Dragon Magazine #245

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Dragon Magazine #245 Dwarves Features Issue #245 Volume XXII, No. 8 The Heart of the Forge . 22 March 1998 Wolfgang Baur The secrets of dwarven craft—and of dwarven life itself— begin at the forge. Departments Mindstalkers . 36 Bruce R. Cordell Wyrms of the North .............. 50 No denizens of the Underdark are more awful than the Ed Greenwood illithids . and no warriors more deadly than those dwarves Lhammaruntosz, the “Claws of the coast,” is a who hunt them. bronze dragon with an eye for business. Little Rascals . 44 Rogues Gallery ..................... 65 Steve Berman Troy Denning Four new rogue kits for your dwarven PCs, including the From the pages of Crucible: The Trial of Cyric the delver, the hoardsacker, the scurr, and the talebearer. Mad, here are three powerful new characters for your campaign. Fiction: “Honest and True” . 56 Troy Denning Bazaar of the Bizarre . 70 The seraph of lies must find a publisher before Cyric the Kevin Melka Mad enforces the most literal of deadlines. Not all artifacts are magical, but no less precious are these “Dwarven Relics.” Best Behavior . 82 Christopher Perkins Ecology of the Steeder .............. 76 Dwarven etiquette? Yes, there is such a thing and here is Johnathan M. Richards the definitive guide on its finer points. A clever Wizard applies his knowledge of the four sphinxes to gain a Iittle profit. Columns About the Cover The Wyrm’s Turn™ . 4 We first noticed Matt Wilson’s stunning artwork on cards for D-Mail™ . 6 Magic: the Gathering and on the cover of The Duelist #20. Forum . 10 Here he shows us what might have been had Saint George been a trifle shorter. Sage Advice . 16 Out of Character . 20 Conventions . 90 DragonMirth . 92 Gamer’s GUide . 94 Staff Floyd . 95 PUBLISHER Pierce Watters — EDITOR Dave Gross Roleplaying Reviews . 100 ART DIRECTOR Larry Smith — ASSOCIATE EDITOR Chris Perkins Re:Views . .105 EDITORIAL ASSISTANT PRODUCTION MANAGER Jesse Decker Knights of the Dinner Table . l . 106 Roger Mangelson ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Bob Henning TSR Previews . 108 ADVERTISING MANAGER Judy Smitha Profiles . 112 # DRAGON 245 3 DRAGON® Magazine (ISSN 0279-6848) is published monthly except November (twice monthly) by TSR, Inc., 1801 Lind Avenue S.W., Renton, WA 98055, United States of America. Periodical postage paid at Renton, WA, U.S.A., and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to DRAGON Magazine, P.O. Box 469086, Escondido, CA 92046, U.S.A. USPS 318-790, ISSN 0279- 6848. The postal address for all materials from the United States of America and Canada except subscription orders and change-of-address notices is: Dragon® Magazine, 1801 Lind Avenue S.W., Renton, WA 98055. U.S.A.; telephone (425) 226-6500; fax (425) 204-5928. Distribution: DRAGON Magazine is available from game and hobby shops throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and through a limited number of other overseas outlets. Distribution to the book trade in the United States is by Random House, Think About the Future Inc., and in Canada by Random House of Canada, Ltd. Distribution to the book trade in the United Kingdom is by TSR Ltd. Send orders to: Random House, Inc., Order Entry Department, Westminster MD 21157, U.S.A.; tele- phone: (800) 733-3000. Newsstand distribution THE ALTERNITY® GAME DEBUTS next way, ALTERNITY is for space opera fans throughout the United Kingdom is by Comag Magazine Marketing, Tavistock Road, West Drayton, Middlesex month, but thousands of you have as much as for hard science fiction UB7 7QE, United Kingdom; telephone: 0895-444055. probably already tried it (in a demo at buffs. Subscriptions: Subscription rates via periodical- class mail are as follows: $34.95 in U.S. funds for 13 the GEN CON® Game Fair, by down- DRAGON Magazine will continue to issues sent to an address in the U.S.; $41.95 in U.S. funds loading the fast-play rules from the focus first on the AD&D game, but we for 13 issues sent to an address in Canada; £34.95 for 13 issues sent to an address within the United Kingdom; TSR website, or by purchasing the spe- won’t leave ALTERNITY fans in the cold. £41.95 for 13 issues sent to an address in Europe; $57.95 cial edition). If you haven’t, then check As more ALTERNITY game products in U.S. funds for 13 issues sent by surface mail to any other address. Payment in full must accompany all sub- out the fast-play rules enclosed with appear in the coming months, we’ll scription orders. Methods of payment include checks or this issue, and play the solo adventure bring you articles full of new material, money orders made payable to TSR Inc., or charges to valid MasterCard or VISA credit cards; send subscription that appears in next month’s issue. including