Petersen Games - Newsletter

A special sale from Petersen Games...
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Marchthulhu Is Here!  A sale so good it will drive you insane As a thank you to our loyal followers (and to make room in our warehouses for all the new games that are arriving soon from China) .... We are offering a special website-only sale of 20% off most Cthulhu Wars products, + 25% off on all other products that we have in stock!   This is a worldwide sale - we have stock of at least some items in all corners of the globe! Any order over $100 in the U.S. or Australia (not including shipping) gets free shipping! Any order over $150 in Europe or Asia (not including shipping) gets free shipping! This is a first come, first served offer, and when we are out, you will never be able to get the games at this price again! Click here: www.petersengames.com Check out the new look on our website! While you are on the website, take a look at our sales, enjoy the improved look and functionality, and give us your feedback or comments! Just fill out the "Support" from and tell us what you think. Take me to website We Haven't Forgotten You! If you are still waiting for a game from a previous Kickstarter, we have good news--Now that Chinese New Year is over, our manufacturers have given us their shipping schedule! The following dates are when we expect your games to be delivered: April 2018 = Sandy Petersen's Cthulhu Mythos for Pathfinder book July 2018 = Cthulhu Wars Onslaught 3 July 2018 = Evil High Priest August 2018 = The Gods War Sandy on Running a Kicksatarter   Sal Briggman recently interviewed Sandy for a podcast by Crowdcrux called  Crowdfunding Veteran Reveals Kickstarter Pricing Secret We are happy to share this insider's look at running a campaign, and how Sandy has learned to provide the highest possible value to the thousands of board game and horror enthusiasts who have made these fabulous projects possible. Enjoy this interesting interview! Listen to the Podcast You can Still be a Late Backer for Planet Apocalypse Did you miss the chance to pre-order you copy of Planet Apocalypse? It's not too late. Go to our custom pledge manager and register to receive a notice as soon as late backing is open! Go to Pledge Master. Want to learn more about Planet Apocalypse? Check out all the details on our Kickstarter page, or enjoy the videos on our YouTube Channel. Sandy Petersen and the Team at Petersen Games

Copyright © 2018 Petersen Games, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Petersen Games 3021 Ridge Road Suite A Box 24 Rockwall, TX 75032

Petersen Games Newsletter

Some board game news from Petersen Games...

Lots of News! Theomachy Sale From now, through the end of January, if you purchase either Theomachy: The Warrior Gods or Theomachy: The Ancients from our online store, you'll be able to get the other one at a 40% discount. Cthulhu Wars: Onslaught Two Shipping Update SOME of the Onslaught Two product is ready for shipping, but not enough to service the entire world for any one SKU. The rest of our order will not be ready until after Chinese New Year - leaving China on March 10th. We have decided to send what we can, as soon as possible, so that at least some people can get some of their rewards. Alas, no shipped order will be 100% complete. More details can be found in this update on the Onslaught Two Kickstarter. Dreamland Cats! Arthur (Brain Cylinder #83.7.1) recently posted an update to the Cthulhu Mythos for Pathfinder Kickstarter showing off some of the development we've done on Dreamlands Cats. You can download the PDF here. Orcs Must Die! in the Media   Board Game Quest posted a review.   A Town Called Bastard posted a game play video.   Boardgame Heaven posted an unboxing video. Finally, there is a Google sheet with some errata, much of which was helpfully found by the good people over at Board Game Geek. As promised, Dicenstein will ship out just before Chinese New Year! We expect boats to leave China by the end of the month, which means we'll have copies in our warehouse at some point in February. Backers should expect their rewards soon thereafter. The Gods War Production We are still humming along. A new update on the Kickstarter includes a Design Corner: Chaos Strikes! You'll be able to see the Behemoth in 3D, a discussion about Chaos Nests, and a really nice sculpt of Cwim (the Chaos Monster). Oh, and we posted a photo of The Mother of Monsters next to a 28mm figure - which we promise is in the photo, you'll just have to squint, as "MoM" is so large!   Don't forget the the Pledge Manager is still open for Glorantha: The Gods War. You can place your pre-order here.

Copyright © 2017 Petersen Games, All rights reserved.

Petersen Games Newsletter

Petersen Games newsletter focusing on their current Kickstarter campaign...

