Steve Jackson's Blog, page 405

October 26, 2014: Meet Jennifer Atkinson, Our New Editor

I'm a geek. Or a nerd. Whatever you want to call me, I'm excited to be at Steve Jackson Games because I have been assured not only is this my chance to work in an industry I adore, I won't be the weirdest person in the building. This hasn't always been the case.



I am stupidly happily married. John is, quite frankly, the best thing to ever happen to me. The first present he gave me was a zombie bunny and a fuzzy leopard print bag of pink dice – we've been married almost a decade and I think I'll keep him. We have three dogs and two cats and all of them are spoiled rotten.



My mother made my older brother include me in a D&D game when I was seven. I've been gaming ever since. I've played GURPS , Rifts , D&D (in several assorted forms), Shadowrun , Exalted , and World of Darkness games and loved them all. I never did get into World of Warcraft , but I've been playing Star Wars: The Old Republic since it came out and it's great.



I can quote along with the entire Princess Bride . Depending on the company, this is either a point of pride or gets me shunned.



I'm a Texas Army National Guard soldier. I was active duty for four years, transferring to the Guard in 2003.



I'm also active in the Society for Creative Anachronism. I got my start in the "dressing funny and pretending I'm someone else" early, since my dad did American Civil War reenacting and I worked the Southern California Renaissance Faire as a teen and young adult. I have no idea what some of my best friends' "real names" are and I'm okay with that.



– Jennifer Atkinson



Warehouse 23 News: Garbage Pail Kids: Super Snot Shots In Stock



Are you a snot-slinging and dice-flicking master? Show off your skills in Garbage Pail Kids: Super Snot Shots ! Shoot your boogers (dice!) at the Garbage Pail Kids and collect the most points to win. This is a limited edition promo game, so order your copy today!

October 25, 2014: Futuristic Weapons, On The Tables!

If you're a science-fiction GURPS gamer, you need GURPS Ultra-Tech . But sometimes you're in a hurry, and all you need are the stats. Wouldn't it be great if all those weapons were just a download away, in a ready-to-use PDF? Now they are, thanks to GURPS Ultra-Tech: Weapon Tables . This supplement includes just the weapon tables from Ultra-Tech .



Flip through its virtual pages (or print 'em out – PDFs are awesome!) to quickly find stats on tactical disruptors, blaster cannons, gravitonic railguns, and much more. Arming those near-future heroes or evil space pirates has never been easier.



And thanks to the magic of PDF, everyone who purchased the digital version of Ultra-Tech from their Warehouse 23 account can also get these Weapon Tables absolutely free; just redownload Ultra-Tech and find the new PDF nestled in the ZIP file. And if you bought the print version of Ultra-Tech , the Weapon Tables download is a very affordable addition to your library . . . and a great way to try out Warehouse 23's digital files! The future is here, and it's cooler than ever!



– Steven Marsh



Warehouse 23 News: A Classic GURPS Supers Adventure That Rocks!



Test your metal against the hard-rock bands Deathwish and Sinister Drums, thanks to the classic supers adventure GURPS Classic: Deathwish . Go coast to coast, uncovering the secrets of a melodic mystery. Download it today, only from Warehouse 23!

October 24, 2014: Game Reviews En Español

Are you a gamer in a Spanish-speaking country? Then you might be interested in these two reviews by Oscar Gonzalez.



He reviewed Castellan here, and Chupacabra: Survive the Night here, and we're glad he did! It's always great to get a reminder that people all over the world play our games, and a review from another country is pretty good as reminders go.



– Brian Engard



Warehouse 23 News: Castle Panic? No, Munchkin Panic!

Munchkin Panic is now available on Warehouse 23! Two worlds collide as the Munchkin Monsters invade the Castle Panic Towers. A clever, crazy, and addictive new board game where you semi-cooperate with other players to protect the Towers against rampaging monsters. But it has a Munchkin twist! Pick up Munchkin Panic to discover how we've turned this game on its head.

October 23, 2014: GURPS Fourth Turns 10 With . . . PK

I remember my first encounter with GURPS , back in the early '90s. Two of my players had "converted" to this new system, and kept trying to drag me in. I finally agreed to borrow it, just to rip holes in it and prove them fools. A week later, I bought my own copy and never looked back.



