Steve Jackson's Blog, page 36

November 9, 2024: Must-Play Events At BGG.CON 2024

Steve Jackson Games' friend Nathaniel T. will be hosting several events at BGG.CON 2024, which runs November 13-17 in Dallas, Texas. He will feature a few great titles from our collection, and you can sign up to play! Wednesday, November 13th at 7:00pm: Learn to Melee the Steve Jackson Way (Event #299) Thursday, November 14th at 7:00pm: Death Test - The Fantasy Trip (Event #260) Friday, November 15th at 7:00pm: Death Test II - The Fantasy Trip (SOLD OUT!) Saturday, November 16th at 1:00pm: Those About to Die, Salute You - The Fantasy Trip Tournament (Event #270) Sunday, November 17th at 10:00am: Car Wars 6E - Deathrace 2024 (Event #382)  Click here  to search the event number and score your tickets before they sell out! Steve Jackson Games staff will also be in attendance to demo our newest releases, including Munchkin Shadowrun and Car Wars Orange/Purple . Come see us at booth 402! 

– Michelle Richardson

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 8, 2024: Trivia Answer: Omega!

We recently asked a two-part trivia question: What is the last Steve Jackson Games item alphabetically we're currently still selling, and what is the last Steve Jackson Games item alphabetically that is a complete game we're currently still selling?

The (coded) hint was that the two items were closely related. Fans of Steve Jackson Games are probably quite familiar with the complete game – and any sense of suspense was no doubt thwarted by the images included with this post. It's none other than the super-selling Zombie Dice Horde Edition (though give yourself a pat on the back for any variation of Zombie Dice ).

And the last still-for-sale item of any flavor? That'd be the Zombie Dice Pint Glass – still on Warehouse 23!

We're hope you didn't strain your braaiiiinnss too hard on that one, and perhaps we'll do this again in the not-too-distant future!

– Steven Marsh

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 7, 2024: Desert Bus For Hope 2024 Starts Friday!

The best annual livestream about the worst video game ever made is back for 2024! Desert Bus For Hope is an annual livestream that raises money for Child's Play, an organization dedicated to getting games to kids in hospitals and using play to help patients cope with the physical and psychological rigors of treatment. Steve Jackson Games participated last year by donating items for the DBFH giveaway, and it was so much fun that we decided to come back this year! Desert Bus For Hope is a livestream in which participants play Desert Bus 24/7. This game is notorious for being one of the most boring (yet also most challenging) video games ever made, but you won't just be watching someone virtually drive from Tuscon to Las Vegas at 40 mph in real time. DBFH participants are on hand around the clock to provide a wide range of entertainment, including coffee pong, calisthenics lessons, dance parties, Lego build-alongs, and lively discussions about Magic the Gathering; Warhammer 40,000; TV; movies; and more. The hilarity factor increases as time goes on, and the positive vibes from all involved make for some truly feel-good viewing. Desert Bus For Hope runs from Friday, November 8. at 6:00 pm Eastern until . . . whenever the donations stop rolling in. (More on that here under "How donation/hours work.") Our giveaway package this year is a signed games collection that features the following items: Munchkin Gift Pack Knightmare Chess Munchkin Starfinder: I Want It All! The Awful Green Things From Outer Space GURPS Girl Genius Sourcebook & Roleplaying Game Want to bid? Create an account at desertbus.org, then tune in to the stream on Twitch, YouTube, or their website on Wednesday, November 13, from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm Eastern. Bid responsibly, and thanks in advance for supporting a great cause!

– Katie Duffy

 

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 6, 2024: The Times They Are A-Changing!

According to GURPS Fourth Edition, which has an even better predictive track record than Illuminati if you pick your data points carefully, we're going to hit a milestone at midnight between December 31 and January 1:

The world will reach tech level 9! (Which is no doubt why so much Apple and Tesla stuff is being discounted right now.)

All our incomes will go up 50%!

I can hardly wait.

Thanks to Alden Loveshade for the tip.

