Well, the playtest document is ready sooner than i expected (due to one omission, but for the purposes of this first 'test-drive', the info will more than surfice).

Intrigingly, apart from Clash, no one has come forward for the playtest. Seems more people want to work on the game than try it out!  

So, all is ready for you. If you want to give it a go, you know what to do!

In Episode 22 of the Animalcast, Mike and Kyle begin their experiment in reviewing movies so bad that they are good.  Using user suggestions from the website, the guys watch the first three movies in this episode, including Snakes on a Plane, Plan 9 From Outer Space, and Deathrace 2000.  Kyle also makes a shocking announcement about a lifestyle choice he has been hiding from everyone, and Mike bitches at Kyle over the shownotes.

Link.

In Episode 23, Mike and Kyle conclude their discussion of movies so bad they are good.  The final three movies are Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter, Sophie's Choice, and The Stink of Flesh.  Kyle also gives a Rizzob in the Hizzouse to the inventor of nicotene lozenges and Mike continues to try to answer the unanswerable question- what can brown do for you?

Link.

Signup for Chicago Gameday at Games Plus in Mt. Prospect, IL is now open.  The ENWorld link is here:

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=209609

Its an IndieForgeIPRSmallPressMidTier-heavy ('non-D&D3.5' for short) lot this time around.  For any potential paparazzis, Monte Cook was at the last one and so far we got Greg Stolze signing up.  Our very own HinterWelt will be running a game as well.

If the last Gameday was any indication, game slots will fill up very fast!

I will be running Nebuleon Operation Obelisk at EnWorld Gameday in Chicago on November 10th. If you are interested and available please go to the sign up thread on EnWorld.

Enworld Sign-up Thread

Thanks,
Bill

Is this the game I was unable to join at GenCon?  Can you handle me for another game, Bill?  And in this one, I'll be lost as I've never played a sci-fi game before (OK, who didn't try Gamma World way back when, but that doesn't count).

In fact, this is what I was going to put in the "What games do you suck at" thread.

I should get over there and sign up after clearance from the tower....

Quote from: PeteSignup for Chicago Gameday at Games Plus in Mt. Prospect, IL is now open.  The ENWorld link is here:

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=209609

Its an IndieForgeIPRSmallPressMidTier-heavy ('non-D&D3.5' for short) lot this time around.  For any potential paparazzis, Monte Cook was at the last one and so far we got Greg Stolze signing up.  Our very own HinterWelt will be running a game as well.

If the last Gameday was any indication, game slots will fill up very fast!

Dude...there are...like...5 D&D 3.5 games being run

And yeah, I did see the..what is it...break-up game...Who's Fault Was It or some such...it is definitely a...ummm...broader mix.  I was thinking about getting in on that DitV game just to see how it runs.  But it conflict with Neb, I think, and Bill wins that contest hands down.

Quote from: James J SkachIs this the game I was unable to join at GenCon?  Can you handle me for another game, Bill?  And in this one, I'll be lost as I've never played a sci-fi game before (OK, who didn't try Gamma World way back when, but that doesn't count).

In fact, this is what I was going to put in the "What games do you suck at" thread.

I should get over there and sign up after clearance from the tower....

Yep! This is Operation Obelisk that never got off the ground at GenCon. As for not having played sci-fi before, do not sweat it. When I wrote Nebuleon I had guys like you in mind. Fantasy players who like sci-fi and want to try it out. We will see if I was successful.

Bill

As it's my first cover credit, i thought i'd pimp the new systemless Freeport supplement...

Over on the Freeport blog we've posted the final cover for Cults of Freeport. Check it out at:
http://greenronin.com/freeport/

The Cults of Freeport PDF will be out soon, with the print version following next month.

