Interview - PJ Montgomery and The Trolltooth Wars Graphic Novel

Recently I had a brief chat with PJ Montgomery, one half of the team that's going to bring us the graphic novel 'The Trolltooth Wars', a comic adaptation of the Steve Jackson Fighting Fantasy novel of the same name.

Welcome to Farsight Blogger - perhaps you'd like to tell us a bit about yourself?

Thanks for having me! My name's PJ Montgomery, and I'm a writer based in Cardiff, South Wales. I've got a few credits to my name, including the comics Stiffs, The Pride Adventures and the upcoming Dynamite, and have also written episodes of the online radio sitcom Supermarket Matters for In Ear Entertainment, plus the soon-to-be-released short film The Trial for Burnt Papyrus Productions. I'm also a regular contributor over at the pop culture website, Sidekickcast.

You've just hit your target on Kickstarter for your graphic novel version of The Trolltooth Wars, so many congratulations for that! How did that feel, and did you ever think you'd never make it?

Thanks! It's a pretty crazy feeling. I mean, the fact that so many Fighting Fantasy fans were willing to support it when, in all honesty, most of them probably weren't aware who I was when we started the campaign is amazing. I'm eternally grateful to all of our backers. I'm immensely excited that Gavin Mitchell (the artist drawing the book) and I can bring the comic to people, and incredibly relieved that we actually made it. But yes, there was a time when I thought we'd lose out. The first two weeks of the campaign were fantastic. I think we were up to something like £8,000 as we entered the third week. And then it just seemed to stand still. We'd get a little bit here and there, but it really did look like we had everything we were going to get. Then, suddenly, in the last two days, we suddenly smashed our target. But yeah, it was tense for a while there.

Do you have a history with Fighting Fantasy? What is it you like about the books?

I've been a fan of the series since I was a young child. There were a couple in the school library, and after playing those to death, I pestered my mum until she bought me a copy of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. That started an obsession which continues to this day. I think the reason I love them so much is that you get a great fantasy story AND a game all in one. As both a gamer and an avid reader of fantasy fiction, that really appeals to me. That's why they've stayed with me well into adulthood, certainly.

What was the attraction to The Trolltooth Wars in particular?

There were a number of reasons to go for Trolltooth Wars, not least of which is that it's the first novel set in the Fighting Fantasy universe, so it makes sense chronologically. It's a big story, which I thought would work well in a graphic style, and it features plenty of fan favourite characters, like Yaztromo and Zagor. If you're going to try and make a comic based on Fighting Fantasy, then it's a good place to start.

Was it a difficult project, and did you solely use the original novel as source material?

There was an element of difficulty with writing the script, but there always is when you translate an existing story into a new medium. What made that story work in one format isn't necessarily what will make it work in another, so playing around with that and trying to figure out the best way to tell the story as a comic was tricky, but once I got into the swing, it all came together fairly well. And while Trolltooth Wars is the biggest source we drew on, we did look at a few other Fighting Fantasy books as well, just for little bits and pieces. Fans will see references to Citadel of Chaos, Forest of Doom, Creature of Havoc and a few more in there, and hopefully get a kick out of all the little Easter Eggs we've planted.

How close are you sticking to the book? Strict and straight or are you taking some artistic license?

We're sticking pretty close in terms of the overall story. It's the same characters, the same plot and settings, etcetera. There are changes here and there, but mostly small things. Cuts or additions where we need them to move the story along, dialogue changes here and there. We want this to be recognisable as Trolltooth Wars, but to also be a new version of the story that even people who know the novel inside and out can enjoy.

What else are you working on?

The main ones at the moment are Stiffs and Dynamite. Stiffs is a horror comedy comic I co-write, which is set in South Wales, and features a group of twenty-somethings all stuck in dead end jobs who get their kicks by hunting zombies in their free time. And one of them is a talking monkey named Kenny. It's a five issue series, that I wrote with Drew Davies and Joe Glass, and is also drawn by Gavin. The first three issues are currently available in our webstore, or on Comixology, with the final two due at a later date. Dynamite, meanwhile, is a graphic novel based on the album of the same name by Kevin Pearce. Kevin and I co-plotted the comic, then I went off and wrote the script, which is currently being drawn by Shaun Speight. It's about a man who finds the world he lives in pushes him too far, and he becomes a vigilante called Dynamite. That's due out later this year. After that, there are a few things in the very early stages, but nothing I can really talk about yet. I'll also be at both the Cardiff Independent Comic Expo in June this year, and the Thoughtbubble Comic Con in Leeds in November, so if anyone's at either event, please stop by and say hi!

