[Knockspell] #2 is on sale!

[mythmere]

The Swords & Wizardry Storefront: stores.lulu.com/mythmere

Knockspell Magazine Issue #2 is now on sale at the Swords & Wizardry storefront, stores.lulu.com/mythmere. This issue contains dungeon design advice from both Allan Grohe and Philotomy Jurament, an adventure by Gabor Lux, and all kinds of other articles from jousting to monsters and all points in between! The art in this issue is phenomenal: artists include Jim Holloway, Liz Danforth, and others. The cover piece is "Dungeoneer," by Peter Fitzpatrick. Games covered include 0e, 1e, Swords & Wizardry, OSRIC, and other retro-clones. 86 pages. Note: the pdf isn't up as of 5/13, but will be up shortly.

DURING MAY the prices of Knockspell #2, Spire of Iron and Crystal (module), The S&W/0e Monster Book, and Eldritch Weirdness Compilation Books Three to One are all reduced, because we're in the middle of another lulu sales competition.

Table of Contents:
3 Editor’s Note, Matt Finch
4 Art Director’s Note, Jeff Preston
4 From Kuroth’s Quill, Allan T. Grohe, Jr.
8 The Dungeon as Mythic Underworld, Jason “Philotomy Jurament” Cone
14 The Trouble with Thieves, James Maliszewski
16 WhiteBox Thief (1): The Treasure Seeker, Rob Ragas
17 WhiteBox Thief (2): The “Standard” Thief, Salvatore Macri
18 Core Rules Thief (1): The Skillful Shadow, Salvatore Macri
20 Core Rules Thief (2), James Maliszewski
21 Thieves and Tasks, Akrasia
24 Isles on an Emerald Sea 2, Gabor Lux
31 Retro-Clones: Interviews with the Authors
36 Jousting (Optional Rules), Brendan Falconer
37 Dungeon Oddities, Michael Curtis
45 The Zocchi Experience, Matt Finch
46 The Claws of Ssur-Sparih, James Carl Boney
47 Random City Lair Generator, Sean Wills
48 Random Thieves Guild Generator, Robert Lionheart
51 The Fantasy Marketplace: Looking at Merchants Differently, Michael Shorten
55 Spell Complexity (Optional Rules), Brendan Falconer
57 Thoughts on Arnesonian Alchemy in the Original Dungeon Game, Jason Vasche
60 When is a Spell Book Much More than a Spell Book?, Brendan Falconer
62 Random Pits & Occupants, Mike Davison
63 Magic Swords & Treasure Maps, Jason “Philotomy Jurament” Cone
67 Leprechauns, David (“Sham”) Bowman
69 Why White Box?, Jim Adams
71 Surviving Old-School Dungeons, Sean Ahmed
72 Three Sorcerous Creations, James Carl Boney
77 Magic Items
78 Review: On the Road of Knives, Matt Finch
79 Masterminds & Minions, bat
82 The Bestiary
86 Classified Ads

[stonetoflesh]

This looks awesome, I can't wait to get my hands on it!

What's up with Lulu though? No "Media Mail" option? Domestic shipping costs as much as the book itself!!!

[mythmere]

May 13, 2009 10:58:23 GMT -6 stonetoflesh said:

This looks awesome, I can't wait to get my hands on it!

What's up with Lulu though? No "Media Mail" option? Domestic shipping costs as much as the book itself!!!

I know, it's not the best shipping setup.... it does get less crazy if you're buying more than one item.

[Zulgyan]

Cool puply cover

Which of those are adventures?

[mythmere]

May 13, 2009 14:23:45 GMT -6 Zulgyan said:

Cool puply cover

Which of those are adventures?

Emerald Isles 2, by Melan, is the only adventure in this issue. This issue is strongest on dungeon design articles - there are three extremely good articles, one by grodog, one by philotomy, and one by Michael Curtis (Society of Torch, Pole, and Rope).