THE QUAGMIRE

Theodore Rousseau's "A Swamp in Les Landes," about 1846, oil on canvas. (Getty Museum)

You may have noticed that the last couple days have been slow, almost like The Gods War has been fought to a standstill.

On Tuesday, we had over $10,000 in new pledges. If we could do that every day, it'd be wonderful. Sadly, we also had $9,000 in reductions and cancellations - which is why our pledge total has only risen at a glacial pace. Wednesday was likewise – lots of new pledges, and a nearly-equal number of cancellations.

Initially, I feared something was wrong with our campaign, but I have seen only a few complaints – certainly no more than I’d expect from a campaign this size (of course, we are concerned about every one). Certainly the good things people keep saying about The Gods War far outweigh any grievances.

And there are some really great things being said...

• Geek & Sundry wrote about The Gods War
• Forbes (yes, that Forbes) featured The Gods War
• Kickstarter featured us in the Games Newsletter
• we have had articles, interviews with me (Sandy), photos, and discussions

...all within the past two days.

I've had my team ask some of the former backers who dropped their pledges why they chose that course, hoping to learn how to improve our campaign. The responses were universally focused on paying bills at the end of the month. Perhaps, with school starting back up and vacation spending coming due, The Gods War is just suffering from unlucky timing.

We are looking around other, similar crowdfunding campaigns, and we notice that they are suffering likewise. So it’s not just us. No doubt it really is end-of-August blues. We naturally expect for the campaign to pick back up after the end of the month, but I am not content to sit and hope and wait.

This is The Gods War! It’s about struggle, and courage, and effort!

Luckily for me, you guys are the most generous and supporting community I've seen anywhere. I am humbled daily by your support. With your help, I have an idea about how we can jumpstart this Kickstarter and get it back on track.

The 6-8 Player Map

I was saving this for later in the campaign to help keep the momentum during the doldrums. But it seems the doldrums have arrived early, so here's my challenge to you all: help The Gods War reach $430,000 by the end of Saturday (US Central Time, here in Texas) and I will immediately add the 6-8 Player Map to Empires. I feel this stretch goal makes a lot of sense to work towards, because we are a community, and the 6-8 player map represents lots of people coming together for a common cause (namely, to play The Gods War).

This does not replace any stretch goals – it is an extra, an addition to the other Stretch Goals we're working towards right now.

How You Can Help:

• Share this project on your social media accounts, such as Facebook, Twitter, etc., and appropriate forums.
• If you know a blogger or podcaster or news source that you think could help boost our signal, please introduce them to us by emailing support@petersengames.com
• If you have other ideas that might help us reach more gamers that might be interested The Gods War, please let us know. Again, use support@petersengames.com as your one-stop contact.

Thanks, my friends. Let’s get this campaign moving ahead at the speed it deserves.

Also, as an additional treat:

The Trolls

The Darkness faction, uniquely, starts with all four of its minions in play. These are, of course, Trolls. Beginning with the second turn, they can burrow up from below and wreak a fair amount of havoc. As with most minions, their attack is only 1, so their main strength comes from numbers. For example, if you send all four trolls against an enemy Ziggurat, you can general assure its destruction, unless the enemy is able to defend it brutally well.

For example – let’s say Darkness plots to destroy the Storm Ziggurat early in the second turn. Even if the Storm player summons his Champion to defend the Ziggurat, it is probably lost. Say the Champion kills or routs two Trolls with his two combat dice. The Ziggurat kills another one automatically. If the four Trolls manage to roll just one single Rout between them (to scare off the Champion), they’ll have one troll left behind to destroy the Ziggurat. Ouch. Of course, if you have more than just a lone Champion, you can usually keep it safe.

Trolls don’t have any Gifts associated with them, but they do benefit from the Hellmother’s Nocturnal Raids ability. This ability states that during the Power phase, all Trolls who are not currently in play, are placed in Hell.

This has four useful effects. First, it means that Darkness has an everlasting supply of trolls, so she can send them into battle aggressively – at least so long as the Hellmother is protected. Second, it boosts the Hellmother’s prowess. Her Combat is based on how many core Darkness units are in play, and this means that she will start each turn with a minimum of 4. Third, it means that other factions are restricted in placing buildings in Hell. Of course they can do it, but such constructions are likely to be attacked by the trolls. Also, guarding Hell buildings is awkward because your units are pretty much stuck in Hell for the duration. Thus, in most games, Hell is left to Darkness to exploit, and she gets a “safe house” for a nice easy 2 VP every turn. Fourth and last, it means that Darkness can bounce quickly back from even a disastrous turn – so long as the Hellmother herself remains safe.

