I can hardly believe that our GenCon accredited, RPGA Fellowship club is entering its third year and that I've pumped out 18 separate newszines for club distribution, all told more than 800 separate copies produced, not to mention over a thousand special issues distributed at GenCon over this time, at least a few score sent out as previews in response to inquiries I've received, plus hundreds upon hundreds of flyers sent to every convention in the U.S. and a few in Canada to solicit members. This advertising has certainly helped, for now our ranks have swelled to over 65 members and hopefully will increase further, gaining at least some of the 400+ who picked up our special newszine at GenCon last week.

I'm glad that I now have a steady stream of submissions for Chain-Mail. Please, just because I have enough stuff to keep me going for the next couple of issues don't let that stop you from submitting your works! Having a variety to choose from is always best, and I'd like to have a greater diversity of authors and artists to represent our club in every issue. Remember, ChainMail is not just a gaming publication, but is also one of the prime means by which you communicate with your fellow club members!

I'm also glad that the "Club Forum" is encouraging such good participation among the members. I would, however, like to take a moment to respond to and clarify some of the points brought up in this issue's, and past "Club Forum" editions.

When the regulations were originally put down on paper for the Experience Point System, forming them from a few working sessions I had with President Young (who originally came up with the idea), and distributed them to the club for preliminary comment, it didn't include a provision for monetary contributions receiving XP. But after a member suggested having such a provision, so that those who might not be able to aggressively support the newszine or club through the Wed activities would still be able to earn some standing in the club, it was included. Everyone voted on it (or had the chance to exercise their right to vote) and could have vetoed it since each award, including this one, was listed individually. But there was no great push against having this provision. In hindsight, do you now think it an unacceptable XP award? I don't think so, and I don't think anyone expects a member to throw out scores of dollars just to earn XP, but instead, like me, to spend a few of our precious dollars to support and expand the club, and in doing this service have the club recognize these special efforts by awarding XP.

Rather than allow this, it was suggested that the club offer deals to renew membership early. This would not be productive in my opinion. First, the club fivasury wouldn't get the income it expects if a discount of some sort was made to . ce early renewal; second, it is not technically allowed under the club's By-laws; d third, the club's financial situation would be eroded by this practice of paying r today's bills with tomorrow's money. A better option would be for the members pay their fees on time, for the officers to more closely monitor expenditures, and ping the XP awards as they stand now for those who donate time, services, effort, d cash to aid the club.

I've done my share to limit expenditure for the newszine production by limiting it to no more than 36 pages, so that with perhaps one or two inserts and (domestic) postage, each regular issue costs no more than about $1.50. For six issues, this works out to be $9.00 per (domestic) member, leaving $3.00 of his/her dues to pay for other club expenses such as rewards from the EPS, club flyers, membership cards, whatever.

The provision for earning XP as a GM of a PBM run for the club's members is meant to encourage members to start up a PBM so that the club membership may keep involved with one another through the club's prime activity: gaming. Since it takes effort, dedication, responsibility, and time to conduct a PBM, those of us who originally put the EPS together thought that this effort should be rewarded, even though in many cases a small fee was charged to the players by the GM (to cover postage and material costs). Verification steps were formulated to assure that a minimum of effort was spent to earn this reward.

I don't agree with the idea that players of a member-sponsored PBM should earn any XP. Players, as a result of playing, aren't really supporting the club but only their own interests, namely to have fun gaming, while the GlAs are supporting the club by running a game for the club members and supporting the interaction of the membership. Earning XP for playing in a game is like earning money for a job by simply showing up, not for doing any work. Some might argue that, like frequent flyers on airlines or users of the Discover card who get an end-of-the-year rebate, the players should get XP for their frequency of play in a PBM and their support of it. If they want some sort of reward for active play in a particular member's PBM then they should receive it from the GM himself, in the form of a discount, free turn, whatever. It would be a different story if the club, as the organizational unit, appointed members to run club sponsored PBMs and regulated them; in this case both GM and player should get some XP. But since it is currently loosely organized and not managed directly by the club and its officers, the current system for XP reward is, in my opinion, the only logical approach.

