Tunnels & Trolls! TMNT: RPG! AC/DC! and Ken St. Andre on G+! +6 Stars!
'Done dirt cheap' is one of Ken St. Andre's main reasons for putting out T&T. The other was to create an RPG he could understand and play! :-) I loved that he explicitly *stated* so in his Foreword to 1st, and I believe 2nd(I've never seen it. Or 3rd, either...), Edition T&T. Then of course, TSR complained and they hadda get vague about the whole situation. But that's how it goes.
What's even more awesome is that The Chaosium specifically cite Ken St. Andre for 'proving that Pandora's Box can be opened again' in the Runequest dedication. Great, friendly cross-pollination bitd.
And speaking of cheap, T&T's prices are only $10 more than shown in that ad. You can get the 1979-era 5th Edition Rulebook and Box Set though, with the virtually the same contents, to boot, from FBI for 19.95 and 24.95 respectively.(Technically the 5.5-circa 2005 'update', which is only about 30 more pages which don't invalidate *anything*. Astounding in the age of Errata flurries, imo.) And that IS Dirt Cheap nowadays.
Also, how solid is a rulesset *still* in print from 1979? And actively played, even supported, mind you!
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the most recent, and slightly different, T&T EDition: 7.5(2008, IIRC), which is Ken St. Andre's favorite so far. Amazingly, the existence of two in-print, supported Editions has caused no acrimony amongst the fanbase. Many people will play either. And quite a few aficionados few borrow distinctive elements across the two editions.
Not me, though, I'm Edition Warring for 5.5. *GRRR* Oh, come on. Someone has to, as other T&Ters don't seem inclined to put on Asshats.... :-)(Mr. St Andre, if you read this, I want you to know I own, and like, 7.5 as well. :-D )
More K st A Old-School gold: Starfaring and Stormbringer.
Effete Nobles and Filthy, Pox-ridden Beggars, Debauched Sorcerors(Meet the Party, folks! :-D ), and Random Demons out of Rhyme and No Reason! Oh man, what I'd give to see the I Hit It With My Ax crew tackle Stormbringer, 1st Edition! Or T&T 5.5E, for that matter.... :-)
I needs moar Stormbringer! Too many campaigns right now, though....
Oh, for anyone who didn't know(and cared to): Yassa Massa persisted up until 7th Edition in 2005, when it became Spirit Mastery!
A humorous post, made all the better with a run-in with the Trollgod His Own Self. Thanx for posting!
'you could've easily seen 2/5ths of the Axe crew play Stormbringer 1E':
:-C
*Curses lack of online free time over the last 8 months*
I bet there was at least one Runequest-style Limb Storm, too... And no doubt, a scurvy beggar. At least if your experiences were anything like mine.
Can't have everything, I guess. The home crews are scared stiff of Runequest 1E/2E variants, what with the legendary(and frickin' Cruel and Usable) lethality. Rolemaster and WFRP 1E(even with its cheesy Fate Points, no less! ;-)), no way! CoC's no prob, though... Go figure.
O Yea, from now on, when I get the chance, I'll drop by Constantcon's site and check its schedule. Especially if T&T 5.5, Stormbringer 1E, Street Fighter: TSG, or maybe, just maybe, *Underground* comes up.
*Checks Calendar* Sweet! A regular Runequest game, set in Griffin Mountain, no less. Great campaign set, anyone who wants 'Classic' Glorantha could ask for little better, imo!
I was also reading this with my breakfast cereal. Now off to class.
January 26, 2012 at 8:55 AM
Anonymous said...
@syrus w. reading zak's blog when i wake up in the morning usually has that wonderful breakfast cereal effect.
i should strictly ban myself from reading it when i have journalism-related tasks though, as this seriously increases the time it takes to finish anything.
February 2, 2012 at 3:37 AM
This happened on Google +.
You kinda have to read the whole thing to get the full effect. Most names have been removed to protect the innocent and the guilty.