Cults of Freeport
A Freeport Sourcebook
Authors: Steve Darlington, Jody Macgregor, Robert J. Schwalb, Dan White, and Chris Williams
Format: 144 pages, softback
MSRP: Print $24.95, PDF $13.50
Product Code: GRR1905
ISBN: 1-932442-88-X

On the surface Freeport is a pirate city gone legit, but in reality it is still a place of terrible secrets, foul plots, and dreadful gods. Cults of Freeport peels back the façade of the City of Adventure to take an unflinching look at its most disturbing denizens. This sourcebook describes a dozen despicable cults in lavish detail, from their goals and motivations to their tactics and impact on the city. In addition, each entry includes an overview of cult's membership and recruitment policies, as well as a myriad of plot frameworks to help you feature these groups in adventures of your own design. As with The Pirate's Guide to Freeport, Cults of Freeport does not include game statistics of any kind, so you can use it with the RPG of your choice. The Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign was just the beginning. Learn the unspeakable truth about the city's corruption in Cults of Freeport!

In Episode 25, the guys answer more viewer mail.  But first, Mike has a surprise guest jump on the microphone for an impromptu interview.  Simply put, it is the biggest name guest on the show yet.  The guys answer questions related to the ongoing war between ninjas and pirates, their favorite Dungeons and Dragons settings, the new Pathfinder series from Paizo Publishing and technical issues asked by a loyal listener.  Listener Daki poses a new game which the guys stumble through, but then request help from the listening audience.  They have a request related to their Ron Weasley for Muggle President 2008 prank, and in response to another listener questions they speculate on Dungeons and Dragons 4.0.  And finally, Kyle responds to the vicious attacks on him from the Reel Horror Podcast.

Link

In Episode 26, the guys try to talk about Heroscape, the miniature-style wargame by Hasbro.  But they get sidetracked by a lot of side issues.  First they offer some expensive comics in return to anyone that can provide a good, original theme song.  They talk about Kyle's bad haircut and what not to tell your barber.  Mike goes on about how much he loves Allen Varney and Paranoia XP.  Mike and Kyle also talk about Paizo Publishing's Critical Hit Deck, and their new Pathfinder books for Dungeons and Dragons 3.5.  Kyle gets nearly orgasmic reviewing Paizo's current Rise of the Runelords adventure arc.

Finally the guys get around to talking about the subject at hand.  Both Mike and Kyle have been playing Heroscape for many years with their kids and have loved the game since it first came out.  The guys talk about the basics of the game, the low cost of getting into it, the ease of rules, and epic battles they have waged.  They discuss the merits of having Snake Warriors fighting Futuristic Robot Warriors fighting the Hulk and Spiderman.  Kyle promises in the show to link to some sample maps from the animalball forums, but when typing up the show notes decides it is just too much trouble.  Just kidding.

Link to Podcast.

Over at the Hoard blog, I've started putting up daily sample and reference pages that can be downloaded.

Here's an example: The Fledgling

The idea goes like this - if you're already a stakeholder, these are updates to keep you posted on progress.  If you're not, they're a promotion...

...And once I get to the ashcan, they'll become download-and-print rules handouts for character creation, so that you can have everything about your character printed off in a tidy stack.

Quote from: One Horse TownAs it's my first cover credit, i thought i'd pimp the new systemless Freeport supplement...

Over on the Freeport blog we've posted the final cover for Cults of Freeport. Check it out at:
http://greenronin.com/freeport/

The Cults of Freeport PDF will be out soon, with the print version following next month.

Cults of Freeport
A Freeport Sourcebook
Authors: Steve Darlington, Jody Macgregor, Robert J. Schwalb, Dan White, and Chris Williams
Format: 144 pages, softback
MSRP: Print $24.95, PDF $13.50
Product Code: GRR1905
ISBN: 1-932442-88-X

On the surface Freeport is a pirate city gone legit, but in reality it is still a place of terrible secrets, foul plots, and dreadful gods. Cults of Freeport peels back the façade of the City of Adventure to take an unflinching look at its most disturbing denizens. This sourcebook describes a dozen despicable cults in lavish detail, from their goals and motivations to their tactics and impact on the city. In addition, each entry includes an overview of cult's membership and recruitment policies, as well as a myriad of plot frameworks to help you feature these groups in adventures of your own design. As with The Pirate's Guide to Freeport, Cults of Freeport does not include game statistics of any kind, so you can use it with the RPG of your choice. The Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign was just the beginning. Learn the unspeakable truth about the city's corruption in Cults of Freeport!

