Steve Jackson's Blog, page 102

February 5, 2023: GURPS "New Edition" Chatter At RPG.Net

After the TikTok video asking about a possible new edition of GURPS went a little wild (see this Daily Illuminator post), the internet took action. We've seen discussions in a few different places, but I'd like to direct your attention to this thread at RPG.Net where forum user theuglyknight posts: 

"Honestly it wasn't my thing in the past , but I'm pretty excited at the thought of it now. I think on the whole the industry has moved away from heavier games but the pendulum is starting to swing back. I'm also aware that Gurps is actually a whole spectrum of heaviness, but in my (admittedly perhaps wrong) perception it's one of the crunchiest.

So what does a new edition look like?"

Not surprisingly, the discussion goes in several different directions, but it makes for an entertaining read if you're interested in thoughts on what could possibly happen if there were a new edition of GURPS .

– Phil Reed

Warehouse 23 News: So Real, And Yet So Not

Not everything that's impossible is magical; sometimes it's just really impractical. GURPS Fantasy-Tech 1: The Edge of Reality is an assortment of pre-modern tech that never existed (probably), but might have, or was believed to exist, or was close to working but didn't. Grab a gun-sword, peruse Leonardo da Vinci's sketches, and download the impossible today from Warehouse 23!

February 4, 2023: The Original Mimic?

The "mimic" type of monster has seen an upsurge in popularity recently. Most typically disguising itself as a treasure chest, the mimic might also be a chair, a doorknob . . . or anything else that some unwary delver might touch.

So who thought of this evil beastie?

I just ran across a story that might depict the original fictional Mimic. It's "The Stentorii Luggage," by Neal Barrett, Jr. – and it appeared in Galaxy Magazine in 1960! So Barrett may have intellectual priority on the idea. And, regardless, it is a great story.

– Steve Jackson

Warehouse 23 News: Weapons For A Bygone Era

Add spice to your Victorian and Wild West campaigns with GURPS High-Tech: Adventure Guns . This catalog describes iconic and unusual firearms from the mid-19th and early-20th centuries, plus new rules and historical insight to make the era come alive. Don your 10-gallon hat or steampunk goggles, and download it today from Warehouse 23!

February 3, 2023: Steve Talks Car Wars With Three Ravens

Late in 2022, we announced our partnership with Three Ravens Publishing for new fiction in the Car Wars universe. Steve was recently on their TDB Pirate Radio podcast talking autoduelling! Steve (and Irene) joined a panel of talented creatives to talk Car Wars Sixth Edition  and the origins of Car Wars as a universe, as well as a variety of other topics concerning writing and world-building. If you're interested in the creative process that goes into writing and game design, this has some great insights, as well as a fun conversation with a lot of nerdy folk. Check it out on their YouTube page, and keep an eye out later this year for the Autoduel Chronicles!

– Hunter Shelburne

Warehouse 23 News: Do More With Less?

GURPS Power-Ups 8: Limitations lets you add more flavor and power to GURPS abilities by making them less-than-ideal in some circumstances, or giving them a vulnerable point. In addition to an authoritative compilation of limitations, it also includes new options and insight to make limitations come to life . . . and perhaps provides a way to get the few extra points you need to make your ability awesome! It's just a download away from Warehouse 23!

February 2, 2023: Wiz-War Kickstarter Ends Today

The doors to the magical labyrinth are closing today, so this is your last chance to back Wiz-War on Kickstarter! Our new edition of Tom Jolly's classic boardgame features art by the legendary Phil Foglio, with classic "take that!" gameplay curated from the eight previous editions by long-time Wiz - War fan Steve Jackson. For those wanting a closer look at the play and components, Steve joined us on #SJGamesLive for a playthrough that you can see on YouTube. Which wizard reigned supreme? You'll need to watch it to find out, but I can tell you there were a lot of large rocks thrown around. 

I'd also like to note that while this game will be going to retail stores later, it will definitely not be at $30 like on the Kickstarter, so . . . Back today, share it with your friends, and help Wiz-War finish strong! 