Review - Weirder Shadows Over Innsmouth

Weirder Shadows Over Innsmouth

Edited by Stephen Jones

'Respected horror anthologist Stephen Jones edits this collection of 17 stories inspired by the 20th century’s master of horror, H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” in which a young man goes to an isolated, desolate fishing village in Massachusetts, and finds that the entire village has interbred with strange creatures that live beneath the sea, and worship ancient gods.'

I always get nervous whenever I read stories influenced or inspired by one of the greats – I get even more nervous when the work is directly related to the original work of the author. I get the feeling that I’m going to be horribly disappointed in a L. Sprague de Camp ‘Conan the Liberator’-type way; a great author in his own right who seemed to totally miss the mark of what makes Conan great.

Thankfully, ‘Weirder Shadows Over Innsmouth’ doesn’t give me that feeling but it does leave me with the sense that there was something lacking, that the stories within were relying on Lovecraft’s work to give the stories credibility, rather than the stories standing on their own. Could this be personal bias, being the Lovecraft fan that I am? Perhaps I expected too much? Maybe.

This is not to say that the stories are bad, or pale pastiches or emulations of Lovecraft’s work. In fact, the stories themselves are an enjoyable read and I found myself speeding through the book at a decent pace. The stories do vary in quality and none of them are bad, but then they’re not truly outstanding. If I had to be pinned down on a comment I’d have to say that I simply enjoyed them.

The stories are:

THE PORT, a poem by H.P. Lovecraft
INNSMOUTH BANE by John Glasby
RICHARD RIDDLE, BOY DETECTIVE in "The Case of the French Spy" by Kim Newman
INNSMOUTH CLAY by H.P. Lovecraft and August Derleth
THE ARCHBISHOP'S WELL by Reggie Oliver
YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW by Adrian Cole
FISH BRIDE by Caitlin Kiernan
THE HAG STONE by Conrad Williams
ON THE REEF by Caitlin R. Kiernan
THE SONG OF SIGHS by Angela Slater
THE SAME DEEP WATERS AS YOU by Brian Hodge
THE WINNER by Ramsey Campbell
THE TRANSITION OF ELIZABETH HASKINGS by Caitlin Kiernan
THE CHAIN by Michael Marshall Smith
INTO THE WATER by Simon Kurt Unsworth
RISING, NOT DREAMING by Angela Slater
THE LONG LAST NIGHT by Brian Lumley

If I had to pick the not-authored-by-Lovecraft stories that I enjoyed the most, it would have to be Kim Newman’s ‘RICHARD RIDDLE, BOY DETECTIVE in "The Case of the French Spy"’ – a sort of Famous Five-meets-Lovecraft, sans two kids and a dog, and written in an adventurous tone reminiscent of the Enid Blyton classics. It’s fun and a refreshingly different take on the Mythos, which makes for a fresh and strangely enjoyable story, even when the blood is flying and the heads are rolling.

My second choice is Caitlin R. Kiernan’s story ‘THE TRANSITION OF ELIZABETH HASKINGS’ – it was suitably creepy and the body horror – in this case the transformation of a human being into something else and all that entails both physically and mentally - is disturbing. It’s a very short story but I found it quite powerful.

‘Weirder Shadows Over Innsmouth’ is a good book filled with some well written short stories, but I do think that, considering the source material, I spent too much of my time and efforts comparing these new stories to Lovecraft’s original work. Considering that the stories are all linked in some way to the original story that’s almost inevitable, so perhaps I’ll revisit the stories again later in the future and try to purge my mind of all things HPL, and try to approach the stories differently. I can recommend the book, especially to Lovecraft fans.