rules on vintage firearms, orders with payments to DRAGON Magazine, P.O. Box “The Omega Variant,” by ALTERNITY co- much more detail on the worlds of the 469086, Escondido, CA 92046, USA. In the United Kingdom, methods of payment include cheques or money designer Bill Slavicsek, is a short learn- ALTERNITY aliens, and perhaps a few orders made payable to TSR Ltd., or charges to a valid ing adventure that teaches you all of surprises. ACCESS or VISA credit card; send subscription orders with payments to TSR Ltd., as per that address above. Prices the basic mechanics of the ALTERNITY Ultimately, what will decide how are subject to change without prior notice. The issue expi- game while you’re playing. You need much ALTERNITY material appears in ration of each subscription is printed on the mailing label of each subscriber’s copy of the magazine. Changes of nothing but your imagination and the magazine is your opinion. Would address for the delivery of subscription copies must be some dice to play the adventure. you like to see an ALTERNITY article received at least six weeks prior to the effective date of the change in order to assure uninterrupted delivery. Science-fiction roleplaying games from time to time? One every month? Submissions: All material published in DRAGON have been around almost as long as Would you like an entire section Magazine becomes the exclusive property of the publisher, unless special arrangements to the contrary are made prior fantasy roleplaying games. It was a devoted to the ALTERNITY game? to publication. DRAGON Magazine welcomes unsolicited sub- natural development, since most so- missions of written material and artwork; however, no (Remember the Ares section?) responsibility for such submissions can be assumed by the called science fiction is really fantasy Send me a letter telling me what publisher in any event. Any submission accompanied by a cloaked in hardware. (I’ll leave it at LTERNITY self-addressed, stamped envelope of sufficient size will be you think of the A game, if returned if it cannot be published. We strongly recommend that, lest some fervent devotee of sci- you’ve tried it. What sort of ALTERNITY that prospective authors write for our writers’ guidelines before sending an article to us. In the United States and fi television scolds me again.) In any articles would you like to see in these Canada, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope (9½” event, fantasy and science fiction, pages? And, just to satisfy my own long preferred) to Writers’ Guidelines, c/o DRAGON Magazine, at the above address; include sufficient taken as a whole or as separate enti- curiosity, what are your favorite American postage or International Reply Coupons (IRC) ties, are the most diverse genres of fic- science-fiction movies and books? Are with the return envelope. tion That’s what makes room for so Advertising: For information on placing advertise- you a Star Trek buff or a Larry Niven ments in DRAGON Magazine, ask for our rate card. All ads many different tastes within the gen- Ringworld fan? Would you get a bigger are subject to approval by TSR, Inc. TSR reserves the right to reject any ad for any reason. Contact: Bob eral field, and it’s why you’ll meet kick out of wasting bug-eyed-monsters Henning, DRAGON Magazine, 1801 Lind Avenue S.W., shuttle astronauts and folk musicians with psionic powers or out of estab- Renton, WA 98055, U.S.A., (425) 204-7262. Advertisers and/or agencies of advertisers agree to at the same conventions. Fantasy is as lishing the first human colony on hold TSR, Inc. harmless from and against any loss or big as dreams, science-fiction as vast Europa? Would you rather play a hard- expense from any alleged wrongdoing that may arise out of the publication of such advertisements. TSR, Inc. has as the future. Both are limited only by boiled detective in a cyberpunk future the right to reject or cancel any advertising contract for imagination. or the brilliant scientist who saves the which the advertiser and/or agency of advertiser fails to comply with the business ethics set forth in such contract. What’s most cool about the earth from an alien conspiracy? DRAGON is a registered trademark of TSR, Inc. ALTERNITY game—besides the core In other words, which future would Registration applied for in the United Kingdom. All rights to the contents of this publication are reserved, and nothing mechanic, which is pretty nifty all by you like to play? may be reproduced from it in whole or in part without first itself—is that it works like the AD&D obtaining permission in writing from the publisher. Material published in DRAGON® Magazine does not neces- game. Both systems allow for limitless sarily reflect the opinions of TSR, Inc.
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