If you are a player and want to earn some extra XP, why not start up your own PBM? In the first issue of Chain-Mail I gave some information on how to start and run a PBM, and Jil Conway makes reference to this in her "Club Forum" submission, (Reprints of this article are available from the Editor for 75 cents). I would be glad to sacrifice a little more of what remains of my free time to help others out through such a feature in the newszine, and think it a great idea for 11 guest authors" to add their "two cents worth." No two PBMs are identical in style, construction, or organization, so diverse input would be not only good but requisite to help those out there who want to start a PBM, or make their current one even better. If you are or have been a GM of a PBM and want to offer wisdom, please send your submission or ideas to me.

Round Table

Another feature which has begun to attract member attention is "Ranger Rick's Round Table." In this issue I have answered a couple of questions submitted by Steven Dashiell, and would like to see more members submit AD&D questions to me for comment. XP credit is given for such. But I'm by no means an authority on this and other game systems, so I invite you to offer complementary or supplementary opinions on questions addressed therein.

Dennis DeBalso mentions in this issue's "Club Forum" that he'd like a recap of the "History of Crimsonvale," our club's AD&D Project Town. As listed in the "Activities Flyer" distributed to all new members (the latest edition of this is available from the Editor: send a #10 SASE) you can obtain a reprint, in full page format, of the history from the Editor for $3.00 (US). It also includes a list of the PBM offers from club members, how to get a club t-shirt, and how to obtain a professional drawing of your favorite PCs, just to name a few.

It also mentions the Map of Crimsonvale. President Jeff Young and I are still working this. Our map will show the town's major features and will include all of the official submissions which have appeared in past issues of Chain-Mail. This will be soon released as part of the club's activities to all members. The map is set on nine pages of 7.5" by 10" paper, computer generated by MacDraw II, and when placed together form a detailed complete overview map of the town and immediate surrounding areas.

As the club town grows, updates will be made available... and now comes time to discuss how this shall be done.

Since it appears on nine separate pages it's obvious that only those pages which have changes will be issued as updates. Should we release updates every six months, every year, or every time an addition or modification is made? The club member will receive the initial map free of charge, but should he get updates at his option for a fee (5 cents per page plus postage) or at club expense, sent out with the next newszine issue? Any comments about this project should be sent to the Editor, who will then distribute them to the other officers.

Now on to the idea about sub-regional groups within DU. I'm not going to dictate what others should or shouldn't do, but in my opinion the idea, while a good one, just isn't feasible. First, and I'll admit to a bit of pessimism based on past club experiences, I doubt that there would be enough member interest for forming such groups, or if there was, enough stick-to-it will among those who got together. Geographically our membership is not really that close, even in the suggested subregions; many would have to travel hours to reach a central meeting point, and this would prove to be difficult to sustain over the long run. To have productive subregional groups, they'd need to meet at least once a month, and I believe it virtually impossible to do this.

The reason for forming DU was because its members simply couldn't get together in person, being spread out over the country (and now world). PBMs were started in our club to help keep us together through gaming. The newszine was mandated to help share ideas and the like in a more open format than the structured and limited one a PBM would offer, and reach a great deal more than a, few players in each member's PBM position. I would rather see our club membership devise ways to strengthen what we already have, not break us into sub-units so that what strength we have is diluted. What do you think?

I'm glad that the response to the "Club Profiles" has tuned out so well. This feature was one of the charter members' original ones for the newszine, but as the club grew and the emphasis went toward stories, articles, and artwork, it lost its importance. But our President asked for its renewal as a main feature so that, just as Frank Young states, we each can be more than just names to our fellow Dragonslayers. I will continue to print a selection of these so that everyone's profile will eventually be shared with the others. I will eventually also solicit updates, to be put under a separate feature called "Profile Updates," or the like. Suggestions for this column's name are of course welcome!

The Editor's desk is now clear of notes and points needing comments, so I'll end here for now. Enjoy our Third Anniversary edition!

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