– Steve Jackson

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 5, 2024: INaturalist

Have you ever wished you knew the name of a strange plant on your local hiking trail, or the unassuming snake that's hanging out on the pavement? If so, consider downloading iNaturalist, an app that helps you identify local flora and fauna using a combination of AI and crowdsourcing. The app is pretty simple to use. After creating an account, you can use iNaturalist to take photos of plants, animals, insects, and fungi. You'll then be prompted to identify what you saw based on some recommendations. Once you've made your selection, your photo is entered into a database that other citizen scientists can view. They'll refine your initial identification to make sure it's correct. Once there is general consensus about your observation, it earns "research grade" status and can be used by local researchers or conservation groups to help catalog biodiversity in the region. I've always been fascinated by people who can identify their local flora and fauna, and iNaturalist has helped me refine my skills in this area. The app does have some limitations. It won't automatically identify poisonous plants or dangerous animals, for example. There is also a lag between initial identification and crowdsourced answers, so it shouldn't be used as an aid for wild foraging.  (Never, ever trust AI or an app to help you identify edible plants or mushrooms – just don't.) Despite these very minor drawbacks, I think that iNaturalist may be one of the best apps out there to help you learn more about the natural world outside your door. Give it a try!

– Katie Duffy

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 3, 2024: Vote Against The Illuminati

November 5 is Election Day. I'll get back to that in a minute.

But first . . . Once upon a time I did not believe in conspiracy theories. That's why I enjoyed creating Illuminati and INWO . They showed the world through the eyes of a few complete nutballs, and it was a fun place to visit.

Things have changed, and not in a good way. The Internet made it easy for the nutballs to find each other and set up an echo chamber, and a tragic number of people found the simplicity of a Great Evil Conspiracy to be very attractive, compared to the messy complexities of the real world.

Also, some people REALLY ARE awful, and the net let THEM get together, too.

So now I really do believe in one conspiracy theory. If we were to diagram it as an INWO card layout, it would look like this . . .

At the center we have the Illuminati, of course. If we have to pick an analog from the game the Gnomes of Zurich are closest, though the power-mad Bavarians run a close second. At any rate, the real Illuminati here are a loose, but busy, cabal of billionaires who range from "very conservative" through "extremist," plus more than a few of those complete nutballs we were talking about. Between them, they have trillions of dollars to buy everything from individual votes to Supreme Court decisions. And they do.

Surrounding the billionaires are their high-level puppets. I'd assign those slots to:

• Donald Trump. He, in turn, controls the (Fanatic, Violent, Criminal, zero Power but high Transferrable Power) MAGAs. He thinks he controls the Republicans, but they are only paying lip service to him; they are clients of the billionaires.

• The Republican Party. The once-patriotic GOP has become a creature of the billionaires' whims. Yes, there are some decent Republicans left, but just by accepting the party's label they owe their positions to corruption. The Republicans, in turn, control the House of Representatives (still narrowly).

• The Supreme Court. You read the newspapers, right? Enough said. This pickup took decades for the Gnomes to achieve, and it's been worth every penny.

• Russia. Putin himself is part of the billionaire's club. The country, nukes and all, is his personal fiefdom.

We could extend this out to another level of extremists (hello NRA! Hello Cycle Gangs!) and puppets who won't admit who pulls their strings (hello, hello, Big Media!) but you get the idea.

Yep, I believe in one conspiracy now, and that's the one. No flat earth. No faked moon landings. Just a few people with a sizeable proportion of the world's wealth and the conviction that it makes them superior to the masses. And a lot of useful idiots, permitted to think they are free right up until they stop being useful.

After this election, you could be their property. It's the Golden Rule . . . When you have all the gold, you make all the rules.

So, getting back to the election. It's very important that you vote. You can't vote against the Illuminati who are trying to suck America dry. All you can do is vote against their tools. At this stage of the game that is ALL you can do, but it's a start.

Please vote for Kamala Harris. Please vote for the Democratic candidates for state and national offices. Even if you feel that the Democratic platform is terrible. Because if the Democrats win, you'll at least be guaranteed another vote in four years. If the Illuminati win, it's game over.

– Steve Jackson

Warehouse 23 News: Why Is The Darkness Blinking?

They're trapped between the realm of the living and the dead . . . and they're not too pleased about it. The Book of Unlife adds 44 unliving monsters to your The Fantasy Trip campaigns, along with a complete adventure setting. Live like there's too many tomorrows thanks to Warehouse 23!

November 4, 2024: One-Page Bulge Second Edition Kickstarter Ending Soon!

Imagine, if you will: an entire wargame, with strategic depth and intriguing possibilities . . . and the rules fit on one page.

If you're a long-time fan of Steve Jackson Games (or you saw the Daily Illuminator post from a couple of weeks ago), you know where we're going with this. One-Page Bulge – originally released in 1980 – did exactly what its title suggests, with Steve Jackson flexing his inimitable game-design skills to deliver a Battle of the Bulge wargame where the rules fit on one sheet of 8.5" × 11" double-sided paper.

