Issue # 145 Vol. XIII, No. 12 SPECIAL ATTRACTION May 1989 Halls of Glory: Publisher 13 Building castles upand tearing them down. Mike Cook A Castle Here, A Castle There Daniel Salas Editor 14 If you have five minutes and some dice, you can have a new castle, too. Roger E. Moore Holding Down the Fort Matt Iden Associate editor Fiction editor 18 On Monday, all of your guards catch the flu. Some orcs show up on Robin Jenkins Barbara G. Young Tuesday just as your wizard resigns, and. Editorial assistant Strongholds Three Arthur Collins Kimberly J. Walter 22 Why elven castles look like hills, and other details on fantasy forts. Art director Your Home Is Your Castle Patricia Cunningham-Reid Lori Svikel 28 Castles are hard enough to attack, but have you ever tried living in one? Production staff Bazaar of the Bizarre J. Jasper Owens Paul Hanchette Betty Elmore 36 Call on a deva or 200 berserk quaggothsall in the defense of your Gaye OKeefe Angelika Lokotz home! Subscriptions U.S. Advertising Janet L. Winters Sheila Gailloreto OTHER FEATURES U.K. correspondent Christopher Christou The Role of Computers Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser 44 Panning for gold is never easy (especially on your home computer). U.K. advertising Kris Starr Jane Johnson The Role of Books John C. Bunnell 60 Someone is killing the vampires, and the vampires want you to stop him. Role-playing Reviews Jim Bambra 68 Its A.D. 2301, and humanity has become an endangered species. Through the Looking Glass Zoe Bell Hurst 76 With a little color, you can turn lead into flesh and blood. Cornwoman fiction by Steve Rasnic Tem 86 Pride and arrogance, even in the Keeper of Death, go before a fall. DEPARTMENTS 5 Letters 54 Gamers Guide 96 Dragonmirth 6 Forum 58 TSR Previews 102 SnarfQuest 10 Sage Advice 92 Convention Calendar COVER Among the many nice things about owning a fantasy castle is that you can decorate your driveway in any manner you like. Ken Widings cover art for this issue shows a subtle keep away! message being displayed by one particularly reclusive castellanand a knight brave enough to ring the doorbell anyway. 4 MAY 1989 Rolls & roles One of the criticisms of DRAGON® Magazine that we sometimes hear makes the point that there are too many roll-playing articles, as opposed to role-playing articles. In other words, many of the articles What did you think of this issue? Do you have apply to all witch doctors, but he didnt go past herein focus on basic game a question about an article or have an idea for a number 1. I can guess where the missing num- mechanicsnew magical items, new new feature youd like to see? In the United bers might have gone: 2. These entities take a States and Canada, write to: Letters, DRAGON® great deal of interest in their witch doctors. monsters, new character classes, Magazine, PO. Box 111, Lake Geneva WI 53147, and 3. Finally, witch doctors may call upon new spells, new rules, and so on. To U.S.A. In Europe, write to: Letters, DRAGON divine aid from their deities. that charge, I say, sure, we use a lot Magazine, TSR Ltd., 120 Church End, Cherry These are minor points, but they might allevi- of roll-playing material. Its readily Hinton, Cambridge CB1 3LD, United Kingdom. ate some confusion for readers. available from our contributors, and Randal S. Doering its easily dropped into an ongoing San Francisco CA game campaign. Everyone has a use Designer shamans for roll-playing articles. However, role-playing articles Dear Dragon: Save the savant I would like to commend Joseph Clay on his those that tell how to role-play char- excellent work on the article, Hey, Wanna Be a Dear Dragon: acters well, how to be a game Kobold? in issue #141. But I have a question: I loved the way the savant came out. Some master, how to solve problems with What armor and weapons may a shaman and errors got through, though: players or game masters, and how witch doctor use? On the first page, under Explanation of skills, to set up a believable campaign Vu Pham the text in the third sentence should read: If backgroundare hard to come by. Costa Mesa CA the savant also possesses a specialty category in We get a few good articles of this languages, he is then able to decipher the manu- kind every year, and when we do, script. Shamans, as noted on page 42 of that article, we buy them and print them. use the same armor and weapons used by their Regarding the sixth-level spell the recall spell, But role-playing articles are also deities and by their tribes. Thus an orcish text in the first