I’m posting this both on the Three-Headed Monster Games blog and on the Society of Torch, Pole and Rope blog. Please forgive the cross-posting.
Let me begin by thanking everyone who has contacted me with offers of contributing art to the Stonehell Dungeon book. I had hoped to find one or two people willing to contribute their time and talent, but I’ve had a steady stream of offers pouring through my inbox in the last twenty-four hours. I’d like to take everyone up on their offer to help, but that would result in a 200+ page book!
I’m still working my way through the offers and reviewing the samples people have submitted. I suspect it may be a day or two before I get back to everyone, so please excuse the delay if you’ve contacted me and are currently awaiting a reply. I hope to have finished sifting through them all by this weekend.
I’m not closing the door on submissions, as I may have certain pieces that match better with certain artistic styles, but I unfortunately won’t be able to take everyone up on their offer. That being said, if you’d still like to contribute something to the book, please don’t hesitate to drop me an email at poleandrope [AT] gmail [dot] com. I’m continuing the review process and I’ll make a formal announcement to close the submission period once I’ve matched artists to projects.
My sincere thanks to all of you.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Looking for Stonehell Dungeon Art
I’m posting this both on the Three-Headed Monster Games blog and on the Society of Torch, Pole and Rope blog. Please forgive the cross-posting.
With the draft of Stonehell Dungeon rapidly approaching completion, it’s become time for me to start considering the elements of the book beyond my ability to produce. I decided early on that I’d resign myself to relying on stock art and public domain images if that was all I could acquire, but that any contributed artwork would be both desired and appreciated. The Stonehell book is not going to be an art-heavy supplement, but a few choice pieces would certainly be nice.
In the interest of full disclosure, I am hoping to turn a small profit of the book. Whether this comes to be or not remains to be seen. Until that time, I’m paying for all the preliminary costs on the book out-of-pocket, and my pockets are very shallow at the moment. In particularly, my art budget is non-existent. I’m hoping that the book accrues a small sum of money which I’ll be able to fund the sequel with or that my financial situation will improve by the time the second book is being prepared.
With that being said, I’m looking for a few pieces of interior art. For the first book, I can only offer the common coin of the realm for start-up releases – your name in the credits and a free .pdf copy of the supplement. I really wish I could offer even a token payment for original art, but that will have to wait for the next book, if at all. All contributed art will be on a one-time-use basis and ownership of the work remains with the artist.
If you’re a starting artist looking for some exposure or have an existing piece of art you’d like to see find a temporary home, please drop me an email at poleandrope[AT]gmail[dot]com. I have one concept piece I wouldn’t mind seeing a better rendition of, but I’m mostly looking for art that captures the megadungeon crawl experience. You’re free to explore your own ideas.
I offer my sincerest thanks to anyone contemplating contributing art to Stonehell Dungeon and I look forward to hearing from you.
With the draft of Stonehell Dungeon rapidly approaching completion, it’s become time for me to start considering the elements of the book beyond my ability to produce. I decided early on that I’d resign myself to relying on stock art and public domain images if that was all I could acquire, but that any contributed artwork would be both desired and appreciated. The Stonehell book is not going to be an art-heavy supplement, but a few choice pieces would certainly be nice.
In the interest of full disclosure, I am hoping to turn a small profit of the book. Whether this comes to be or not remains to be seen. Until that time, I’m paying for all the preliminary costs on the book out-of-pocket, and my pockets are very shallow at the moment. In particularly, my art budget is non-existent. I’m hoping that the book accrues a small sum of money which I’ll be able to fund the sequel with or that my financial situation will improve by the time the second book is being prepared.
With that being said, I’m looking for a few pieces of interior art. For the first book, I can only offer the common coin of the realm for start-up releases – your name in the credits and a free .pdf copy of the supplement. I really wish I could offer even a token payment for original art, but that will have to wait for the next book, if at all. All contributed art will be on a one-time-use basis and ownership of the work remains with the artist.