News - Imaginary Empire releases Wicked Lies & Alibis

Imaginary Empire releases Wicked Lies & Alibis, a whodunit roleplaying game set in the age of Art Deco.

Wicked Lies & Alibis uses simple card-based mechanics to recreate murder mystery stories in the finest tradition of the golden-age of detective fiction.

Innovative character creation and structured opening scenes support players to generate a cast of complex characters who all have a motive to kill the victim. The remainder of the game is played as a series of flashback rounds where each player, in turn, assumes a degree of narrative control to frame a flashback which incriminates another character.

The Game Master has a dual role, both as facilitator of scenes, and as the Great Detective, a Non-Player Character summoned to solve the murder, who summarises the evidence revealed by the characters, and reveals the motives of the characters one-by-one before finally disclosing the identity of the murderer.

Wicked Lies & Alibis includes all the cards needed to play, detailed facilitation notes to support the GM in running the game, details about the era of Art Deco to add to the realism of the setting, and nine murder mysteries along with suggestions for the Great Detectives who might solve the case.

Wicked Lies & Alibis is available from DriveThruRPG and RPGNow in PDF and print.  A high-quality printed card deck is also available, bundled with the PDF.

Imaginary Empire publishes the multi-ENnie award nominated EPOCH survival horror roleplaying game. Imaginary Empire is a member of the Game Publishers Guild, a strategic alliance of publishers committed to driving excellence in their products through cooperation and collaboration.

Review - Pathfinder Origins issue 1

Script by Erik Mona
Art by Tom Garcia
Colors by Mohan
Letters by Marshall Dillon
Published by DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

From the Dynamite website:

'An exciting new Pathfinder adventure begins! To prove themselves to the Pathfinder Society, Valeros the fighter and his companions must recount tales of their early exploits in a world beset by magic and evil. In this issue, Valeros crosses swords with the brazen barbarian Amiri when both serve as hired guards escorting a doomed caravan through the treacherous Bloodsworn Vale. Contains pull-out poster map and official Pathfinder RPG bonus encounter!'

I’ve enjoyed the Pathfinder comics up to yet and this series is a nice new angle on the heroes I’ve come to enjoy. I’d say it’s a better starting point for newcomers to Golarion as it gets to the bones of the antagonists and serves as an introduction, not just to the characters but to the world as a whole. There’s plenty of references to places and events that non-Pathfinder readers won’t recognise, but this adds background and flavour to the story and it isn’t necessary to know the world inside out. Erik Mona’s writing shows his deep knowledge of the Pathfinder world without alienating newcomers, so it’s a crisp, enjoyable read for everyone.

The story itself is interesting and filled with adventure, but I can’t help but feel that the introduction is a bit too long and the dialogue throughout can feel a lot like exposition, and I didn’t feel as though I got to know the characters as well as I would have liked – sure, I know them from the previous comics but it would have been nice to know a little more about them as people rather than just read about what they got up to in their early years. In fact, we learn more about the character of Amiri, and I ended up wanting to follow her story more than the comic’s title character Valeros. Still, it’s an imaginary world so exposition is almost a given, and it’s the first of 6 issues so we’ll no doubt learn more as we go on.

Tom Garcia’s splendid artwork, highlighted by the atmospheric colouring by Mohan and the clean, functional lettering by Marshall Dillon is what shines in this comic. Garcia’s illustrations are dynamic and he renders the iconic heroes well, and in spite of a particularly gruesome image of someone being cleaved in two, which I felt was somewhat out of place and gratuitous, the imagery is wonderful and captures the action, adventure and danger of the setting really well.

Pathfinder Origins issue 1 is action packed and will please Pathfinder players as well as general sword ‘n sorcery fans. It’s a good solid read and the extras that you get in the comic – the map and the RPG encounter – are a welcome bonus. Recommended.

Empire of Imagination - Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons

I've just been made aware of an upcoming book, Empire of Imagination, all about one of the father's of Dungeons and Dragons, Gary Gygax. This book promises to be 'a comprehensive biography of the mythic icon among geek and gaming culture, Gary Gygax - and the complete story behind the invention of Dungeons & Dragons.'