– Hunter Shelburne

Warehouse 23 News: Keep Watching The Skies

GURPS Monster Hunters lets heroes protect the world from supernatural forces. But what about threats that lurk not in the shadows, but in the glint of science? GURPS Monster Hunters 5: Applied Xenology is your guide to scientific flavors of Monster Hunters, from aliens to technomagic to super-science threats, and more. The tech that makes it possible is a download from Warehouse 23!

February 1, 2023: Kickstarter Reports, February 2023 Update

We are starting the year off strong with Wiz-War ! This new edition of Tom Jolly's classic boardgame has been waiting for a shot at crowdfunding, and we are hoping that everything proceeds smoothly enough that we can fulfill the campaign this summer and then offer the game to stores in the fall. We have more projects to take to Kickstarter, but the exact order is a tad murky as we continue to adapt to the chnging world.

Read on to see the active projects . . . and please follow us on Kickstarter – Steve Jackson Games and Warehouse 23 – to see what comes next.

Wiz-War, Tom Jolly's Classic Boardgame Returns!January 23 to February 21,576 backers and on scheduleThe Kickstarter campaign comes to a close tomorrow! The game is at the factory, through the tooling process, and everything is on track to ship later this year. Rose Labyrinth Roleplaying Game Adventure Set December 19 to January 2353 backers and on scheduleOnce we receive the finished rulebooks, then we can move to the fulfillment stage. Everything else is done.CARnage – Cars and weapons for auto combat gamesNovember 25 to December 71,172 backers and on scheduleSurveys have closed and we plan to ship the rewards this month. Wish us luck!Munchkin Witches, 30 Cards for Steve Jackson's MunchkinOctober 31 to November 10984 backers and on scheduleWe're down to waiting for the factory to finish manufacturing and then the joy of freight. Everything is moving forward as planned. One pleasant surprise? The BackerKit funding total exceeded the Kickstarter funding total. (Of course, a chunk of the BackerKit revenue is shipping and not actual money we keep, but even with that subtracted, the add-on sales in BackerKit were fantastic. Lots of mini-expansions will be shipping to Munchkin players thanks to this campaign!)As you can see, we are at four open campaigns. Two of them are close to the fulfillment stage and the other two are on schedule. With luck, we'll bring several more projects to Kickstarter this year. 

For more news on upcoming projects, please join our mailing lists by visiting this page and signing on today!

We do not yet have exact launch dates for our next Kickstarter campaigns, so please follow both Steve Jackson Games and Warehouse 23 on Kickstarter so that you don't miss anything.

– Phil Reed

Warehouse 23 News: The Classics Are Back!

The  Classic Pocket Box Games Bundle  includes the forgotten Pocket Box games of the eighties: Undead, Necromancer, One-Page Bulge, Raid on Iran, and Kung Fu 2100. Games that have been out-of-print and unavailable for decades are available once again, all in retro-inspired packaging and in as near-exact reprints of the originals as we could manage. Order now on Warehouse 23!

January 30, 2023: GreedQuest Back In Print This Year!

Long out-of-print, we have an updated edition of GreedQuest scheduled for release this summer. We've updated the components, switching to heavier stocks and a mounted gameboard.

What is GreedQuest ? We'll let the game's cover text tell us all about it!

Greed Is Good!

. . . and there's treasure to be won, so what are you waiting for? Three to six players race to the bottom of the dungeon to grab The Hoard. Now all you have to do is get out with it . . . but everyone else is between you and the exit!

Each player has their own deck of cards that control movement. Bluff, scheme, and strategize your way to the head of the pack . . . but some cards will change the rules when you least expect it!

This is a fast, unpredictable game, easy to learn and fun for all ages, with lots of quick replay value. And it's illustrated by Phil Foglio!

We have not yet officially set a release date, but we are offering this newest edition in the ongoing Wiz-War Kickstater campaign. Please check the project for details, and watch for GreedQuest at your favorite local game store later this year!