sentence of the Explanation/ hard to write. The author must first shaman of Gruumsh (using the information on Description should read: This spell allows the pages 97 and 125 in Legends & Lore) would savant to recast any previously cast savant spell have lots of gaming experience and wear black plate mail and would use a spear for of equal or lesser level. As an alternative, DMs knowledge, then be able to sort out the most part, but could also wear any other can make this a seventh-level spell under the some good ideas and techniques armor and weapon used by the tribe, as deter- same parameters. from all that, and then be able to mined by the DM. DMs concerned about the low cost for materi- write a useful and entertaining Witch doctors and tribal magic-users, how- al transmutation in the alchemy skill (on page 20 article. Creating a well-crafted magi- ever, must abide by the restrictions of the of that issue) may increase the cost factor by 10 cal item is a challenge, but it is not regular magic-user class regarding armor (i.e., or even 100 in cases where the transmutation quite the same as writing an article no armor is allowed in order to cast magic-user may increase the value of the original material spells). There may be no harm in allowing these by too much. on how you can become a popular spell-casters to use all the weapons normally Vince Garcia and effective game master. allowed to humanoids within their tribes, how- Fresno CA If you recall a role-playing article ever; as the level limits are generally quite low. from DRAGON Magazine that you This option is left to the DM. felt was especially good, write-down Lost miniatures the name of that article and the issue from which it came, and send it to Dear Dragon: Dear Dragon: us. The more feedback we get about I was very pleased to see my article, Orcs In the Coming Attractions section of what our readers like, the harder we Throw Spells, Too! in issue #141. I didnt realize DRAGON issue #91, you told about upcoming search for articles that keep your it would be that long in print! The drawings DRAGONLANCE® metal miniatures (Set I). In the interestand keeping your interest is were superb, especially the fire giant on page issues since then, there hasnt been any word the name of the game. 28; Mr. Harper understood my conception of the about this or subsequent sets. I am unable to silver-sword mark perfectly. Please thank him find these in any of the catalogs from minia- Last notes: I would like to thank for his excellent illustrations. tures companies and was wondering if you Betsy Goodrich, of Atlanta, Ga., Upon rereading the article, there are a few could tell me which company produces these whose letter in Gateways Magazine, points I would like to address: miniature figures, issue #7, sparked my editorial in 1. I didnt reiterate the information from Michael Bimbo DRAGON issue #137 (and this Legends & Lore [page 90] addressing additional Kilmarnock VA month's Forum letters on handi- hit points for shamans and witch doctors. capped gamers). Shamans gain 1-4 hp per level above the first; TSR, Inc., cancelled its plans to produce those And the entire DRAGON Magazine witch doctors gain 2-5 hp per level above 1/1, so particular miniatures; a few castings and proto- staff would like to wish Larry long as their levels rise equally, and 1-4 hp per types of these figures exist, but they are rare in Elmore, whose SnarfQuest comic level when their shaman abilities surpass their the extreme. David Sutherland and Dennis concludes this month, the very best. magic-user sides. Kauth were the sculptors. However, Ral Partha The Elmores are moving back to 2. On page 27, the first sentence of the last Enterprises, Inc., now has the license for this Kentucky, and they (and Snarf) will paragraph of the first column reads: When line of figures. You can contact this company for be greatly missed. gaining levels, these shamans must sacrifice the further information by writing to it at: 5938 levels or hit dice of foes. It should read: Carthage Court, Cincinnati OH 45212; or calling: When gaining levels, these shamans must (800) 543-0272 toll-free. sacrifice 10 levels or hit dice of foes . 3. On page 33, in the central column, someone started to number the few common rules that DRAGON 5 DRAGON® Magazine (ISSN 0279-6848) IS published monthly by TSR. Inc., P.O. Box 756, Lake Geneva WI 53147, United States of America. The postal address for all materials from the United States and Canada except subscription orders is: DRAGON Magazine, P.O.