That's quite a bold claim, but from what I see it's a claim that the author, Michael Witwer, appears to be able to deliver on and the detail he's going into - from birth to untimely end - is astounding. Besides that, the AD&D-inspired cover is wonderful. This is one book I'm looking forward to.

And in case you think you may have heard the name before - you're right, you have. Michael Witwer is the brother of Emmy-nominated actor Sam Witwer (Being Human, Battlestar Galatica, Star Wars: The Clone Wars).

It's due out October of this year, so make sure it's on your to-buy list.

From the website:

The godfather of all fantasy adventure games, Gary Gygax, has a life story that has only been told in bits and pieces. Michael Witwer has written a dynamic, dramatized biography of Gygax from his childhood in Lake Geneva to his untimely death in 2008. Gygax's magnum opus, Dungeons & Dragons, would explode in popularity throughout the 1970s and '80s and irreversibly alter the world of gaming. D&D is the best-known, best-selling role-playing game of all time, and it boasts an elite class of alumni - Stephen Colbert, Robin Williams, and Junot Diaz all have spoken openly about their experience with the game as teenagers, and some credit it as a workshop where their nascent imaginations were fostered.

Gygax's involvement in the industry lasted long after his dramatic and involuntary departure from D&D's parent company, TSR, and his footprint can be seen in the genre he is largely responsible for creating. But as Witwer shows, perhaps the most compelling facet of his life and work was his unwavering commitment to the power of creativity in the face of myriad sources of adversity - cultural, economic, and personal. Through his creation of the role-playing genre, Gygax gave generations of gamers the tools to invent characters and entire worlds in their minds. Told in narrative-driven and dramatic fashion, Witwer has written an engaging chronicle of the life and legacy of this emperor of imagination.

The Trolltooth Wars Graphic Novel

I bought 'The Trolltooth Wars' novel back when it was first published and enjoyed it immensely. The adventures of Chadda Darkmane were fun and exciting and I got to explore Fighting Fantasy's world of Titan even more.

This graphic novel is going to be produced by writer PJ Montgomery (Stiffs, Dynamite, The Pride Adventures), and artist Gavin Mitchell (Santa Claus Vs The Nazis, The Samurai Slasher, Stiffs, The Pride), and has the full backing of Steve Jackson.

This is still on Kickstarter and, as of this blog post, still has four days to go so get on board and back this today!

From the Kickstarter page:

The novel tells the story of a war between two evil sorcerers, Balthus Dire and Zharradan Marr. With the peaceful kingdom of Salamonis threatened by the escalating conflict, King Salamon dispatches Chadda Darkmane to find a way of either ending the war, or turning it to Salamonis's advantage.

The novel was successful enough to spawn two sequels, Demonstealer and Shadowmaster, featuring the continuing adventures of Darkmane and the good wizard, Gereth Yaztromo, which were in turn followed by the four part Zagor Chronicles series.

This graphic novel is going right back to the beginning, adapting The Trolltooth Wars to bring the story to life in a brand new medium. We're sticking closely to the story established by Steve Jackson, with some minor changes for space and pacing reasons (something you get whenever any story is adapted into a new format).

The comic will bring Allansia to life like never before. Printed in softback, and featuring over one-hundred and thirty full colour story pages, in which you'll meet popular characters like Balthus Dire, Zharradan Marr, Gereth Yaztromo and the Warlock of Firetop Mountain himself, Zagor. Fans will also find a few Easter eggs scattered throughout the book, plus extras at the back.

Conan RPG - Major Writers & Artists Announced!

There's nothing better than getting news about an upcoming game that you're really excited about. So, when I received the below press release from Modiphius, well... there was much rejoicing. This is a heck of a lineup, and the prospect of getting my hands on the new game has just put the whole thing at the top of my to-get list.

'We can now announce that we've added legendary Conan artist Ken Kelly (Robert E. Howard covers for Berkley and Tor, Eerie, Creepy and Vampirella for Warren magazines) and Dark Horse regular Tomas Giorello (Conan The Cimmerian, King Conan, 2013 Robert E. Howard Foundation Award for Artistic Achievement) to the team who'll be creating the stunning covers for the Conan books. 