– Phil Reed

Warehouse 23 News: Ready To Dive In?

Either the dungeon has flooded or you took a very wrong turn somewhere, because you don't remember The Flaming Hellscape being this damp. No time to look back, however . . . there are all sorts of fun new monsters to fight and odd new weapons to do it with. Are you the king of the sea, or will you take a dive? There's only one way to find out . . . grab a copy of Munchkin Something Fishy  today on Warehouse 23!

January 31, 2023: 2022 Munchkin Wrap-Up

January is always an exciting time of year as we look forward to what the next 12 months will bring, but it's also nice to look back at the past year and see where it's taken us . . .

2022 was an especially interesting time for me since I returned to Steve Jackson Games in the middle of 2021. Most of the year's releases were already complete and at print, so everything I worked on was scheduled to come out in 2022. But I wasn't the only one: Steve Jackson, Andrew Hackard, Devin Lewis, and Alain Dawson all helmed projects that released in 2022.

The beginning of the year saw Munchkin Bosses, an expansion that offered an optional change to the standard gameplay of Munchkin, as well as Munchkin Babies, a cute addition to the Munchkin family. January was also the debut of Munchkin Farkle, a classic dice game with some added twists in the rules to make it fit right in with the backstabbing fun of Munchkin.

In February we released Munchkin Petting Zoo, a mini-expansion focused on adding cute animals (many of which happen to be Steeds) to the game. The next month brought Munchkin Warhammer 40,000: Rank and Vile, the latest expansion to grimdark Munchkin, which adds Astra Militarum, Drukhari, and Daemons.

Not every Munchkin release in 2022 was a game. We released a giant pile of bookmarks throughout the year, and in March we introduced the Munchkin Ukraine Charity T-Shirt, doing our part to help those impacted by the war. Spring expanded the options players have when tracking their levels with the Colossal Munchkin Level Die. Previously, this jumbo die was only available in red, but we released green, black, and blue versions in 2022. We also continued producing dice bags, like the brand new Munchkin Dice Bag: Chibithulhu and the reimagined Munchkin Dice Bag: Duck of Doom, which had previously been a plush dice bag.

In the summer, Munchkin Babies 2 – Stork Naked was born. (It's almost impossible to create a new core set theme without then coming up with a few more cards to add to it!) We also put out the first sizable title that I wrote for Munchkin, Munchkin Goats, and we fulfilled the campaign for Steve and John Kovalic's epic crossover, Steve Jackson's Munchkin Presents Batman.

As summer wound down, Munchkin Turtle Carnage added a bale of chelonian cards. The final months of the year contained plenty of excitement, too. Steve's newest numbered expansion, Munchkin 10 – Time Warp, came out in November, and a faithful recreation of our beloved card game in video game form, Munchkin Digital, went into early release on Steam in December.

If you missed any of these releases, be sure to check them out in our web store. Stay tuned throughout 2023 – we've got lots of exciting things planned for the next 12 months!

– Will Schoonover

Warehouse 23 News: Your Favorite Worlds, At The Gaming Table!

Gain invaluable insight into exploring your favorite fictional worlds using GURPS with GURPS Adaptations. This supplement shows how to bring the themes, character-design assumptions, and campaign flavor of the setting to life, with six worked examples. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

January 30, 2023: Greed Quest Back In Print This Year!

Long out-of-print, we have an updated edition of Greed Quest scheduled for release this summer. We've updated the components, switching to heavier stocks and a mounted gameboard.

What is Greed Quest ? We'll let the game's cover text tell us all about it!

Greed Is Good!

. . . and there's treasure to be won, so what are you waiting for? Three to six players race to the bottom of the dungeon to grab The Hoard. Now all you have to do is get out with it . . . but everyone else is between you and the exit!

Each player has their own deck of cards that control movement. Bluff, scheme, and strategize your way to the head of the pack . . . but some cards will change the rules when you least expect it!