Of course, back then I didn't think I'd end up working for the company! But after contributing to the GURPS Creatures of the Night and GURPS Dungeon Fantasy lines, and writing GURPS Psionic Powers , I was welcomed aboard. Since then, I've had the opportunity to write a few books (including the GURPS Monster Hunters series) . . . but some of my fondest moments involve others' projects. At heart, I'm still a fanboy, so getting to work with amazing authors is the best part of my day.



I'm proud to have contributed demonic crunch to Matt Riggsby's GURPS Locations: Hellsgate . Editing Hans-Christian Vortisch's GURPS Tactical Shooting was like taking a night class in Armoury (Small Arms). I worked with Bill Stoddard to bring his GURPS Social Engineering to life – one of my favorite additions to Fourth Edition. And Ken Hite's GURPS Horror: The Madness Dossier was a book I'd wanted for so long that I began running a campaign the moment the edit wrapped.



And that's just the " GURPS " books. Since 2008, some of our most dynamic writing has been in Pyramid, Volume 3 . Its magazine format lets us run article-sized "supplements" for works that might otherwise not see expansion, and makes it easy to give new authors a chance.



These writers, both new and old, have done so much to make GURPS Fourth Edition the amazing system that it is, and things just keep getting better.



(Have you enjoyed these 10 looks back and behind the scenes? Stop by the forums and tell us about it.)



Warehouse 23 News: Fight The Shadow War, With GURPS



A classic newly available in digital form, GURPS Classic: Voodoo casts the heroes on the front lines of the Shadow War, between humanity and the forces of destruction. Download it today, only from Warehouse 23!

October 22, 2014: Super Snot Shots Hits Warehouse 23

Good news, everybody! Garbage Pail Kids: Super Snot Shots is up on Warehouse 23 for you to buy. This game is a gross little dexterity game based on the classic trading cards by Topps, and it's quite a lot of fun. We have a very limited supply of these, though, so they're going to disappear fast. Go get your copy, and enjoy the disgustingness!



– Brian Engard



Warehouse 23 News: Warehouse 23 Is Under Attack



Warehouse 23 has given way to anarchy! Mob rule has commanded that we offer Revolution! Anarchy right away. Get your copy quick before the legitimate authorities seize control and take it off the shelves.

October 20, 2014: Munchkin Halloween Packs Are Running Out

Hey, it's almost Halloween! We at Steve Jackson Games love the spookiest time of the year, and not just because we spend the day at the office playing games on the clock. Dressing up in fun costumes, doing scary things, giving out treats to kids . . . it's all really fun stuff, and we love it. It's why we made the Munchkin Halloween Pack .



Wait, you don't know what the Munchkin Halloween Pack is? Okay, here's the skinny: imagine you have a mini-booster that has four new  Munchkin cards in it, plus a card you can give to your friends to explain why this is so awesome. Now imagine you have 20 of those boosters to give out to kids at Halloween. (That is, 19 to give out. You're keeping one for yourself, right? RIGHT?) Now imagine that the whole thing costs you only $4.95. That's the Halloween Pack .



That's the good news. The bad news: We're almost out of them. The packs we have out there in the wild are the only ones left, so when they're gone, they're gone. They're disappearing fast, just like a ghost with an urgent appointment elsewhere, so you should probably go pick up a pack or two at your friendly local gaming store and give the gift of Munchkin to the little ghouls and goblins on the big night. (And sure, give 'em some candy while you're at it.)



– Brian Engard



Warehouse 23 News: Munchkin Legends 3 In Stock



Delivered by chariots from the lands of myth, Munchkin Legends 3 – Myth Prints has arrived in Warehouse 23! This 56-card expansion pack has new monsters and new treasures from your favorite legends. Be the first to order one from Warehouse 23.

October 21, 2014: Coming In February 2015

Munchkin Kobolds Ate My Baby



All Hail King Torg!



A kobold has a harsh life. But at least there are babies to eat . . . until King Torg (All Hail King Torg!) swipes the plumpest and juiciest for his table. Good thing the humans keep making more of them . . .



Munchkin Kobolds Ate My Baby is based on the RPG of the same name by 9th Level Games and Dork Storm Press!



– Brian Engard



Warehouse 23 News: Ars Magica: Mythic Locations Now Available



Where do you want to go this season? Explore ten new supernatural places from Purgatory to The Cursed Woods in Atlas Games' new book Ars Magica: Mythic Locations . These detailed backdrops are just waiting for the stories your characters will tell.