They join other greats including Sanjulian, Carl Critchlow, Mark Schultz, Tim Truman, Phroilan Gardner, Alex Horley with more still to be announced!

The writing team is also growing with long time TSR stalwart  Thomas M Reid (Dragon Mountain, Tales of the Comet, Forgotten Realms, Planescape, Ravenloft, Temple of Elemental Evil novel), Monical Valentinelli (Firefly RPG Lead developer & writer, Tomorrow's Precious Lambs), Kevin Ross (Masks of Nyarlathotep, Cthulhu by Gaslight, Colonial Lovecraft Country, Down Darker Trails), Lou Agresta (Snows Of An Early Winter, Slave Pits of Absalom, Freebooters Guide to the Razor Coast) and Scott Oden (Best-selling author of the historical fiction novels Men of Bronze, Memnon, and The Lion of Cairo) 

You may also have missed our update that Vincent Darlage (Conan d20, Member of the Robert E. Howard United Press Association) has joined the games design team alongside Mark Finn (Blood and Thunder: The Life and Art of Robert E. Howard, The Barbaric Triumph, The Dark Man: The Journal of REH Studies).

Finally, two other major names join the team: 

Patrice Louinet, well known for his expertise and seal of approval for the Conan board game by Monolith, will be working alongside Jeffrey Shanks to ensure the Conan roleplaying game is of the highest standard. Patrice was Editor of the definitive, three-volume Conan series (from Del Rey Books (US), Wandering Star (UK) and Bragelonne (France). Awarded Lifetime Achievement award from the Howard Foundation (USA, 2014) and the Special Award from the Imaginales (France, 2012)). 

Sally Christensen (Cortex Hackers Guide, Firefly RPG, Leverage Companions, Marvel Heroic) steps up as Line Editor with support from Thomas M Reid, to keep the rabble writing proper. 

These all join the existing team of Timothy Brown, Jason Durall and Chris Lites led by Jeff Shanks

Remember to tell friends to sign up at http://www.modiphius.com/conan.html to get the first news of the Conan roleplaying game launch and be invited to the playtesting. 

Thunderbirds Co-Operative Board Game by Matt Leacock 

If you didn't know we have been funding our first board game: Thunderbirds (by Pandemic designer Matt Leacock) on Kickstarter Check it out - there's some beautiful models and we unlock four fantastic expansions with just three days to go (finishing 8pm GMT on Sunday).'

Book Review - Dark Detectives: An Anthology of Supernatural Mysteries

Edited by Stephen Jones
Published by: Titan Books

Review by Richard Williams

Dark Detectives is an anthology based around detectives dealing with the supernatural. Mostly. There are a couple of stories where there are odd things afoot but which turn out to be trickery on the part of evil-doers, much in the vein of a Scooby-Doo story.I don't have a problem with this, in fact it adds a different dimension to proceedings and helps to keep things fresh. The problem I have with this book is the same problem that plagues any anthology. By which I mean the fact that the stories are written by different authors and therefore the quality can vary dramatically. It's a rare anthology where all of the stories are stand-out impressive and this book, unfortunately, isn't one of them. Even the stories written by authors I particularly admire, such as Neil Gaiman, left me feeling as though they had not tried particularly hard but had merely dashed out something that would fit the bill.

That isn't to say that it's not worth a read and lovers of occult mysteries and weird tales will no doubt find the book far more engaging than I did (I enjoy a good detective story but can take it without the dark arts). I merely feel that the stories are either fairly simple, without any great surprises or any gripping element, or convoluted and populated with the kind of characters that require a whole book, rather than a snapshot of what they have to offer.

Throughout this book there is a seven part story that unfolds at a rate of roughly one part every other story. This running adventure could probably have been the sole purpose of this book and filled out the nearly 500 pages nicely.

With all of that said I can only conclude by saying that these stories are hit and miss but readers who have a passion for the subject matter will likely feel their money was well spent.

Review - D&D 5th Edition DM’s Screen

It’s difficult to write a review of any length or content when the product in question simply does not have much about it to talk about. When the D&D 5th Edition DM’s Screen landed on my doorstep I was pretty excited - any decent tabletop roleplaying game needs a decent DM’s screen, and I’ve got a few in my collection. I find them handy for two reasons - guarding against the prying eyes of the players and having handy charts and tables that will aid in the flow of an evening’s play.

