after the formation of BioWare/Pandemic Studios, a partnership facilitated by private equity firm Elevation Partners. The new entity combines top videogame developers BioWare Corp., an industry leader in the role-playing game genre, and Pandemic Studios, an award-winning developer of best-selling action titles.

BioWare Corp. is an electronic entertainment company which develops computer and console video games "focused on rich stories and memorable characters." BioWare’s developers are currently working on Mass Effect, a brand new BioWare-created intellectual property, and an Xbox 360 exclusive, to be published by Microsoft. Mass Effect is "an epic science-fiction role-playing game set in a spectacular new vision of the future." BioWare recently completed work on Jade Empire, the first game based on a BioWare-created intellectual property. Jade Empire was released in April 2005 and has enjoyed critical and commercial success. BioWare is also hard at work on Dragon Age, a high fantasy RPG set in another brand-new world created and owned by BioWare. BioWare's Technology Architecture Group is also developing the cutting-edge next-generation BioWare Eclipse Engine technology for multiple platforms. BioWare has an online fan community at www.bioware.com consisting of almost 3 million registered users who regularly connect to discuss the company’s current and future games. In November 2004, the company launched the BioWare Online Store at store.bioware.com, where fans can purchase new content for their favorite BioWare titles and merchandise. Previously published projects include: the action-RPG of 2005 for Xbox, Jade Empire; the 2003 Game of the Year, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic for PC and Xbox; the award-winning Neverwinter Nights series; the genre-defining Baldur’s Gate role-playing game series for the PC; MDK2 for Dreamcast and PC, MDK2: Armageddon for PlayStation2, and Shattered Steel.

AT RETAILERS (March 1, 2006) -- In the distance, the sound of the War Drums echo over the rolling hills as the armies prepare to face off in mortal combat.

Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures: War Drums was released this week at retailers in the United States. This new set features a higher amount of fighter classes and various warrior factions than previous D&D Minis sets.

Fans of Eberron’s warforged will be happy to find four new warforged in this army's ranks: Warforged Captain, Warforged Scout, Warforged Bodyguard, and the Warforged Barbarian. With the uncanny success of Eberron, it’s no surprise this race would be so featured in this set.

Dragon fans will be pleased to see the Large Bronze Dragon, which has an excellent paint job and sculpt as do a great many of the miniatures in this set. Several longtime minis fans at Changing Hands Book Shoppe in Joplin, Mo., reported they thought this was the best-painted set of D&D Minis they’ve seen yet.

This set also includes six Epic characters, as first introduced in the last release: D&D Minis: Underdark.

War Drums is the third set of D&D Minis to come in a starter box in addition to the standard booster boxes. Starter boxes retail for $19.95 and include several extra miniatures, including two specific ones (commons) for a specific combat scenario included in the box. The starter box also includes two new maps for the minis game. Booster boxes include the standard eight minis and retail at $12.95.

AT RETAILERS (March 1, 2006) -- If the yapping noises of Ewoks and the zapping noises of blaster rifles weren’t enough to let you know the Attack on Endor had begun, the shaking of the trees as the Imperial AT-ST stomps its way on through might be your final answer.

Star Wars Miniatures: Attack on Endor was released this week at retailers in the United States. This new set features a repaint of the AT-ST huge miniature released in the SW Minis: Universe set in August 2005 and re-releases of three Imperial troops: Scout Trooper, Stormtrooper and Stormtrooper Officer. The only differences are a different symbol on the bottom of the minis as well as a different symbol on their cards. All you need to complete this scene is a small, rag-tag army of Ewoks to slaughter at will. Ewoks were part of the SW Minis: Rebel Storm set released in August 2004 and later re-released in 2005.

