Shadowrun: The CCG

The FASA corporation has quietly announced the production of a collectible card game based on their hugely popular Shadowrun RPG. Details are sketchy, but the product has been slated for release sometime in 1997. Artwork has been in production for sometime, but no information on the artists, designers or system-specifics has yet been made public. FASA is apparently staying hush-hush about the entire project. But with the Battletech CCG imminent, fans will have more than enough goodies to tide them over until further details become known.

WOTC hints at new magic set in 1997

Coyness is rapidly becoming standard modus operandi for game companies these day. Now WotC is dropping tantalizing hints of the nature of its next Magic expansion set. Visions, a limited edition expansion set for Mirage, is scheduled for release in January 1997. 25 Vision preview cards will be available in the new Multiverse Gift Box set, in stores now. Beyond that, WotC is staying very tight-lipped...

Hidden messages in the X-Files

The X-Files CCG isn't even out yet, and already rumors are circulating about a series of "hidden messages" within the cards. USPC Games has now officially dispelled all speculation by announcing an "embedded contest" encoded in the Premiere Edition of the game.

Hidden in certain cards is a web address created specifically for the contest. Players who visit the site will find detailed instructions on how to enter. The contest itself will involve key words hidden in the gaming cards, and offers prizes ranging from sets of rare promotional cards to T-shirts and other X-Files merchandise.

As far as offering hints, USPC is urging players to look for "perceived mistakes," such as crooked suit names, random letters and so on. "One word: acrostic," is all spokesman Ronnie Noize would say when pressed. Looks like USPC is working hard to be as cryptic and paranoid as its subject matter. Whether that's good or bad is open to interpretation.

TSR Books Announces New Nine-Book Series

TSR Publishing is preparing to unleash a new nine-book series upon an unsuspecting populace. Set in an undiscovered area of the Forgotten Realms, the series "is designed to introduce TSR's worlds to new readers," according to Executive Editor Brian Thomsen.

The first book in the series, The Abduction, will be released in November as part of a huge giveaway with the Blood and Magic computer game. Subsequent books will reveal new chapters and developments of the ongoing story, which will climax will the final novel, set for a July 1997 release. In addition to the giveaway with Blood and Magic, The Abduction will be available at bookstores everywhere.

Mechwarrior 2 Comes in Like a Lion

As the unholy holiday retail jugggernaut slowly rumbles to life, Activision Inc.'s Mechwarrior 2: Mercenaries has just completed one of the most expansive consumer promotions in recent years. The PC CD-ROM game, a sequel to the popular Mechwarrior CD-ROM, has been the target of a massive publicity push running through over 10,000 retail outlets nationwide.

As part of that, participating retailers are offering rebates on earlier Mechwarrior titles, as well as a mark-down of Mechwarrior 2. Specifics vary from store to store, so talk to your local computer games outlet for more details. Mechwarrior 2: Mercenaries is available for MS-DOS and Windows 95 and should be on sale now.

Warcraft II Now Mac Friendly

Warcraft II, the orcs versus humans CD-ROM rumble-fest, is finally avilable for Mac. Players take control of either a marauding army of unwashed humanoids or the band of nations which they are invading in an all-out war for control of the continent of Azeroth. Warcraft II for the Mac requires a 68040 or Power PC processor, 8 megs of physical RAM, and a CD-ROM drive of double-speed or faster. It retails for $49.95, but can often be found for less.

The Sabbat Join the Eternal Struggle

Magic's Ice Age came first, and then White Wolf did The Wyrm (a stand-alone set about the bad guys in the World of Darkness), so it was probably only a matter of time before the Sabbat appeared in V:TES.

The Sabbat, the third expansion for Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (formerly Jyhad) has hit the shelves. Like Ice Age and The Wyrm, The Sabbat is a stand-alone expansion, and includes many cards from the basic set so that the dark vampires of the Sabbat will be on an equal footing with the blood-suckers from the Camarilla.

Unlike The Wyrm (where the Wyrm packs fought directly against the werewolf packs), Sabbat vampires can be mixed freely with the Camarilla vampires. Antitribu from all of the original clans are included, as well as members of two new clans: Tzimisce and Lasombra. The Sabbat is a 400+ card set with an indeterminate number of cards from the basic set included as well as many new cards. The cards are sold in double-sized 28-card packs that retail for $3.95.

'Zine Scene: A New Combatant Enters the Fray Chimera, a quarterly gaming magazine from the EhGO company, graced the shelves of stores this summer. Published in Westwood, CA, the 24 page 'zine is an attempt to deal with the "flux period" that gaming is currently undergoing. Subscriptions run for $14 a year and can be obtained at the following address: 10815 Rose Ave, Suite 1, Los Angeles, CA 90034

Brom Book Hits the Shelves this February

FPG puplishing has announced the release of Darkwčrks: The Art of Brom for February 1997. In the past few years, Brom has become one of the most popular and influential fantasy artists in the world. He has contributed work to a huge variety of role-playing, computer, and collectible card games, including (big breath, now) Dark Sun, Ravenloft, The World of Darkness, Doom II, Heretic, Lord of the Rings, Guardians, Deadlands and Dark Age. His portrait of Elric remains one of the defining pictures of Moorcock's hero to date.

Darkwčrks represents the first large scale compilation of Brom's work, featuring approximately 150 full color reproductions assembled in a 128 page volume. It includes a foreward by fellow artist Rick Berry and an introduction by FPG's president Michael Friedlander. Considering Brom's phenomenal popularity and a growing interest in the dark fantasy themes that he excels at, this book shouldn't last long out on the shelves. It retails at $14.95 and will be available at book and game shops all over the country.

New Releases

TSR

Wizard's Spell Compendium Vol. I

($25) This is the first volume in a series of tomes which has the ambitious goal of compiling all of TSR's magic-user spells from 1975 to 1995. Spells from A-D are covered in just under 300 pages. Material is included from the 1st-edition Player's Handbook, as well as the magazines Dragon, Dungeon, Polyhedron, and Imagine, among other sources.

World Builder's Guidebook

($20) The World Builder's Guidebook walks you through the process of creating a new game world one step at a time. The book is covers everything from designing the planet down to the society of the inhabitants. A pad of blank maps of various sorts is also provided.

Heroes of Steel (For Dragonlance - the Fifth Age)

($18) New weapons, combat maneuvers, optional rules, and archetypes for combat-oriented characters are provided in this Fifth Age supplement. Information is also included on knightly orders. A 48-page scenario, The Rising Storm (color map included), finishes off the package.

West End Games

Shadows of the Empire Planets Guide (For Star Wars)

($15) Four new planets from Steve Perry's Shadows of the Empire novel are detailed in this 96-page guidebook - including Greedo's homeworld, Rodia. Short adventures are included for each planet. This one looks like a winner for SWRPG fans.

Star Wars Revised GM's Screen

($10) The GM's screen is accompanied by 64 pages of character templates, skill lists, starship creation worksheets, and other nifty things.

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