Available at Amazon.com Fear is the oldest emotion possessed by humanity. Death and what might or might not lie beyond the mortal coil is, quite possibly, the origin of fear in and of itself. As mortals, death is inevitable. We don’t have the luxury of actually knowing what happens when we die, therefore we have […]

In this interview Aaron tells us about his work on Werewolf: the Forsaken and Dark Ages: Fae for White Wolf Game Studio. We also talk about writing full-time for Morrigan Press and get a few details about some of the upcoming Omni System titles.

White Wolf’s Mind’s Eye Theatre challenges us to enter a world just beyond the mortal senses, to look into the shadowy mirror of ourselves and find a world populated by the supernatural — vampires, mages, and others wage an eternal battle for dominance and survival. Choose your role in this World of Darkness … are you a defender of humanity, or a predator of the night?

How did you get into gaming? I was in a Gifted and Talented Education program in the fourth grade. My parents were given a list of games to help foster a child’s imagination. Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) was on the list. My mom bought me the “red box” version of Basic Dungeons & Dragons (BDD) […]

The first fiction novel for Vampire: The Requiem, a game line produced by White Wolf, A Hunger Like Fire sets the tone for some colorful characters and intriguing plot twists.

Written by Greg Stolze, the novel begins with a character narration by Bruce, a newly-changed vampire. New to being an undead, but not authorized by the Prince of Chicago, Prince Maxwell. After reading the first two pages, I felt compelled to read further. While first person narration can get tricky, Stolze handles it well by adding some interesting character quirks. For example, the undead Bruce Miner has an attachment to his dog, Peaches. Of course, he has to use his special vampiric ability to get close to animals, but nonetheless it’s a good tie-in between game mechanics and a fictional character.

Without even reading a word of text, this book is gorgeous. Crimson red cover, portraying a hand dipping into blood, with red rose petals drifting atop; it’s easily one of White Wolf’s best. Internally, the art is the usual Gothic fair. Some of the art is more mature in nature, which is becoming a trend, even in mainstream Wizards of the Coast books.

The book is mostly black and white, with a touch of red here and there, which technically makes this a full-color book. That being the case, $34.95 for 302 color pages is not a bad deal. The presentation for this book is great, and I could recommend it on a completely separate aesthetic level.

Review by David Akers

Andrew describes his job as Managing Editor of Sword & Sorcery Studios in this interview. We also talk about his work on several World of Darkness RPGs, Ravenloft and writing the Year of the Scarab trilogy.

When asked about the difference between writing and editing within the industry in this interview, Michelle Lyons stated:

Editing for a game is… nitpicky. When you’re writing, you have to get ideas down and make sure the core creative push behind the work is solid. You want to get the mechanical end right as well, but you have to make sure the creative foundation is solid. As an editor, you have to make sure the rest of the construction is to code, basically. You have to make sure rules are stated clearly (and mesh with the rest of the system), you have to make sure that presentation is consistent, you have to make sure all the numbers add up, and on top of that, you have to make sure that the text is solid in style and execution, accessible to the reader, and preferably not something the author won’t recognize or wince at when he or she looks at the final book.

From learning about Michelle’s first experiences in the gaming industry, to reading about her thoughts on where the industry is headed, read this in-depth interview for writer, editor, and game designer Michelle Lyons.

On the surface it’s pretty interesting. Thirteen novels, each exploring one of the clans in detail. A few plotlines streaming from book to book, some great characters – hell this could have been something really special. Heck, the Dark Ages clan novel series is everything this series should have been. Each novel features an in-depth exploration into a different clan, along with well-written characters. And while there are plots that go from book to book and connect the series, each book stands on its own.

Available at Lulu.com Conspiracy of Shadows Written by Keith Senkowski How far are you willing to go to learn the truth? Combining elements of horror and fantasy, Conspiracy of Shadows is a game with a lot of possibility. It delves deep into a medieval world full of intrigue, corruption and mystery. This medieval world is […]

The structure of the book is surprising, in that the prose is heavily footnoted. Told from a vampiric scholar’s point of view, the research for the book is both entertaining and curious. One can almost feel Aristotle’s frustration as he cross-references words from crumbling parchments. One can also hear the voices of the ancients, as they live again through prophetic parables and historic prose. The footnotes are written in character and contain curious references to other characters in the game. This adds to the potential for the book to be used as a prop or a mood-setting item.