This is a fast, unpredictable game, easy to learn and fun for all ages, with lots of quick replay value. And it's illustrated by Phil Foglio!

We have not yet officially set a release date, but we are offering this newest edition in the ongoing Wiz-War Kickstater campaign. Please check the project for details, and watch for Greed Quest at your favorite local game store later this year!

– Phil Reed

Warehouse 23 News: Ready To Dive In?

Either the dungeon has flooded or you took a very wrong turn somewhere, because you don't remember The Flaming Hellscape being this damp. No time to look back, however . . . there are all sorts of fun new monsters to fight and odd new weapons to do it with. Are you the king of the sea, or will you take a dive? There's only one way to find out . . . grab a copy of Munchkin Something Fishy  today on Warehouse 23!

January 29, 2023: Now Available On Demand: Man To Man

Discover how GURPS began, with Man to Man – now available in print again as part of the On Demand program!

Originally published in 1985, this is a complete rule system of hand-to-hand pre-modern combat . . . and it's also the first release for GURPS ! Design heroes (or scoundrels), take up arms, and wander through a venue of your own design as you exercise your martial might.

This new print-on-demand version is based on a scan of the original edition, cleaned up digitally. It's not as sharp as if it were from a pure-digital source, but it's eminently readable while retaining its old-school feel. Note that the original version had a "pull out" section that took advantage of its stapled form; those same tables and maps are put in the back of the volume or convenience's sake. Please feel free to copy them for personal use. (The original version also included Cardboard Heroes that we couldn't replicate with this new version, but fantasy-gaming figure options have expanded considerably in the past four decades, so the odds are decent you have miniatures available.)

Dodge those expensive online resellers, and add this to your physical gaming library today . . . on demand!

– Steven Marsh

Warehouse 23 News: Down The Rabbit Hole

Step one: Step through the portal. Step two: Where are you?!? GURPS Fantasy: Portal Realms is your guide to the genre of fantastic realms that are a step away from our own. From rabbit holes to wardrobes, the impossible begins with a download from Warehouse 23!

January 28, 2023: Incoming Container!

As you may have heard, the last few years have been rough when it comes to international shipping. Between expenses and delays, bringing new games into the warehouse was a challenge and caused some of us intense stress. Fortunately, the situation has improved a lot and it appears things are returning to a more stable place. This is good news, because shipping headaches bring with them frustration . . . and none of us need that.

Our latest container is close to landing, and as we were reviewing the contents and release schedule, we thought it might be fun to share a quick list of what's on this particular container. Zombie Dice Odd Dice Munchkin Polyhedral Dice Kitten Polyhedral Dice Gelatinous Calo's Book of Monsters Robin's Laws of Good Game Mastering Munchkin Druids Munchkin Side Quest 2 One Roll Quest Munchkin Cthulhu Munchkin Kittens Munchkin Deathly Pail Munchkin Cows Munchkin Squids Steve Jackson's Munchkin Presents Batman Assorted loose dice & promo cardsLoose Munchkin pawnsAs you can see, that container is packed with goodies! One benefit of the Munchkin mini-expansions is that they're compact, allowing us to fit a lot more into the same space as larger expansions and full games. Dice are also small enough to cram several into a tight space, and shipping both kinds of titles in one container greatly drops the 'per unit' shipping cost.

The new titles in this container are scheduled for release starting in March, with the titles spread out across a few months. Reprints typically flow right into the distribution stream, with very little delay between landing in the warehouse and shipping out to sales partners across the world. Please see our new releases page for the current schedule.

– Phil Reed

Warehouse 23 News: Dragons . . . And Dice?!

In a forgotten cave in a far-away land, we found a dragon's egg. Nurtured on a bed of smoldering embers, it finally hatched . . . and these brightly colored dice spilled forth! That's our story, anyway. These eight pearlized dice come in all the popular dragon colors: green, black, red, and blue; you'll get two of each color in this set of 16mm dice! Get your Dragon d6 Dice Set now on Warehouse 23!