The D&D 5th Edition DM’s Screen gets it at least half right.

You get exactly what you pay for - a screen of sturdy card with an inspiring piece of art on the player’s side and some charts on the DM’s side. And that’s it - there’s no handy handbook of extra tables or references, no adventure or campaign details, nothing at all. There’s a nice poster on the reverse side of the cover sleeve for the D&D Adventurers League saying ‘WE WANT YOU AT YOUR NEAREST GAMING STORE’ which looks nice on my wall, but it’s a reused image from the cover of the DM’s Guide and is quirky but, frankly, useless in a game.

The landscape format is excellent; the majority of my screens are portrait and stand quite tall, so this is better as you can lean over the screen without having to really stretch or walk around it. It doesn’t dominate the table, and the artwork is inspiring and action-packed. This also makes it long so you can get plenty of secret notes and books behind it. In this it does exactly what it’s designed to do.

But, I like to have handy charts on the DM’s side of the screen that I can easily reference and I can honestly say that the charts included would have definitely not been my first choice. The charts for NPC characteristics, ideals, bonds, flaws and the random name generator seems superfluous and isn’t something I’d be looking to use during a session – I’d have put tables like that in a booklet that came with the screen. This takes up an entire panel, with space wasted on artwork.

The next panel is a bit more useful, with rules covering certain conditions that might arise such as being blinded, charmed and grappled, but again there is wasted space with unrequired artwork.

Panels three and four then give us helpful tables and references, such as setting a DC and rules for cover and skills, and then there’s some travel and distance charts which are useful but, again, it isn’t something that would crop up regularly in a session, let alone an encounter. There’s the same trouble with the wasted space again, but finally there’s a ‘Something Happens!’ chart, with twenty things that might happen at random with a D20 roll, such as ‘1 – A door opens’, or ’11 – Someone gets angry’. I simply do not see the benefit of this as this indicates that the evening’s play is going to be totally on the fly. Like a lot of the charts it’s a waste of space and other much more useful encounter-orientated tables, which is what you need when you don’t want to stall the action to search out rules or charts in a rulebook, would have been much more suitable.

All in all the D&D 5th Edition DM’s screen is a little disappointing. It’s functional and a great size, and I’ll be using it at my gaming table for sure, but the lack of useful charts and the fact that there is simply nothing else in the product to help DMs out, especially DMs new to the hobby, makes this feel like a somewhat missed opportunity.

Privateer Press 'Iron Kingdoms' RPG session report

I've had my eye on the Iron Kingdoms RPG for a while now, and thanks to this session report from GMorts Chaotica I get the feeling I'm going to be visiting this place very soon.

'It is a land like no other, a place where steam power and gunpowder meet sword and sorcery.

The Iron Kingdoms possess a rich history—and a tumultuous future—full of unique monsters, deities, heroes, and villains. Immerse yourself in the detailed world of gritty conflict and sorcery with the Iron Kingdoms RPG. Unleash the power of mechanika, the fusion of magic and machine. Take on the persona of unique character classes, like the gun mage who combines powerful magic with a deadly acumen for firearms or the steamjack-commanding warcaster. Travel through a fantastic world that takes classic fantasy concepts and gives them a new twist with a high-octane rush of steam power and industrial engineering.

Prepare yourself for an experience like no other.

The world of the Iron Kingdoms awaits!'

I'm a newbie when it comes to the steampunk genre - I've dabbled in it, grokked the setup but never really connected with it. I had a couple of games of Warmachine, the miniatures game, when it was first released and enjoyed it, but I like a bit more depth and involvement in my tabletop gaming and so when an RPG was announced I followed it's progress. Since it's release I've heard good things but never had a chance to really get to know the game, but now that GMorts Chaotica has written a session report I get the  feeling that I'm going to be gravitating towards this game - that is, if I can squeeze it in between my other campaigns. The session sounds like they had a blast, and this makes me think I might have to make the time for it.

Click here and have a read of the first session. It sounds like fun, and I'm looking forward to hearing more about the travels and trials of this group.