This has been out in pdf for a while and the print version is coming soon. Here's a bit more detail on the cults within the covers...

The Brotherhood of the Yellow Sign: A foul group of madmen devoted to the horrific Unspeakable One.
The Priesthood of Yig: The ancient religion of the lost Valossan Empire that seeks to find its place in a world dominated by lesser races.
The Lost Souls of Yarash: Bloodthirsty pirates that butcher innocents to glorify their bloody-handed god.
The Esoteric Order of Starry Wisdom: A hidden cabal of wizards behind Freeport's Wizards' Guild who search for the power contained within the elusive Azoth Stone.
Scions of the Destroyer: A filthy cult of demon-worshippers, they strive to release Abaddon from the Bottomless Pit and usher in the final age of the world.
The Charnel Children: A ghoulish pack of cannibal children led by a muttering lunatic devoted to the bestial Charnel God.
The Society of the Velvet Whip: Deviants dedicated to the exploration of pleasure and pain, they infest Freeport and erode its morality with their excess.
The Obsidian Brotherhood: A strange cell of killers and scholars united in their thirst for the knowledge contained within the fragments of a being known only as the Wanderer.

My sections of the book are the Scions of the Destroyer and The Obsidian Brotherhood chapters.

ABG Releases Instant Game Full Version for Free Download.

Animalball Games is proud to announce that it has completed it's magnum opus, Instant Game, and is releasing the RPG for free download on its website.   Want to play a traditional fantasy wizard trapped in a modern world populated by superheroes?  We've got that.  How about far future elves trying to survive on a dying planet slowly being eaten by the Dark Lords of the void dimension?  We've got that too.  How about a Ben Franklin clone trained in drunken monkey fighting battling his way through an underground middle-earth dungeon?  Yup.

What is Instant Game? Instant Game is a tool for creating and playing new RPG settings on the spot. With the Instant Game charts and our flexible Instant Game rules set, you can roll up a completely original setting and plot, create and develop characters "on the fly," and be ready to roleplay in just a matter of minutes. We know that seems incredible on its surface, but it is also a wonderfully real possibility. Instant Game is painless, as well as being some of the most exciting and challenging gaming you'll find.

A lot of roleplaying games claim to be "pick up and play" games.  They're full of it, because Instant Game is the real deal.

How does it work? The steps to creating an Instant Game are simple:

1) The GM rolls on the tables to get the Instant Setting and Instant Plot elements.
2) The GM and players put the Instant Setting elements together to create a coherent world.
3) The GM assembles the Instant Plot elements into a workable storyline.
4) The players create Instant Characters based on our simple character creation rules.
5) Then play.

We're not kidding about this. Get your gaming group together with no preparation whatsoever ahead of time. Throw some dice, consult our Instant Tables, and in 30 minutes or so, you can have a complete and novel roleplaying setting ready to roll, with a plot and characters and everything. It's surprisingly a lot simpler than you think.

Clocking in at nearly 100 pages, the Instant Game pdf is the full version of the game.  We're not making any money off this product, we've just had a crapload of a good time playing it and wanted to share it with everyone else.  All we ask is that if you download it and like it, post up on our message boards or email us at instantgame@animalball.com and let us know what kinds of different games you ended up playing.

We know that nothing in this press release will convince you that Instant Game is cool or innovative.  You have to play it to really understand why we think this is the best thing we've played in years.  So go download it, enjoy it, and then let us know what you think. It's free, and it's awesome, and you'll thank us for it later.

Click here to visit Animalball Game's download page to get a free copy of Instant Game.

Animalball Games is a small, independent publisher of free, unique games that do not fit the traditional mold of "mainstream" rpgs. When developing its products, ABG heavily depends on the assistance of its online community to give feedback, input and playtesting help. It is ABG's philosophy that the best games are those developed by the gamers themselves.

Cults of Freeport - Out now!