____________________________________Zak S It's always been weird to me that in Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap the guy goes "Concrete shoes, cyanide, T&T". I would've figured them for Runequest guys. ___________________________________ - Comment +7 -
[Image]43 comments (Somebody) - Tunnels and Trolls much easier to play when drunk Yesterday 6:55 PM +2
(Somebody) - and when they roll dice they spin in the opposite direction Yesterday 6:56 PM +1
(Somebody) - its true we Australians can stand on our hands for days at a time Yesterday 6:57 PM
(Somebody) - I could definitely picture Bon Scott as being a Runequest fan, but the rest of the band definitely strike me as more of a T&T kind of crowd. Yesterday 7:06 PM
(Somebody) - On a vaguely related note... Palladium's TMNT "Mutants Down Under". It hasn't aged gracefully. Racial slur on opening page. 0_o Yesterday 7:14 PM
(Somebody) - Was it the accents? Yesterday 7:14 PM
 Zak S - I WILL HEAR NO ILL OF THE SECOND BEST-ILLUSTRATED BOOK IN THE HISTORY OF RPGS THAT ALSO HAS PUNK UZI KANGAROOS IN IT!! Yesterday 7:14 PM - Edit +1
(Somebody)- I know, it's freakin' awesome, isn't it? I love that book. Yesterday 7:16 PM
(Somebody)- The Palladium Fantasy book "Adventures in the Northern Wilderness" also has some kick-ass Eric Talbot artwork. Siembieda had a good eye for artists back in the day. Yesterday 7:19 PM (edited) +1
(Somebody) - I figured they'd watch more TBS than anything... Yesterday 7:23 PM
(Somebody) - I've never actually played T&T. What about it is a "dirty deed"? Yesterday 7:27 PM
(Somebody)He's saying "Thunder Chief". Now that's rock and roll. Yesterday 7:42 PM
 Zak S - 3o thieves and the thunder chief. Best illustrated? the 2 volumes of Realms of Chaos: (Slaves to Darkness and The Lost and the Damned) for the original Warhammer Yesterday 7:55 PM - Edit +1  Ken St. Andre - I love that song, Dirty Deeds--Done Dirt Cheap! Never made the T & T connection before. Hey, you should tweet that comment, or let me do it. :) Yesterday 8:01 PM
(Somebody)"Thunder Chief" is totally RuneQuest. Yesterday 8:03 PM
(Somebody)- There's nothing infantile about playing pretend! Yesterday 9:05 PM
David - True...but there are levels. I've heard the game itself is solid but "Yassa Massa"? Really?!? Yesterday 9:10 PM (edited)
(Somebody) - Oh dear! :-D Yesterday 9:11 PM
David- From the T&T 1st edition: "Yassa-Massa! To be used only on previously subdued monsters / foes. Total strengths I.Q. & Charisma. Will permanently enslave monsters with ratings lower then the above total." Amazing... Yesterday 9:13 PM
(Somebody) It was the 70's, ROOTS (1977) was a real popular TV mini-series & Book(1976)! ... the seventy's was a different world; not so quick to judge: I don't think it was meant to disparage. It was in the mass psyche of the times. ;0) 10:52 AM (edited)
David: I know, I was a child of the Seventies. That still doesn't prevent me from wanting the ask the designers: "What the f#@$ were you thinking?!?!" 11:47 AM
 Zak S - Go ahead and ask, the designer is right here on g+ and his name is right in front of you 5:29 PM - Edit +1
David- Kens st andre? On G+? where? WHERE?? 10:50 PM
 Zak S - Look up. 11:00 PM - Edit
David - Holy crap!!! I'll just be over here keeping my mouth shut... 11:07 PM (edited)
"Tunnels & Trolls DONE DIRT CHEAP!"
6 Comments -
that's what i wanna read with my breakfast cereal.
January 26, 2012 at 5:37 AM
Tunnels & Trolls! TMNT: RPG! AC/DC!
and Ken St. Andre on G+!
+6 Stars!
