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Post by Melan on Dec 2, 2019 12:54:31 GMT -6
I would like to announce the publication of Castle Xyntillan, a funhouse megadungeon for the Swords&Wizardry game and other old-school systems (it goes well with OD&D). Suitable for 1st to 6th level characters, Castle Xyntillan has been designed to be versatile, open-ended, complex, and accessible - and always a bit mysterious. From the soaring tower of the Donjon to the inky depths of the Oubliette (and beyond), this module should provide ample opportunities for exploration, confrontation, and subterfuge. Whether you would like a dungeon for one-off expeditions and convention play, or repeated forays and full campaigns, this book should suit the demands of your campaign! The print edition includes cartography from Rob Conley, cover art by Peter Mullen, and interior illustrations by Stefan Poag, Denis McCarthy and Peter Mullen (again). It ships as a handsome 132-page hardcover with four map sheets (detailed GM's and blank player's maps). Orders submitted this week should be sure to reach your location before Christmas! It is available at my Bigcartel store, with a flat $18/$22 shipping fee (Europe/worldwide; no cost for multiple copies or extra items). The PDF edition will be published through DriveThruRPG with a few months’ delay. As always, customers who buy the print edition will receive the PDF version free of charge. A preview, a GM's Worksheet, and extra player maps are available from my blog.
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Post by geoffrey on Dec 2, 2019 19:42:43 GMT -6
Not having a 10-sided die in the photograph is a nice touch.
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muddy
Level 4 Theurgist
Posts: 158
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Post by muddy on Dec 2, 2019 19:53:48 GMT -6
Looks excellent
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Post by grodog on Dec 2, 2019 23:28:22 GMT -6
Ordered!
Allan.
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Post by geoffrey on Dec 2, 2019 23:50:56 GMT -6
Not having a 10-sided die in the photograph is a nice touch. And the dice are in the "classic" colors! Not to mention how sharp that 4-sider is!
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Post by Melan on Dec 3, 2019 1:03:36 GMT -6
They are my "OD&D" dice, a GaryCon set. The d6 is a character killer.
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Post by robertsconley on Dec 7, 2019 7:57:55 GMT -6
Hey my maps!
Nicely done and congrats. I like how you have a full scale print of the maps.
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Post by scalydemon on Jan 19, 2020 9:59:39 GMT -6
I need to remind myself to pick up a copy of this. Looks great.
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Post by Finarvyn on Jan 19, 2020 16:04:16 GMT -6
They are my "OD&D" dice, a GaryCon set. The d6 is a character killer. I was going to comment that they looked like my GaryCon set. Those are nice dice because: (1) they do match the color of my other original sets (2) they are hard plastic and won't wear out like my other original sets The dice are a tad larger than the originals, but that's not at all a deal breaker. They are awesome!
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Post by Red Baron on Jan 19, 2020 20:21:42 GMT -6
Can you bundle Castle Xyntillan + Fanzines for the same shipping price as Castle Xyntillan alone?
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Post by Melan on Jan 21, 2020 2:32:37 GMT -6
Can you bundle Castle Xyntillan + Fanzines for the same shipping price as Castle Xyntillan alone? Of course! You could theoretically order Xyntillan and everything else I have released so far, and still be within the postal weight limit. Shipping is a flat $6/$7 for zines, and $20/$25 for orders including hardcovers (Europe/Worldwide). Without Xyntillan, I split particularly large orders between two envelopes, at no extra cost to the buyer.
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muddy
Level 4 Theurgist
Posts: 158
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Post by muddy on Mar 14, 2020 12:54:46 GMT -6
I was hoping to pick up a copy at Gary Con - is there a US distributor?
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Post by tacojohn4547 on Mar 31, 2020 15:41:22 GMT -6
I was hoping to pick up a copy at Gary Con - is there a US distributor? I’m a little swamped right now with the US tax season, but if you want to order it, we (Black Blade) can hook you up as we have copies we were going to sell at GaryCon. Hit me with an email at tacojohndm@yahoo.com and we can get you sorted.
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Post by Finarvyn on Apr 1, 2020 7:12:23 GMT -6
I'll be honest -- this product totally fell off of my radar. I took a peek at the preview pages on the website and this certainly looks intriguing. Has anyone played it yet? How does the whole thing look? (With a $40 buy-in I'm a little hesitant without seeing any reviews.) - - - - - EDIT: looking at some of the comments on the December 2 announcement page it looks like a bunch of very favorable reviews.
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Post by tacojohn4547 on Apr 1, 2020 8:35:38 GMT -6
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muddy
Level 4 Theurgist
Posts: 158
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Post by muddy on Apr 1, 2020 9:49:02 GMT -6
That review, a rare positive review from that site, is what got it on my radar. Here are some excerpts:
This 132 page hardback adventure, an homage to Tegal Manor… it shows what good writing and design actually ARE. Magnificent in its achievements, Charles Dexter Lux has created something very rare and wonderful. So the job of the text is to give the DM the mental picture that inspires them to run a magnificent encounter and to do it in mere seconds. Evocative and terse, is generally the technique. And Gabor Lux does it magnificently. The text is the correct length. You get the overview of the room. Then you get indents and bullets to highlight important aspects of the room that the players may follow up on. Encounters are wonderful.
Ye Olde Kente once said that Thracia was the only adventure you ever needed. He was, I think, correct, at least in general. This however IS the only adventure you ever need. You could run a party through this for YEARS, with more than enough information present to riff on. A perfect OD&D product, with whimsy and wonder without going off in to Funhouse territory. I got this last night, stayed up all night reading and re-reading, write this the next morning, and will be adding it to my “No Prep” Dungeonland game tonight.