This new set retails for $19.95 and also includes two double-sided maps and a scenario booklet that also includes statistics for several characters (and also the BARC Speeder and Boga the varactyl, aka Obi-Wan’s mount from Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith) for the Star Wars Roleplaying Game Revised Edition d20 by Wizards of the Coast. Fans of the Expanded Universe will be pleased to get RPG stats for Kyle Katarn (Dark Forces/Jedi Knight series of computer games), Dark Trooper Phase III (from the same games), Grand Admiral Thrawn (from Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy of novels), Baron Fel (Imperial pilot from the Rogue Squadron novels), plus Prince Xizor and his follower Guri (both from the Shadows of the Empire novel and games).

Spider-MIB sighted

By Editor T. Rob Brown
ONLINE (Feb. 24, 2006) -- It's official -- movie Spider-Man is now an MIB.

According to the official Spider-Man 3 movie website at SonyPictures.com, the webhead will be wearing black in the third installment of Sam Raimi's movie series based on Marvel Comics’ famed wall-crawler.

In leiu of singing the Will Smith Men in Black theme song, he might decide to choose Back in Black by AC/DC.

Previously, Sony released a photo (see below) on Oct. 5, 2005, of one of the villains who has a striking resemblance to Sandman from the comics (Thomas Haden Church as Flint Marko -- aka Sandman).

"In addition to the on-going relationship between Peter Parker and M.J., these films are driven by the great actors who have brought our villains to life," Raimi told Sony Pictures’ website. "Thomas Haden Church will be a fantastic and challenging new nemesis and we all look forward to working with him."

Keeping in mind the addition of the black costume, this leads us to the questions: Will Venom be the other villain? Is the addition of the black costume only a precursor to Venom becoming the key villain for Spider-Man 4? Every avid Spider-Man fan out there knows Venom is a strong enough supervillain to be a one-villain movie, just as were the Green Goblin and Dr. Octopus.

Photo Credit: Merie Wallace for Sony Pictures

Another key cast member, Topher Grace (most famous for That ’70s Show), was announced back on May 19, 2005, for Spider-Man 3, by director Sam Raimi and producers Laura Ziskin and Marvel Studio’s Avi Arad. Grace joins Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, and Thomas Haden Church in the blockbuster franchise.

"Spider-Man will face double the trouble in our next film and I couldn't be more excited about the direction we are taking Peter Parker and the franchise," Raimi said. "Topher Grace is an extraordinarily-talented actor and will be perfect for the complexities of the role we are developing."

If the rumor mill is correct, Grace will be playing Eddie Brock, who becomes Venom. Even if you don't believe the rumors, Kirsten Dunst, who plays Mary Jane, accidentally let it slip in a media interview that Church and Grace were playing Sandman and Venom. Reportedly, Dunst had not seen the movie’s script at that time.

Given all the cameos or tie-ins to the comics, it can be difficult to guess just which supervillains will pop up and when in Sam Raimey’s rendition. One thing money can probably safely bet on is that Bruce Campbell will return for a third Spider-Man cameo.

In the past two movies, brief cameos or references were made to Eddie Brock (the Daily Bugle reporter who becomes Venom and who hates photojournalist Peter Parker/Spider-Man for getting him fired from the newspaper), Dr. Conners (who becomes the Lizard), J. Jonah Jameson’s son (who becomes the Man-Wolf due to a moon rock that grafts itself to his skin -- and in some versions of the story, brings the alien symbiote -- aka the black costume and aka later as Venom -- down from outerspace), and countless others.

In the comics, Spider-Man was forced to rip the moon rock from Man-Wolf's throat, accidentally killing J. Jonah Jameson's son in the process. For this deed, Jameson was never able to forgive the web-slinger and went on to hire thugs to kill Spider-Man, and even went so far as to create the Scorpion to help fulfill his want for revenge. Will the movies follow the plot of the comics? Perhaps or perhaps only loosely. Marvel has been known to re-write its own storylines, as do many other comic companies, to conform to changes in society and technology.

At this point, only Sam Raimi knows. One thing’s for sure: Tobey Maguire returns as Peter Parker / Spider-Man in Spider-Man 3, in movie theaters May 4, 2007.

