Christmas Bundles

I've separated the BtS and BtM series into several bundles. The latter simply has all the monsters for sale there now in one place for a lower price than buying separately (the point of bundles, of course). BtS is divided into magic schools which, if nothing else, gives your specialist wizard something to cheer about. Check them out here: http://www.rpgnow.com/index.php?cPath=3935

Happy Thanksgiving!

To help celebrate this time of giving, Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. is offering a 50% sale on its most expensive product--Lotsa Blocks! Our handy, no-frills, stat block-only product is now a mere $4.00 thru Sunday, Nov. 25th. Why not skip the pumpkin pie and fill up on the tasty dessert of 103 stat blocks found in Lotsa Blocks!?

On sale at OBS here: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=50521

On sale at YourGamesNow here: http://www.yourgamesnow.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&manufacturers_id=64&products_id=1876

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

BtM: Terror Turkey

Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. presents Behind the Monsters: Terror Turkey, the fifth release in this series. This is a special humorous holiday issue. While we normally look at classic monsters, this release examines a brand new foul-tempered fowl and includes two adventurer advantages, three recipes, and full monster stats for the terror turkey!
Buy it from RPGNow here: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=51167
Buy it from YourGamesNow here: http://www.yourgamesnow.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1931&zenid=2f49dedb2d2255d4e549a51e05da9835

November Update

Yikes! Has it been a whole month since I posted here? Does anyone even read this blog? If you do, here's your update. :) Scot has off this coming week and will be looking into publishers for the Behind the Spells: Compendium. I still have the next Behind the Spells pdf in the queue (Sanctuary) as well as penning BtM: Skeleton and shepherding our humorous Thanksgiving offering BtM: Terror Turkey to completion. I'm also brainstorming new ideas for products given the ambiguous pre-4e marketplace. So, chin up! The Tricky Owlbear is very much alive and well.

Kobold Quarterly

In case you didn't know, Kobold Quarterly's second issue is now available in pdf form (with print to come not long after). This issue is very special to me for two reasons: 1st--Skip Williams reprises his "sage"-like role which he maintained for uncounted years in the pages of the now-defunct Dragon; 2nd--Tricky Owlbear is a proud supporter with our advertisement on page 39. While placing an ad was my idea, Scot deserves the credit for the amusing ad and putting it together. Go and buy your copy now!

Lotsa Blocks sample

Someone on the Necromancer Games forum asked for a sample page from the new book so I figured I'd post it here as well.

Behind the Spells: Compendium

Artwork has been commissioned for this, our first print foray. Here's a sample by Jesse Mohn which is drawn from the Wish & Limited Wish issue.

Lotsa Blocks!

Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. presents Lotsa Blocks! for fantasy OGL gaming. Within this no-frills pdf are 103 ready-to-use stat blocks, sorted by role (warrior, sage, etc.), for the harried GM. No longer do you need to schedule an extra hour or two to come up with foes that will only live for a few rounds anyway. Let Tricky Owlbear do the work for you! Lotsa Blocks! gives you NPCs fashioned solely from the System Reference Document so there's nothing out of the ordinary you must stop and reference during play. Whether you need commoners to populate a community or the main villain for tonight's game, this is your go-to source. Have more fun more quickly with Lotsa Blocks!
Buy it from RPGNow here: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=50521
Buy it from YourGamesNow here: http://www.yourgamesnow.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1876&zenid=fb296f773c59217ff7908ef872eaf499

Review: BtM: Bulette

The first review is in for Bulette! Check it out here: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?products_id=50385&reviews_id=15725

Campaign Ending Adventure Trilogy?

With 4e coming next May, I was curious to see how DMs handle an edition change for their campaigns. Thus, I posted this thread at ENWorld: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=207281

Besides idle curiosity, however, this thread is a bit of market research for an idea I had on Friday--a trilogy of campaign ending/changing modules. If, as I thought, DMs ended their current campaigns to start fresh with the new edition, then such a trilogy might be a good seller. According to the thread poll results, though, I might be mistaken. The option of picking up an adventure geared this way is dead last. Seems the bulk of the groups responding will continue as they have or the DMs in question are writing their own finales.