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Post by Finarvyn on Apr 1, 2020 12:06:01 GMT -6
Okay, I think I'm sold on this. However, it looks like they aren't shipping anything until the Zombie Apocalypse is over. Melan is this correct, and if so can we get a PDF faster?
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Post by kenmeister on Apr 1, 2020 12:45:00 GMT -6
I'm a VERY happy customer.
Btw I always liked the concept of Tegel Manor more than the JG implementation. In fact the best haunted house adventure that JG published was House On Hangman Hill. Castle Xyntillan looks like (I've only browsed it) it fulfills the promise that Tegel aspired to.
(Also of note is the Gamescience Tegel Manor which is a great product too.)
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muddy
Level 4 Theurgist
Posts: 158
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Post by muddy on Apr 1, 2020 14:00:22 GMT -6
Okay, I think I'm sold on this. However, it looks like they aren't shipping anything until the Zombie Apocalypse is over. Melan is this correct, and if so can we get a PDF faster? See Taco John's post above - you can get it through Black Blade publishing
"I’m a little swamped right now with the US tax season, but if you want to order it, we (Black Blade) can hook you up as we have copies we were going to sell at GaryCon. Hit me with an email at tacojohndm@yahoo.com and we can get you sorted."
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Post by Finarvyn on Apr 1, 2020 20:22:29 GMT -6
Ordered. Something to read during the Zombie Apocalypse.
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Post by tacojohn4547 on Apr 1, 2020 21:26:07 GMT -6
Thanks guys!
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Post by Melan on Apr 2, 2020 4:21:45 GMT -6
Okay, I think I'm sold on this. However, it looks like they aren't shipping anything until the Zombie Apocalypse is over. Melan is this correct, and if so can we get a PDF faster? Yes, in fact, the PDF will be released tonight! (Don't yell at me if it is tomorrow.) This will still be a simple PDF version, to be followed by an update with cross-referencing and other useful functions. It will have a pack of VTT-compatible maps courtesy of Rob Conley, with his useful setup instructions. I am really sorry I had to shut down physical deliveries, but I was having doubts about the reliability of worldwide deliveries during the Bat Plague, not to mention going to my local post office regularly. They are open, but - you know. This is not a life or death thing. Shipping will resume once things improve a little (actually, my last outgoing packages seemed to have arrived, even if they did so with a delay). I have even put in the order for a reprint - I am at 70 out of 500 printed copies remaining, and would like to believe there will be an interest after all this passes. Plus, I am putting money in the pockets of a local gamer-run printer, a local binder, and various paper/printer businesses involved in the production process.
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Post by Melan on Apr 4, 2020 8:53:51 GMT -6
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Post by simrion on Apr 5, 2020 17:03:35 GMT -6
TacoJohn was kind enough to hook me up with a copy YAY!
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Post by Finarvyn on Apr 6, 2020 13:49:01 GMT -6
TacoJohn was kind enough to hook me up with a copy YAY! Yeah, mine came in today's mail. Turns out that paying for "express shipping" got my book (and maps) wrapped in an express envelope, inside an envelope, inside an envelope. Then the thing was wrapped by around a dozen layers of plastic grocery store bags. Then the thing was placed in a secure UPS box with extra paper and cardboard crammed in to fill in the rest of the empty space. Just unwrapping the whole thing provided five minutes of entertainment for me and my daughter. I can't wait to play the thing!
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Post by simrion on Apr 6, 2020 15:23:54 GMT -6
TacoJohn was kind enough to hook me up with a copy YAY! Yeah, mine came in today's mail. Turns out that paying for "express shipping" got my book (and maps) wrapped in an express envelope, inside an envelope, inside an envelope. Then the thing was wrapped by around a dozen layers of plastic grocery store bags. Then the thing was placed in a secure UPS box with extra paper and cardboard crammed in to fill in the rest of the empty space. Just unwrapping the whole thing provided five minutes of entertainment for me and my daughter. I can't wait to play the thing! And those plastic bags are worth their weight in gold in my home state of NY. They're banned now and they made for really good waste basket liners. Would be far more sanitary during our current viral outbreak than the environmentally friendly reusable that most people don't bother cleaning.
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Post by Finarvyn on Apr 6, 2020 17:52:07 GMT -6
And those plastic bags are worth their weight in gold in my home state of NY. Well, if you didn't pay for "express" shipping, maybe there is time to contact Jon and switch over. You'd get a nice supply of bags that way and at a decent cost.
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Post by tacojohn4547 on Apr 6, 2020 22:11:18 GMT -6
And those plastic bags are worth their weight in gold in my home state of NY. Well, if you didn't pay for "express" shipping, maybe there is time to contact Jon and switch over. You'd get a nice supply of bags that way and at a decent cost. QFT!! Actually, since we here in Kansas seem to have an unlimited supply of those bags, I use them on most orders to protect the product. So we’re recycling those darned bags, in our own way!!
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Post by simrion on Apr 8, 2020 9:42:32 GMT -6
Well, if you didn't pay for "express" shipping, maybe there is time to contact Jon and switch over. You'd get a nice supply of bags that way and at a decent cost. QFT!! Actually, since we here in Kansas seem to have an unlimited supply of those bags, I use them on most orders to protect the product. So we’re recycling those darned bags, in our own way!! Arrive today. Beautiful book! Not sure which to be more excited about, the book or the packaging materials! :-)
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Post by simrion on Apr 8, 2020 14:43:12 GMT -6
I would like to announce the publication of Castle Xyntillan, Absolutely gorgeous book and interesting read!
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