October 19, 2014: Introducing Alexandra Billings, Warehouse 23 Online Manager

Well, hello! I'm Alexandra, the Warehouse 23 Online Manager here at SJ Games. I do a lot of behind-the-scenes work to make W23 a better place for you – our fans who love buying our games!



But how did you get this awesome job?
I'm a directionally challenged Canadian that somehow wandered into Texas. Even better, I ended up at a GURPS gaming table with an awesome GM that taught me all about roleplaying games and nouveau boardgames. (See that? I speak French too!) I'm also an e-commerce aficionado who loves every little nuance about web design, analytics, and product pages.



Where you might see me:
On the SJ Games forum making announcements about new releases on W23, writing small promotional blurbs for the W23 news queue, and answering some of your customer service questions.



Out of the office, I'm an avid scuba diver, run my own online business specializing in shiny things, and spend time with my munchkiny husband and two rescue dogs.



Back to Warehouse 23 now. Need to kill those [redacted] occupying my desk.



– Alexandra Billings



Warehouse 23 News: A Smorgasbord Of Spaceships



If you play Star Fleet Battles , you need spaceships! Star Fleet Battles: Module R2 SSD Book 2012 has ships for the Federation, Andromedans, Orions, and Kzintis. Get it in its classic black and white form or as a new colorized version that makes gameplay easier than ever. Beam it aboard today, from Warehouse 23!

October 17, 2014: GURPS Fourth Turns 10 With . . . Kenneth Hite

I don't remember exactly which convention it was where I heard the news, but I remember exactly what I thought when Kromm and Pulver took me aside and told me that GURPS was going to get a new, unified, streamlined edition. I thought, "Glad I don't have to do that." Well, the joke was on me in part, because I got hired on as Staff Writer for Steve Jackson Games and produced a lot of suggestions that weren't used and a few that were, most noticeably the "iconic characters" for GURPS Fourth Edition. Some of their backstories confused Steve, but he gave me GURPS ' backstory to rewrite anyway: I got to add random worldline creation and the SS Raven Division and about 120 pages to the "Infinite Worlds" setting in GURPS Infinite Worlds .



Then I, and about 40 pages, were cut. I bounced back, as did 30 of those pages, in GURPS Infinite Worlds: Collegio Januari (where we got a fantasy Infinity War, between Templars and magi) and GURPS Infinite Worlds: Lost Worlds (where a couple of those backstories made a comeback). This seemed like such a great model for GURPS supplements that I eventually scared up six more timelines for GURPS Infinite Worlds: Worlds of Horror , from Etruscan vampires to German killbots to everybody's zombies. This of course was a cunning scheme to support the (somewhat) new and (very) horrifying GURPS Horror , which I updated profusely with splatter and crunch and 50 more all-new pages (details in the designer's notes).



Those pages didn't include my horrifying "Madness Dossier" campaign frame from Third Edition, so I leapt-ish into action and eventually emerged with 64 pages of linguistic mind control, scorpion-men from other histories, and William S. Burroughs references.



Ten years later, I'm glad I got to do all that.



Warehouse 23 News: A Classic Wargaming Magazine Download? Tanks!



The year is 1975, and JagdPanther Magazine #9 delights its readers with war game info, variants, strategies, rules, and more. The can-do spirit is alive and well, and the past is just a download away – thanks to Warehouse 23!

October 18, 2014: A New Voyage In International Waters

Hello, everyone!



After a year as Marketing Director, I decided to move on to a new challenge. I've been getting up to speed since late August, and I am now Steve Jackson Games' newest Translation Licensing Administrator.



Munchkin , GURPS , and some of the other titles in our vast catalog have been translated into over a dozen languages, and we have the privilege of partnering with several top-flight game companies around the globe. It'll be my job to help these folks get more stuff to print quickly and efficiently, to keep the lines of communication humming along, to seek out new markets for translations, and to help keep all of you more informed as to what's available from us internationally.



I'm extremely excited about the new gig, and I'm looking forward to sending out more updates.



Until then, take care! (Or bon voyage, as the case may be . . .)



– Leonard Balsera



Warehouse 23 News: But It's So Shiiiny...



You will not be tempted by this incredibly shiny Munchkin . You will be strong! You will resist! It's only the Munchkin you love wrapped up in irresistible gold foil. Maybe you can just pick up a copy and not open the box. That counts, right? Satisfy your need for shinies on Warehouse 23.