If you’re a starting artist looking for some exposure or have an existing piece of art you’d like to see find a temporary home, please drop me an email at poleandrope[AT]gmail[dot]com. I have one concept piece I wouldn’t mind seeing a better rendition of, but I’m mostly looking for art that captures the megadungeon crawl experience. You’re free to explore your own ideas.
I offer my sincerest thanks to anyone contemplating contributing art to Stonehell Dungeon and I look forward to hearing from you.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Bound for Hell
Now that Chgowiz has started the THM Games pump flowing and Dave has made his plans known for the future, it is, as an old joke goes, “my turn in the barrel.”
Most fittingly, my initial THM book will be one that grew from the original collaboration between David, Michael, and me – Stonehell Dungeon. Back in December of last year, I started slowly creating a classic ten-level, “Saturday Night” dungeon using a modified form of the One Page Dungeon format. The first quadrant of the first level was made available on my blog and the response it received indicated that people liked both the dungeon and the bare bones method it was presented in. From that humble beginning, the dungeon has grown to five subterranean levels and a single surface level.
My original plan was to release the dungeon piecemeal on the blog, mostly to keep it rolling at a pace that I was comfortable with, but also because I felt that the One Page Dungeon idea was more of Dave’s and Chgowiz’s baby than my own. If anyone had the right to make a dollar or two off that idea, it certainly wasn’t me. After Dave approached Chgowiz and me with the idea of forming a joint design venture, however, they both game me the green light to produce a commercial version of the dungeon. I’m very grateful to both of them for allowing me to do so, not only because I could use an extra few bucks in my pocket but because, as the dungeon grew, I began to notice some cracks in the veneer of the place. I could use this opportunity to go back to the dungeon to shore up a few timbers and create a sturdier framework from which to hang both the current and future levels.
My goal for the commercial release of the first Stonehell book is to make it usable in three different ways. First, the dungeon can be run as written, with the referee using it as stocked and with the backstory and various internal plots and schemes presented. Secondly, it can be stripped down to the basic framework and used to build a customized dungeon around it, replacing the parts the GM doesn’t like and keeping what does appeal to him. Thirdly, it can be used modularly. Since the dungeon levels are divided into quadrants, many of which are relatively free of overt connections to the rest of the dungeon, the referee can easily take a chunk of dungeon out and use it as a smaller, separate dungeon somewhere else. It hasn’t always been easy keeping all three possibilities available to the audience, but I hope that I’ve manage some success in this regard.
As a result of trying to please three masters, Stonehell has grown a bit from its original modified One Page Dungeon format. Although never a true One Pager, even at the start, the need to beef up the quadrants with a little more information for the GM has caused each section to double in size. Stated that way, it seems worse than it actually is. Doubling in size means that each quadrant has gone from two pages to four, which remains impressive when you consider most quadrants feature a minimum of 25+ rooms, plus new monsters, magic items, or spells.
The first Stonehell Dungeon book will detail the upper half of the dungeon. The second half will be covered in a follow-up book tentatively scheduled for the latter half of 2010. It is my goal to keep the first book at 120 pp. or less and the initial draft and layout seems to support this as an obtainable goal. I hope to have the book available by the end of August or the beginning of September, although it is possible that numerous things beyond my control could postpone the release. I’m hoping for the best, but expecting delays. Sham and Chgowiz have both received the preliminary draft of the dungeon proper and, once I get their feedback, a formal final draft can be started.
Coinciding with the release of the book will be a free .pdf of the redone first quadrant. I want to give people an opportunity to “try before they buy.” I will also be releasing a second free .pdf of supplemental material for the dungeon. This first supplement will detail a nearby series of caves that serve as the hideout for the bandits encountered in and around Stonehell. Future .pdf supplements that detail additional level extensions and sublevels will be released in the months between the first book and the second one, and these .pdfs will either be free or for a nominal fee. They won’t be required Stonehell material, but rather options made available to the referee.
Outside of the two Stonehell books, I don’t have anything else set in stone for THM Games. There are two ideas that I’m currently playing with and developing to see if they have the legs to stand as solid books. Should either or both prove to be viable, they’ll most likely see release under the THM banner, but I anticipate that my helping Dave and Chgowiz with their future planned releases will be my primary share of the THM Games workload until I’ve complete Stonehell Dungeon.
