S PECIAL ATTRACTIONS Issue #174 Vol. XVI, No. 5 Things That Go Bump In The Night October 1991 9 A few surprises for those late-night game campaigns. Publisher Are You Having Bad Thoughts? Bruce Nesmith James M. Ward 10 Psionics: In Ravenloft, you cant even trust your own mind. Out of the Mists William W. Connors Editor 16 Want to experience blind terror? Shake hands with a psionic lich. Roger E. Moore Cry Wolf! Tim Malto 23 Three new AD&D® game monsters that are a howling success at Fiction editor frightening heroes. Barbara G. Young Associate editor O THER FEATURES Dale A. Donovan The MARVEL®-Phile Steven E. Schend Art director 31 A blast from the past: Equinox returns! Larry W. Smith Bugged About Something? Gregory W. Detwiler Production staff 34 Giant ants in AD&D games? Ha! Theyre nothing. Watch me while I Gaye OKeefe Angelika Lokotz jusAAAAAAAGGHHH! Tracey Zamagne The Game Wizards James M. Ward 38 The legends and lore of AD&D trading cards. Subscriptions The Voyage of the Bruce A. Heard Janet L. Winters Princess Ark 41 Raman does a good deedfor the wrong creature. U.S. advertising Novel Ideas James Lowder Roseann Schnering 50 How the DARK SUN novels were created, and where they are heading next. U.K. correspondent The Blue-Eyed Thief fiction by Bob Liddil and U.K. advertising 52 He was careful, calculating, subtle, and quick. But, in the end, it Denise Lyne wasnt enough. The Role of Computers Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser 57 Which is faster: an F29 Retaliator or Sonic the Hedgehog? The Possibilities Are Endless Spike Y. Jones 66 West End Games TORG system has more beginnings than you can imagine. Defeating More With Less Gregory W. Detwiler 79 A smart kobold is an archmages nightmare. Heres proof. Bazaar of the Bizarre Matthew P. Hargenrader 90 Lovely to look at, delightful to hold, a new ioun stone will never be sold. The Dragons Bestiary Matthew P. Hargenrader 96 People are just dying to get ioun stones — and heres whats killing them. Through the Looking Glass Robert Bigelow 112 What went on over there, anyway? Desert Storm on the gaming table. D EPARTMENTS 5 Letters 71 Forum 102 Dragonmirth 6 Editorial 74 Convention Calendar 104 Twilight Empire 14 Sage Advice 88 TSR Previews 108 Gamers Guide COVER Two unlucky adventurers have uncovered a grave matter in Kevin Wards cover painting for this issue. Unfortunately, they havent joined in with the proper spirit, and soon things will be coming to a dead stop. 4 OCTOBER 1991 DRAGON® Magazine (ISSN 0279-6848) is published monthly by TSR, Inc., P.O. Box 756 (201 Sheridan Springs Road), Lake Geneva WI 53147, United States of America. The postal address for all materials from the United States of America and Canada except subscrip- tion orders is: DRAGON® Magazine, P.O. Box 111, (201 Sheridan Springs Road), Lake Geneva WI 53147, U.S.A.; telephone (414) 248-3625; fax (414) 246-0389. 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In the United Kingdom, methods of payment include If you want to contact an author or artist cheques or money orders made payable to TSR Ltd.. or Ecology index charges to a valid ACCESS or VISA credit card; send published in this magazine, just send your letter subscription orders with payments to TSR Ltd., as per to that person, c/o DRAGON Magazine, and we that address above. Prices are subject to change without will forward the letter if at all possible. In some Dear Dragon, prior notice. The issue of expiration of each subscription is printed on the mailing label of each subscriber’s copy cases we have no forwarding addresses for In the editorial of your anniversary issue, #170 (and, by the by, congrats on 15 first-rate of the magazine. Changes of address for the delivery of contributors who are not currently published, subscription copies must be received at least six weeks and our addresses for “Forum” and “Letters” years), Mr. Moore went over a list of article prior to the effective date of the change in order to assure writers are sometimes incomplete (ahem), but ideas that the readers and the editors would like uninterrupted delivery. to see more of. One of these suggestions was for Back issues: A limited quantity of back issues is we make every effort to send your letters along. available from either the TSR Mail Order Hobby Shop more “The Ecology of...” articles. As soon as I (P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI 53147, U.S.A.) or from read that, my mind started bubbling over with TSR Ltd. For a free copy of the current catalog that lists ideas, but I’m afraid I might accidentally rewrite available back issues, write to either of the above Shadow monster a previously described monster. I’d hate to write addresses. Submissions: All material published in DRAGON up, say, an “Ecology of the Vampire” article, only Magazine becomes the exclusive properly of the pub- Dear Dragon, to have it turned down solely because you had lisher, unless special arrangements to the contrary are I have just received your issue #170, and it is already printed one in an issue I missed. made prior to publication. DRAGON Magazine welcomes unsolicited submissions of written material and artwork; great. I have just one question. In the article, So, for me and anyone else itching to tell DMs however, no responsibility for such submissions can be “Crossing Dragons With Everything,” it says that everywhere exactly why monsters are the way assumed by the publisher in any event. Any submission there is a “shadow” dragon, but I have never they are, how about a quick list of monsters accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope of heard of one. Where might I find the statistics covered to date in the “Ecology” series. Perhaps sufficient size will be returned if it cannot be published. We strongly recommend that prospective authors write for it? you could also suggest a few monsters that you for our writers’ guidelines before sending an article to us. Jon Tacey would especially like to see written up, as well. In the United States and Canada, send a self-addressed, Brementon WA D. Mark Griffon stamped envelope (9½” long preferred) to: Writers’ Guidelines, c/o DRAGON Magazine, as per the above Portage WI address; include sufficient American postage or Interna- The dreaded shadow dragon, originally de- tional Reply Coupons with the return envelope. In scribed in the AD&D® 1st Edition Monster Thank you for the praise. The following is a Europe, write to: Writers’ Guidelines, c/o DRAGON Manual II (pages 58-59), reappeared in the listing of all the monsters that have been cov- Magazine, TSR Ltd; include sufficient return postage or IRCs with your SASE.