This classic game is back with a new edition: One-Page Bulge Second Edition – in time for the 80th anniversary of the pivotal battle itself!

Thanks to Kickstarter (and fans like you), this updated version funded in 40 minutes! In honor of that success, we're providing a few more details about what makes it worth checking out.

One-Page Bulge Second Edition is being updated by Steve Jackson and wargame designer Dana Lombardy – two Hall of Fame designers working together to bring this classic game to a modern era. Find their behind-the-scenes insight about the new version on YouTube!

Some highlights of this edition include:New Random Event cards, with exciting events to represent unexpected battlefield surprises.A full-color mounted map.High-quality components, with two styles of counter sets to choose from (or get them both!).An illustrated historical guide is also part of this project, bringing this landmark moment to life.

Suitable for solo gaming or two players, One-Page Bulge Second Edition is history in the making. But hurry! The Kickstarter ends in 10 days, on November 14!

– Steven Marsh

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 2, 2024: Trivia Question: Omega?

A few months ago, we asked a trivia question about Steve Jackson Games titles. For this installment, we're starting with the easier version of an obvious question because, in my opinion, the other version of it is a bit trickier . . .

Our database has thousands of items running across the past, present, and future of our company. The question for this post is two-fold:

• What is the last item alphabetically that is currently available for sale, and . . .

• What is the last item alphabetically that is a complete game and currently available for sale?

For those who may want a hint, here's a clue in ROT13 format: Gur gjb vgrzf ner pybfryl eryngrq . . .

If you want to chat about your guesses, feel free to do so on the forums. Answers will come sometime in the future!

– Steven Marsh

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

November 1, 2024: GURPS Adventures For Free?!

Fans of GURPS are arguably the most amazing people in the universe – and I'm not saying that merely because they continue to help ensure I can keep paying my bills. No, as more tangible proof to you, I present . . . GURPS 1Shot Adventures.

This collection of adventures by JC Connors includes ready-to-use offerings for myriad genres: supers, horror, fantasy, cyberpunk, and more. There are even a few solo adventures, for those who (like me) have more gaming time than accessible players.

I haven't had a chance to read even a fraction of them, but I've been impressed with what I've seen as far. They seem high quality as far as writing and production values. And did I mention "free"?!

– Steven Marsh

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!

October 31, 2024: Munchkin Roundup 2024!

This year we released not one, not two, but six new Munchkin sets! The best part? We really do mean new – as in, every single card is all-new – never before seen in any previous game! Here's a round-up of the five expansions, which shuffle easily into any fantasy-backed Munchkin deck, and one stand-alone game you'll definitely want to add to your collection:  Munchkin Dead & Deader includes 56 cards themed to ghosts and paranormal activity, because, as we all know, ghouls just want to have fun! Favorite monster: Level 16 Bleed, who is +15 against vampires. Golems abound in Munchkin: Taken for Granite , which feature 56 cards that totally rock! (Sorry, not sorry.) Favorite combat card: Hard as a Rock, which gives +10 to any monster. Slither on over to Warehouse 23 or your FLGS to grab Munchkin Snakes . This tuckbox is filled with 30 cards' worth of hiss-terical puns. Favorite armor: +2 Bonus Giant Snake Skin.  Join the rat race with Munchkin Rats ! Thirty cards make this expansion a true mouse-terpiece. Favorite rodent: Level 8 Pie Rat.  Munchkin Pony Excess will have you ready to stirrup some trouble. With 56 equine-themed cards, you can horse around with your best friends. Favorite steed: +2 Bonus Centaur of Attention.  Get ready to battle your opponents (for the Emperor!) in Munchkin Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Dire Domains . Included in the tuckbox of 36 cards are 20 Dungeons that will take you on a tour of the Mortal Realms, including Lyria and Azyrheim. Of all the Munchkin releases this year, our very favorite is the stand-alone Munchkin Shadowrun . For the first time ever, Munchkin enters the cyberpunk-themed future of Shadowrun . In collaboration with Catalyst Game Labs, this game introduces Matrix cards, which give players a whole new way to win the game! Are you ready to 'Run, chummer? Favorite one-hand item: +3 Bonus Defiance T-250. Have you picked up any of these great games yet? Let us know on the forums which of our newest versions is your favorite! (And it's okay if you can't decide . . . ) 

– Michelle Richardson

Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action

There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!