The Cursed Chateau Maps : ENNIE AWARDS NOM NOM VOTE

So The Cursed Chateau got an ENnie Awards Nomination for Best Cartography. 

If you're wondering what the maps looked like here you go.

Hopefully, when you're voting for best Cartography, you're not voting along product lines:

"I like Cthulhu! I like Lamentations! I like Numenera!"

Hopefully, you're voting on which product has the very best cartography.

The criteria for what makes a great map:

Is it practical, easy to access, easy to use at the game table?

Is it parseable, easy to read, easy to comprehend?

Is it informative, providing as much detail it can without cluttering the map?

Is it evocative, is it easy on the eye?

Hopefully, The Cursed Chateau meets these criteria.

NOW GO VOTE HERE:

ENNIE AWARDS

The Cursed Chateau

It's here! Where I've been for the past few months. 

I'll put up a post about its production over the next few days, dealing with the issues working with metallic inks, two color illustrations, design, but for now, click on the image to go get it and support a great writer, a great publisher, and a dishevelled and underslept artist.

Free at Last!

Possibly the greatest words ever written by man.

And right now I know exactly how this guy feels. And it feels real good. 

The two major projects I've been going hammer and tongs over are finally at the printers! 

These babies:

RED & PLEASANT LAND, written by Zak S. (I worked the layout) and DEATH FROST DOOM, originally written by James Edward Raggi IV, extensively revised and expanded by Zak S.
(I did the layout, cartography and twenty-one illustrations).

Zak's talked extensively about Red and Pleasant Land on his blog over here.
It's fantastic, and I was lucky to work on it. 

Originally James had someone else lined up for Death Frost Doom—
I was knee deep in Red and Pleasant Land and way behind—
but when I heard the original designer he had lined up for it fell through
I literally begged James for the chance to do it.

It was his signature adventure and I knew my maximum black style
would be just right for the ominous mood. And yeah, hopefully you'll see what I mean.
I loved the endpaper so much it's now the banner of this blog, 

and here's the promo piece I did which shows off the mountain.

Both are out in October. So go get'em.

And the wonderful thing about finally nailing these two pretties? 

I'm free at last to start up a whole bunch of new stuff. 

More illustrations, maps, adventures, and dusting off this blog.

WOOOOOO!

Lamentations of the Flame Princess : Red Rum

Art from The Magnificent Joop van Ooms

The Magnificent Joop van Ooms has been out for a little while now (with what I think is THE BEST RPG COVER ART OF THE YEAR by Jason Rainville) and I'm able to show some of the interior illustrations that James Raggi asked me to do. I figure it's also a good time to post a couple of the pieces that didn't make the cut.

Joop van Ooms, Giles de Rais, and Henry VIII.

Amsterdam Killers. 

The next few pieces cover stuff that was mentioned in the book; late in the production it was decided to drop the page count, so these ideas - some close to the mark, some a little off - were left unfinished. 

A statue from Joop van Ooms' collection. The steaming whatever from the eyes was a little too magical, and the space was gobbled up with copy following the page drop so it didn't get reworked.

Joop van Oom's working prototype of Da Vinci's helicopter. James wanted something alot smaller and flimsier; I liked the idea of the characters lifting off from some ravenous crowd of heretic burners.

A rougher sketch of Oom's golden cannons opening fire. With the drop in page count this wasn't needed anymore and wasn't developed further. I did envision the sky full of Da Vinci choppers. Woulda been silly but cool.

Santicore 2012, Lulu, Porphyry, LotFP and Stuff

I'm calling this one early: the Misers have it by basquillion to one, so I'll start prepping a black and white version of Secret Santicore for Lulu. Which I completely get given the price diff, but still, would like to see in in colour one day...

...but none of this happens til I've slain the mighty beast that is Porphyry. Over the hump but still a fair whack of illustrations to go, big push over the next fortnight to try this wrapped up pronto. Cause on the horizon lurks two if not three FOUR modules for the Lamentations of the Flame Princess Great Adventure Campaign, plus a few more surprises from James Raggi, as well as the designwork for The Secret DM's Gary Gygax Birthday Competition Thing.

I'm kinda disappointed that more of Raggi's adventures didn't fund. I had put my hand up to do all 16, which prolly would have broken me, so that's a relief; and in a way not having so many is good thing:

I'll have time to put together Secret Santicore for 2012.

The catch is that at some point late November/early December I'll be moving country – which means packing and selling the house, selling the kids, all the usual. I'm kinda expecting there to be a few more Santicore entries than last year, too. The combination means preparations will have to be in place preeeetty early, and I'll probably have to share the load a little to git it dun in time. I'll be putting out the call for artists and editors and proofers and wranglers soon. You have been warned :)

Gotta say it's been a good year for gaming. A very good year. Thanks!

Death Love Doom

So my first major design job for James Raggi has pretty much wrapped up: a horror throwdown for Lamentations of the Flame Princess that rocked up out of nowhere two weeks ago.

Cover art, cartography, and layout by me, but no illustrations, for reasons all explained here.