The Minions and the Mother

This feature also means that the Hellmother is generally guarded and kept from enemies in a way that most other Greater Gods are not. The Storm King, the Moon Goddess, even the Titans are all bravely hurled into battle by their owners. But the Hellmother tends to stay hedged around with defenders, or sequestered away safely in Hell. This of course is a handicap for Darkness – it means that her most effective combat unit usually is often too valuable to risk.

As a result, ALL of Darkness’s core minions only have a Combat of 1 (even her Hero), which means that she generally can’t afford to go head-to-head with a large enemy army. But her ability to burrow out of Hell, and escape back there mean that she is the best faction in the game to ambush and raid.

In fact, Hellmother’s Nocturnal Raids ability is so named precisely because that’s what it gives rise to. Other player’s don’t fear Darkness as a major battle enemy – they fear that Darkness will launch a sneak attack on a weak temple somewhere, and steal a march. And they are right.

Copyright © 2016 Petersen Games, All rights reserved.

Chaosium Inc. Newsletter

An understandably 'Glorantha: the Gods War' Kickstarter themed newsletter from Chaosium...

#25 the straight scoop from the well of chaos...

THE GODS WAR IS LIVE! Sandy Petersen's epic successor to Cthulhu Wars is live on Kickstarter! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1816687860/the-gods-war THE GODS WAR is a fast-moving game combining asymmetric strategy with fantastic plastic figures. It's set in legendary game designer Greg Stafford's mythic universe ofGlorantha, famous for the RuneQuest RPG and King of Dragon Pass video game.  The Gods War Kickstarter campaign funded in less than an hour, and runs until September 15. Geekdad.com reviews The Gods War: "a brilliant and immersive strategy game with a rich and textured lore... given the look and feel of the Cthulhu Wars miniatures these will be well worth the price of the game." Three days days in, and The Gods War Kickstarter has raised almost $350K! If you loved Sandy's Cthulhu Wars, you'll love this game. If you're are a fan of Glorantha, you need to check this out. If you are curious about that mythological setting, it is certainly worth a look! What's more, if you want to play The Gods War, and don't want to wait until the game is released, our partners Petersen Games have a gift for you - you can download the Print and Play for free and start playing now! The Print and Play is the full core game, with enough content to play with up to 4 of your friends.  The figures, are of course, on standees and the resolution and size of everything has been shrunk so it is easy to download, but it is still a great way to experience the awesome gameplay of The Gods War! Let Sandy walk you through the print and play in this new video.  Call of Cthulhu nominated for inaugural Dragon Awards Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition has been named as a nominee for Best RPG at The Dragon Awards, a new Science Fiction and Fantasy awards celebrating Dragon Con's 30th anniversary as the USA's largest fan-run convention. Anyone can vote (you don't have to attend the con) but you do have to register by August 26th. Register to vote here, and support Call of Cthulhu! http://application.dragoncon.org/dc_fan_awards_signup.php Legends of Gaming converge at Chaosium's Gen Con booth Gen Con 2016 was a great success - in the exhibitors' hall the Chaosium booth was a constant hive of activity, and we came perilously close to selling out of our available stocks of Call of Cthulhu (fortunately the second ‪#ShipsOfCthulhu‬ shipments have now arrived). It was great to show off the manuscript of the new RuneQuest, and our new Reiner Knizia boardgame Khans of Khans. Greg, Sandy and the rest of the Chaosium crew also enjoyed interacting with Chaosium fans old and new - and it was heartening that many people said they were glad to see Chaosium back on its feet. Legends of RPG world were frequently seen at the booth, Greg Stafford and Sandy Petersen (of course), along with Mark Rein-Hagen (Vampire The Masquerade - that's him talking to Greg in the pic above) and co-author of the original RuneQuest, Steve Perrin, catching up with Greg below: Another legend of gaming spent some time at the Chaosium booth - it was so busy that morning Frank Mentzer graciously even helped us out for a while during the rush. Did people buying Call of Cthulhu and RuneQuest know the guy selling it to them was the guy behind basic edition D&D? Chaosium ran 76 gaming sessions of Call of Cthulhu and RuneQuest, and gave prize support and assistance to others running Chaosium games. Todd, our director of organized play