'Done dirt cheap' is one of Ken St. Andre's main reasons for putting out T&T. The other was to create an RPG he could understand and play! :-) I loved that he explicitly *stated* so in his Foreword to 1st, and I believe 2nd(I've never seen it. Or 3rd, either...), Edition T&T. Then of course, TSR complained and they hadda get vague about the whole situation. But that's how it goes.
What's even more awesome is that The Chaosium specifically cite Ken St. Andre for 'proving that Pandora's Box can be opened again' in the Runequest dedication. Great, friendly cross-pollination bitd.
And speaking of cheap, T&T's prices are only $10 more than shown in that ad. You can get the 1979-era 5th Edition Rulebook and Box Set though, with the virtually the same contents, to boot, from FBI for 19.95 and 24.95 respectively.(Technically the 5.5-circa 2005 'update', which is only about 30 more pages which don't invalidate *anything*. Astounding in the age of Errata flurries, imo.) And that IS Dirt Cheap nowadays.
Also, how solid is a rulesset *still* in print from 1979? And actively played, even supported, mind you!
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the most recent, and slightly different, T&T EDition: 7.5(2008, IIRC), which is Ken St. Andre's favorite so far. Amazingly, the existence of two in-print, supported Editions has caused no acrimony amongst the fanbase. Many people will play either. And quite a few aficionados few borrow distinctive elements across the two editions.
Not me, though, I'm Edition Warring for 5.5. *GRRR* Oh, come on. Someone has to, as other T&Ters don't seem inclined to put on Asshats.... :-)(Mr. St Andre, if you read this, I want you to know I own, and like, 7.5 as well. :-D )
More K st A Old-School gold: Starfaring and Stormbringer.
Effete Nobles and Filthy, Pox-ridden Beggars, Debauched Sorcerors(Meet the Party, folks! :-D ), and Random Demons out of Rhyme and No Reason! Oh man, what I'd give to see the I Hit It With My Ax crew tackle Stormbringer, 1st Edition! Or T&T 5.5E, for that matter.... :-)
I needs moar Stormbringer! Too many campaigns right now, though....
Oh, for anyone who didn't know(and cared to): Yassa Massa persisted up until 7th Edition in 2005, when it became Spirit Mastery!
A humorous post, made all the better with a run-in with the Trollgod His Own Self.
Thanx for posting!
January 26, 2012 at 6:16 AM
@velaran
You could've easily seen 2/5ths of the Axe crew play Stormbringer 1E but you didn't check the constantcon calendar...
January 26, 2012 at 6:28 AM
'you could've easily seen 2/5ths of the Axe crew play Stormbringer 1E':
:-C
*Curses lack of online free time over the last 8 months*
I bet there was at least one Runequest-style Limb Storm, too... And no doubt, a scurvy beggar. At least if your experiences were anything like mine.
Can't have everything, I guess. The home crews are scared stiff of Runequest 1E/2E variants, what with the legendary(and frickin' Cruel and Usable) lethality. Rolemaster and WFRP 1E(even with its cheesy Fate Points, no less! ;-)), no way! CoC's no prob, though... Go figure.
O Yea, from now on, when I get the chance, I'll drop by Constantcon's site and check its schedule. Especially if T&T 5.5, Stormbringer 1E, Street Fighter: TSG, or maybe, just maybe, *Underground* comes up.
*Checks Calendar*
Sweet! A regular Runequest game, set in Griffin Mountain, no less. Great campaign set, anyone who wants 'Classic' Glorantha could ask for little better, imo!
Thanx for the response!
January 26, 2012 at 7:44 AM
@Chronophobia
I was also reading this with my breakfast cereal. Now off to class.
January 26, 2012 at 8:55 AM
@syrus w.
reading zak's blog when i wake up in the morning usually has that wonderful breakfast cereal effect.
i should strictly ban myself from reading it when i have journalism-related tasks though, as this seriously increases the time it takes to finish anything.
February 2, 2012 at 3:37 AM