The Spider-Man film franchise has grossed more than $1.5 billion in worldwide ticket sales to date. Production on Spider-Man 3, which was written by Alvin Sargent, was scheduled to begin early 2006.

Gen Con committed to Indianapolis
Indy's largest annual convention to remain

SEATTLE, Wash. (Feb. 10, 2006) - Gamers around the world can continue to anticipate the fun and excitement of the annual Gen Con convention right in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. Gen Con LLC is pleased to announce the Gen Con Indy convention will indeed remain in Indianapolis for the next several years.

Gen Con has confirmed that they will be returning to Indianapolis in 2006 to celebrate the company’s 39th year and to continue the fine tradition that has been established in Indianapolis. Gen Con has signed an agreement for an additional four more years in Indianapolis, keeping the convention in the city at least through 2010.

"We are thrilled to keep Gen Con in Indianapolis," said Peter Adkison, CEO of Gen Con LLC. "The city has worked with us to address the question of size and capacity and we are satisfied that the needs for space for attendees and exhibitors will be met.
"Ultimately we need to provide our attendees and exhibitors with the best possible show we can produce and Indianapolis is the place where that can happen."

For the past three years, the Indiana Convention Center has been home to the largest consumer game convention in North America. Staying in Indianapolis has been Gen Con’s goal considering the success of the past three years at the convention center. When last years attendance reached more than 25,000, a 13-percent increase over the previous year, discussions were raised concerning the increasing numbers and whether the facility would be large enough to accommodate the growing event.

"Gen Con has quickly earned a special place in the heart of our city," said Bob Schultz, spokesperson for the Indiana Convention & Visitors Association. "We are thrilled at Gen Con's decision to become an annual event on our convention calendar and promise to meet and exceed gamers’ expectations for outstanding visitor service and value in Indianapolis for years to come."

In 2005, Gen Con’s "Best Four Days In Gaming" generated more than $35 million in direct visitor spending for the Indianapolis community the financial equivalent of hosting an NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four.

At Gen Con gaming enthusiasts don’t simply attend — they participate in more than 5,000 gaming events including interactive game play, hobby-related events, and computer gaming. Attendees can join in card games, board games, role-playing games, live-action role-playing games, seminars and workshops ranging in topics from how to develop games to how to paint miniatures.

Gen Con has more than 250 booths from which enthusiasts can learn more about their favorite games and products with companies ranging from the biggest in the business to hot, smaller shops. Often game manufacturers use Gen Con as
a stepping stone to display their new games or to run premier tournaments. Gamers can now mark their calendars for the next great gaming event. Gen Con Indy 2006 will take place Aug. 10-13 at the Indianapolis Convention Center. With more new-product introductions than any other game convention in the U.S., Gen Con is the place where consumers, game manufactures, and vendors get together to experience the latest and greatest in the gaming industry, along with time-honored classics. For more information and to register, call (800) 529-EXPO or visit www.gencon.com.

Gen Con, LLC produces the largest consumer fantasy, sci-fi and adventure game convention in North America. Its operations include Gen Con Indy, Gen Con So Cal and Star Wars Celebration III, and licensee for European Gen Con shows. It was founded in May of 2002 by former CEO and founder of Wizards of the Coast Peter Adkison, who solely owns the company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. The company’s mission is to create The Best Four Days of Gaming! every year for its customers. For more information visit the website at www.gencon.com.

The Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association’s mission is to advance Indianapolis tourism and economic growth. The total annual economic impact of tourism on the Indianapolis economy is $3.2 billion, which leads the way to 76,000 full-time equivalent positions in the hospitality industry. For more information about Indianapolis and the ICVA, go to www.indy.org.

[Editor's Note: Edits for grammar, punctuation, artifacts, and syntax made to press releases by GamingNews Editor T. Rob Brown, http://t-rob.com]

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