reports: "Gen Con was a big hit for us! Chaosium had an amazing crew working hard to give players an creepy Call of Cthulhu experience... the GM volunteers were phenomenal. The feedback from players that visited the booth was entirely positive and the two-hour session length allowed us to reach hundreds of players over the course of the event. But, as much as we appreciate these Keepers for helping out, let me also shout-out to the players that kept these events sold out and fun for everyone at the table. No game exists without players and meeting these new people is what makes these conventions so special." There's still an incredible unmet demand for Call of Cthulhu and other Chaosium games, so we're already planning an even bigger Gen Con next year! Mythic Iceland 2nd Edition - Manuscript Completed! ENnie award winning Pedro Zivani's manuscript for the second edition of Mythic Iceland is now in the hands of Chaosium for editing and art direction. Pedro says, "It’s been wonderful to be given the chance to work on this new edition and to improve on the original book. I’m very happy with the new content, and the final shape of the rules system. Play testing has gone smashingly well. It’s great to see Mythic Iceland as a self-contained, complete game". Below is a brief summary of what’s new in Mythic Iceland 2nd Edition: Complete rules included, based on new RuneQuest and BRP Essentials rules. More character creation options, many examples included. Completely reworked god allegiance system - more options, more flavour, more cool powers, and easier to use. Rune Magic system has been streamlined while keeping all the flexibility from the previous edition. New Seiður Magic system that is simple yet deep, and based on how seiður (a form of shamanism) appears in the Icelandic Sagas. It's got a very distinct flavour from rune magic. New rules for ship handling and naval chases. New rules for repairing damaged weapons and damaged ships. New rules for running a Viking raid from beginning to end, based on risk/reward balance, includes tables for loot, opposition, and town design. Two new adventures included - the first adventure is heavy on the mythical and follows a scripted design. The second adventure is a murder mystery sandbox that plays like a tragic Viking Saga story featuring greed, love, and death. A set of ready-to-play characters so you can get gaming right away. Lots of rule tweaks and added setting details. No chapter was left untouched. Mythic Iceland 2nd Edition will also feature new full colour internal layout and art. It is slated for release in the first half of 2017. Chaosium announces end of Magic World product line Chaosium has no plans to do anything further with the "Magic World" product line, it was announced earlier this week. Magic World, published in 2012, was a reworking of earlier Chaosium RPG rules based on the Basic Roleplaying engine including Elric!, The Bronze Grimoire, RuneQuest Third Edition, and Sailing on the Seas of Fate. Statement by Jeff Richard, Chaosium Creative Director: "Chaosium is a small company with two main product lines: Call of Cthulhu and the Glorantha setting (HeroQuest, RuneQuest, 13G, etc). Anything else needs to be carefully chosen - it either needs to be something we think can financially support itself or be something we internally have a great artistic desire to produce. Unfortunately, Magic World does not fit into either category. We are far more interested in projects that push the artistic and creative envelopes than generic fantasy projects. That being said, we know that Magic World has a small but devoted following, and we have no issue with Magic World continuing on as licensed/fan-produced product. And we will continue to sell existing Magic World releases at chaosium.com and DriveThruRPG. We have written to authors working on speculative Magic World projects advising them of this decision." What is Ab Chaos? (...from Ab Chaos #7, May 31 1992) Ab - Latin "from" Chaos - (1) Any condition or place of total disorder (modern vernacular); (2) the disordered state of unformed matter which preceded creation (since Milton, Paradise Lost); (3) the dark, empty space which preceded creation (Greek Mythology); (4) the [formerly] Californian roleplaying game company. Ab Chaos is an informal newsletter for Chaosium fans. Through our history we have tried to serve the players and gamemasters through craft and art as well as (and sometimes at the expense of) marketing and moneymaking. We appreciate your loyalty, and offer this communication to those who are curious about us, beyond the mere "product". It is planned to be informal and irregular. We are, after all, not the Orderium.

Copyright © 2016 Chaosium Inc., All rights reserved.