[stonetoflesh]

A strange but pleasant surprise - I went to purchase KS#2 this morning and saw a "Media Mail" option that wasn't there yesterday! YAYYY!!!!

[mythmere]

May 14, 2009 10:27:41 GMT -6 stonetoflesh said:

A strange but pleasant surprise - I went to purchase KS#2 this morning and saw a "Media Mail" option that wasn't there yesterday! YAYYY!!!!

They also announced a 10% discount for anyone typing MAYCONTEST10 at checkout.

Nice customer service ... but late.

[waysoftheearth]

May 13, 2009 10:58:23 GMT -6 stonetoflesh said:

What's up with Lulu though? No "Media Mail" option? Domestic shipping costs as much as the book itself!!!

...lulu shipping isreally prohibitive for OS buyers -- usually more than the product itself.

And it's WORSE if you want to buy multiple items. I just filled a cart with $68 worth of Swords & Wizardry goodness and found it would cost over $200 to ship! And they call it "economy". Very very sad indeed

[glgnfz]

Are you sure you have used the pulldown menu which shows you the price for shipping? Usually there's one more means of shipping which is A LOT cheaper.

I ordered 4 items including 1 hardcover and it cost me 15€ to send the stuff to Germany.

[mythmere]

The pdf is now up if you can't find a decent shipping option - it's different in different countries; Canada is more expensive than the UK. I hadn't heard that Oz was that bad, though...

[waysoftheearth]

The economy shipping option is $210.17. The express shipping option is $222.97. Yep, pdf is the only sane option.

[mythmere]

May 15, 2009 18:21:46 GMT -6 waysoftheearth said:

The economy shipping option is $210.17. The express shipping option is $222.97. Yep, pdf is the only sane option.

pdfs are up, now, for all the new products except the Eldritch Weirdness Compilation. I'm searching for other ways to get these books affordably available outside the USA ...

[Melan]

May 15, 2009 18:21:46 GMT -6 waysoftheearth said:

The economy shipping option is $210.17. The express shipping option is $222.97. Yep, pdf is the only sane option.

Wow. They really don't want your business, do they.

[blackbarn]

Given the surge in popularity these retro-clones are getting, I'm thinking that it would be a real coup for some old school-friendly publishing company to offer to pick up something like this for professional printing and distribution. Not to imply anything is wrong with the great effort you guys are making, but it really seems to be hampered by the cost problems with Lulu.

[mythmere]

May 19, 2009 22:05:55 GMT -6 blackbarn said:

Not to imply anything is wrong with the great effort you guys are making, but it really seems to be hampered by the cost problems with Lulu.

Yes, it is.

[Ghul]

Need to order my copy of this. I think I'll do pdf, 2-sided print, three-hole punch, and stick them in a binder. Cheers, myth!

[ant]

Just ordered print versions of Knockspell 1 and 2. Can't wait. :-)

[arokh]

Just received my copies of Knockspell 1 and 2 in the mail. I've only skimmed them thus far, but I just wanted to say that they look phenomenal. The production values are very good, the articles look like they will be extremely useful to me, and the enthusiasm that the various people involved have for the game is readily apparent.

Great work for all concerned. I will *definitely* be picking up Knockspell 3 when it's available.

[benoist]

Lulu's shipping costs suck. They constitute the main obstacle to my orders of vintage gaming products. I still buy in PDF, but would otherwise buy physical products if shipping fees were remotely reasonable.

As for Knockspell #2... heh little PDF... come to papa now, don't be afraid...

[machfront]

benoist,
Depending on where you are, getting it from Lulu via Amazon is usually cheaper (much cheaper if you're outside the U.S.). Most rpg items on Lulu are available on their Amazon storefront (including Knockspell, and of course, Swords & Wizardry, Fight On!, Labyrinth Lord, Spellcraft & Swordplay, Basic Fantasy Role-Playing Game, Outlaw Press' Tunnels & Trolls stuff, etc.,etc.)

[benoist]

Thanks for the heads up, mach!

I haven't tried ordering via Amazon yet. We'll see how that goes!