In any case, it’s going to be an exciting year ahead for all of us at Three-Headed Monster Games. We hope you’ll like what you see.
Most fittingly, my initial THM book will be one that grew from the original collaboration between David, Michael, and me – Stonehell Dungeon. Back in December of last year, I started slowly creating a classic ten-level, “Saturday Night” dungeon using a modified form of the One Page Dungeon format. The first quadrant of the first level was made available on my blog and the response it received indicated that people liked both the dungeon and the bare bones method it was presented in. From that humble beginning, the dungeon has grown to five subterranean levels and a single surface level.
My original plan was to release the dungeon piecemeal on the blog, mostly to keep it rolling at a pace that I was comfortable with, but also because I felt that the One Page Dungeon idea was more of Dave’s and Chgowiz’s baby than my own. If anyone had the right to make a dollar or two off that idea, it certainly wasn’t me. After Dave approached Chgowiz and me with the idea of forming a joint design venture, however, they both game me the green light to produce a commercial version of the dungeon. I’m very grateful to both of them for allowing me to do so, not only because I could use an extra few bucks in my pocket but because, as the dungeon grew, I began to notice some cracks in the veneer of the place. I could use this opportunity to go back to the dungeon to shore up a few timbers and create a sturdier framework from which to hang both the current and future levels.
My goal for the commercial release of the first Stonehell book is to make it usable in three different ways. First, the dungeon can be run as written, with the referee using it as stocked and with the backstory and various internal plots and schemes presented. Secondly, it can be stripped down to the basic framework and used to build a customized dungeon around it, replacing the parts the GM doesn’t like and keeping what does appeal to him. Thirdly, it can be used modularly. Since the dungeon levels are divided into quadrants, many of which are relatively free of overt connections to the rest of the dungeon, the referee can easily take a chunk of dungeon out and use it as a smaller, separate dungeon somewhere else. It hasn’t always been easy keeping all three possibilities available to the audience, but I hope that I’ve manage some success in this regard.
As a result of trying to please three masters, Stonehell has grown a bit from its original modified One Page Dungeon format. Although never a true One Pager, even at the start, the need to beef up the quadrants with a little more information for the GM has caused each section to double in size. Stated that way, it seems worse than it actually is. Doubling in size means that each quadrant has gone from two pages to four, which remains impressive when you consider most quadrants feature a minimum of 25+ rooms, plus new monsters, magic items, or spells.
The first Stonehell Dungeon book will detail the upper half of the dungeon. The second half will be covered in a follow-up book tentatively scheduled for the latter half of 2010. It is my goal to keep the first book at 120 pp. or less and the initial draft and layout seems to support this as an obtainable goal. I hope to have the book available by the end of August or the beginning of September, although it is possible that numerous things beyond my control could postpone the release. I’m hoping for the best, but expecting delays. Sham and Chgowiz have both received the preliminary draft of the dungeon proper and, once I get their feedback, a formal final draft can be started.
Coinciding with the release of the book will be a free .pdf of the redone first quadrant. I want to give people an opportunity to “try before they buy.” I will also be releasing a second free .pdf of supplemental material for the dungeon. This first supplement will detail a nearby series of caves that serve as the hideout for the bandits encountered in and around Stonehell. Future .pdf supplements that detail additional level extensions and sublevels will be released in the months between the first book and the second one, and these .pdfs will either be free or for a nominal fee. They won’t be required Stonehell material, but rather options made available to the referee.
Outside of the two Stonehell books, I don’t have anything else set in stone for THM Games. There are two ideas that I’m currently playing with and developing to see if they have the legs to stand as solid books. Should either or both prove to be viable, they’ll most likely see release under the THM banner, but I anticipate that my helping Dave and Chgowiz with their future planned releases will be my primary share of the THM Games workload until I’ve complete Stonehell Dungeon.
In any case, it’s going to be an exciting year ahead for all of us at Three-Headed Monster Games. We hope you’ll like what you see.
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