Jürgens armies under the sign of the Black Cross march out to conquer the east. Against them stand the vile Tzimisce ruled by the Voivode of all Voivodes: Count Vladimir Rustovitch.

But not only those stand in the way of Jürgens men, between their home and the Voivodat lies Livonia, a fierce, primal territory ruled by Quarakh the Untamed and his horde of Gangrel. By his side there is Deverra, High-Priest of Telyavel and Tremere renegade.

A World thrown completely out of balance calls out for a defender and sets the stage for White Wolf’s continuation of the Mind’s Eye Theatre (MET) line.

Drawing on themes as old as civilization itself, Laws of the Resurrection hearkens back to the myths and legends of ancient Egypt to offer to players the role of a truly immortal protector of the world, a Mummy. Born of the fusion of ancient knowledge with modern souls, these creatures, known as Amenti, carry out the sacred law of Ma’at, bringing balance and order to a chaotic world.

Odds are that if you’re into role-playing, you’ve heard of White Wolf. They are the company behind games such as Werewolf, Changeling, Mage, and of course, the infamous Vampire: The Masquerade. Unfortunately, fewer and fewer people seem to be aware of White Wolf’s fifth original World of Darkness, that of Wraith.

True to the standard nature of player’s guides, Wraith’s adds in the usual mixture of extra detail and handy charts. It sets itself apart (like so many Wraith additions) by adding considerably more history and societal analysis than virtually any other player’s guide out there. For a breakdown of what’s added, let’s go to the chapters:

First we come to Traits. As expected, we find new Knowledges, Skills, Abilities, and Backgrounds, but we also come across what became a dominant methodology in Wraith: Merits and Flaws. These simple additions act as a two-fold improvement. Primarily, they give bonuses and/or free up some freebie points (you’ll never get enough of those, even if you’re the Storyteller), but they also aid in the development and growth of a character. New players can select a few Merits, counterbalance those with some Flaws, and by working with their Storyteller add much more depth to their characters.

In the game The Shining Host, you play a fae trapped in a mortal shell, destined to roam earth in search of dreams, and cast out of your true home, Arcadia. You can still make illusions real, though as time wears on you, it becomes harder and harder. But with the onset of civilization, true artists are hard to find, and the inspiration there once was for fantasy is fading. Personal tragedy is hidden because it is disbelief, making it a tougher, yet more interesting game to follow. As reality becomes more prevalent, your world fades.

Taking several chances with Orpheus, White Wolf not only tries out this new limited series format, they also attempt to revitalize a previous World of Darkness concept, the Restless Dead. Wraith: the Oblivion was a powerful game, full of mystery, horror and extremely dedicated fans. Unfortunately, Wraith did not last; White Wolf ended the line far earlier than other World of Darkness games. Ends of Empire introduced story elements that shook other WoD lines and boldly attempted to bring closure to the Wraith line. Orpheus brings back some of the elements of Wraith, without being Wraith Revised. This is a risky move; are Wraith fans going to enjoy something that is similar to, but not Wraith? Are non-Wraith fans going to think it’s just a Wraith clone and not pick it apart?

What would you do if you woke up one day and discovered that everything you thought was silly superstition and nonsense was real and you were the only thing standing between evil and the rest of Humanity?

Thea Ghandour, the unlikely pot-smoking heroine who continuously laments her lack of a sex-life, and a less-than-intrepid and equally unlikely band of fellow Hunters have been trying to answer that question since they found each other. Heralds of the Storm opens on one of their self-imposed missions, just outside the lair of a vampire, one of “the greatest predators ever to walk the earth.”

Haunting the Dead features four novellas set in White Wolf’s World of Darkness featuring characters from the Orpheus game line. This is a break from the usual format that White Wolf uses when releasing a new game. Usually there is a fiction anthology featuring several short stories. The novellas in Haunting the Dead allow for more character development and (as with any good ghost story) more plot twists. This was a great idea and I hope White Wolf continues his trend.

It seems such a long time ago now, 1992, that so many of us were so naïve we thought vampires could be dissuaded from eating us by garlic or that they would recoil from their appearance (or lack of it) in a mirror. Worse, we believed in our ignorance that vampires were pretty much all of a piece. Since then, we have been educated to understand that there are endless machinations among the numerous tribes and clans of the vampire world that is kept secret from we mere humans – the kine on which the powerful but shadowy kindred feed.