The new Swords & Wizardry Complete version is now available for sale here. For those who don't know, this is the standard Swords & Wizardry (a clone of the "little brown books" OD&D), plus lots of stuff from the later supplements now added in. It seems planted very firmly between OD&D and 1E AD&D, which I suspect may appeal to a lot of people who liked all the class options of AD&D (you get everything but the Illusionist and Bard with this book), but also preferred the simpler combat mechanics of OD&D or B/X. I'll probably do a more in-depth review once I've had a chance to give it a thorough read-thru, but it seems like a worthy purchase.
Note also that this was produced by Frog God Games (formerly giant third-party D&D publisher Necromancer Games), so you're getting layout and art (a lot of art) as professional as they come, which is kind of neat to look at in conjunction with a 35+ year old ruleset! And its not that much more polished than the DIY retro-clones already out there, which is good, 'cause I tend to like DIY more than polished. At any rate, it can help you imagine what D&D might have been like today if the game's owners had, as Call of Cthulhu's owners, decided to refine rather than overhaul, re-imagine, and redefine the game every 8 years or so.
Pick it up soon if you want it, there's only 300 first-print copies (hardcover + softcover), but be patient: as of this posting, the ordering servers are a bit overloaded. You get a free .pdf of the book with purchase of the hardcopy, so you have something to read while you're waiting for the postman!
Footnote: As a ref, I'm appreciating the fleshed-out wilderness encounter tables, and the "sneak peaks" at Matt's Mythrus Tower and Bill's Rappan Athuk dungeons included in this book.
Update (if ordering still down at site): We broke the server this morning due to high volume of orders--you may paypal me directly to this email (bill@talesofthefroggod.com)--include a subject line stating which books. Shipping will be emailed to each person to pay separately. -Bill W.
The bit of Rappan Athuk map is never-before-seen, too.
ReplyDeleteLove the cover :)
ReplyDelete@Matt - Rappan Athuk should be the next big S&W conversion imo :)
ReplyDeleteOrdered mine. I looked through the pdf and it looks great! I totally agree with you on the DIY thing. FGG did a great job on capturing the hobbyist spirit. I do feel it makes my art in the OSRIC 2.0 look shabby. Ah well, just gives me more incentive to better my work (and kick my own OSR project into high gear).
ReplyDeleteTrying to order for the last 2 hours, I click but and it just reloads the page...sigh...hope I get one!
ReplyDeleteUpdate from Matt: We are going to sell out of the hardcovers today, it is almost certain. Bill is pretty sure some are left, the situation is a bit unclear because he has gotten more than 300 emails today.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to get one and the FGG website is not letting you, paypal Bill at:
bill at talesofthefroggod.com
Do not include anything for shipping, just the cost of the book. He will send a separate invoice for the shipping.
Got my softcover order in- Bill & I both had surgery around the same time, was hoping I'd be able to get on a computer before they all got bought up! Really looking forward to this.
ReplyDeleteNow if that other dude would get Warriors of the red Planet out, all my XMAS gaming wishes would come true ;) :D
Thanks for the wonderful review, Ravyn.
ReplyDeleteOn the point of the old-school feel, Matt gets just as much credit on that feel as I (the layout guy) do. Art selection and final appearance was really a collaborative effort.
I also have to say that I laugh a little when I read the hobbyist statements and how we managed to capture it. I still consider myself a hobbyist!
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ReplyDelete