Even with the data, perhaps a single adventure fashioned to end a campaign would still have good customer response. I'll have to stew on this longer and get some of my Tricky Owlbear friends' opinions.

In other news, Tricky Owlbear is gaining sole rights to my Behind the Spells series. It's just easier than Ronin Arts figuring out the sales from sites we're not on (and vice verse for RPGNow). With that agreement, TO will be publishing our first print product--Behind the Spells: The Compendium. The first 36 issues were errated by me at the end of '06 and new material added for the print edition. We'll be releasing this first in pdf and then in print form hopefully by year's end.

BtM: Bulette

Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. is pleased to bring you the third release in the Behind the Monsters line, this one focusing on that most dangerous predator the bulette!
These pdfs follow a format similar to that found in the popular Behind the Spells series (also presented by Tricky Owlbear Publishing) so chances are good that, if you enjoy that series, this one will also strike your fancy. Each issue is narrated by Jadrin Nelv, monk of the Order of the Sacred Branch. Jadrin schools novice monks in the ways of the multiverse's creatures and we, the readers, get to listen in. Whether you're a player or a GM, you will find something of use within these pages. Includes two adventurer combat tactics, one new monster, and one new spell!

You can purchase this pdf two spots. RPGNow here: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=50385 or YourGamesNow here: http://www.yourgamesnow.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1823&zenid=4ecedfb87971fd012b0e3d5b7071c372

Silence is Not Golden

So all's quiet here in the Owlbear den. With the announcement of 4th edition, Tricky Owlbear will have to regroup and decide what fluffy products to release before the new srd becomes available. I have some ideas, naturally... :)

BtM: Owlbear review

The first review for the premiere pdf here: http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=review&reviewid=3669885

Catalog Explosion!

The "classic" first 36 Behind the Spells are now available at the Tricky Owlbear page of RPGNow. Joining these are my 4 other works penned for Ronin Arts--Treasure Chests, Mallyate, Substandard Magic Items, and The 11th Hour. Hopefully, folks will want to see what they've been missing for the last 5+ months on that site. :)

Behind the Monsters: Xorn review

The Tricky Owlbear nabbed its first review: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_reviews_info.php?products_id=22484&reviews_id=16296 (which of course also means that the Xorn is available for purchase...guess I could have posted that previously).

Over the weekend I made several notes for a couple time travel adventures and have also begun notes on BtS: Sanctuary.

Behind the Spells: Vampiric Touch

Now for sale, our first product is ready for your hard-earned dollars (or $1.50 to be exact): http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=22456

It Begins Now!

The press releases are up at the usual sites and, thanks to Scot's tireless efforts, the website is live: www.trickyowlbear.com Now go and download the free issue of BtM: Owlbear! Why are you still here? Go already!

Vampiric Touch

Behind the Spells: Vampiric Touch is ready to go on sale! I also wrote an additional monster for BtM: Owlbear, the bearowl, which hopefully Rick Hershey has the time to do a little illius. for before the Tricky Owlbear launch.

Start Your Engines

Our spot is reserved. Who will be the first purchaser of Tricky Owlbear material...will it be you? http://www.rpgnow.com/default.php?manufacturers_id=4149

Update

Scot is overhauling the website for our 7/7/07 launch and the procedure to enroll with One Book Shelf is underway. We'll have to see what's involved with jumping on to Your Games Now's bandwagon too. No new titles yet that I'm able to announce but my gaming group was doing some brainstorming last night for what people might like in terms of pdf buying and the player's perspective. Some good thoughts were hatched but we'll see where those lead later on.

Owlbear Preview

Here's a little preview of the Behind the Monsters: Owlbear pdf coming soon to an internet site near you!

An excerpt from the creation story: "As First Wizard, Ebrim was in charge of the creature’s conception. To formulate a suitably fearsome monster, the human mage looked to his own deepest fears. As a child, an owl attacked Ebrim and grievously wounded him. Even as an adult, the image of that owl and its bloodied beak gave Ebrim chills. But such a creature was not in and of itself worthy in a military capacity, he reasoned. Could that aspect he feared, however, be grafted onto a more suitable form? Ah, now Ebrim’s penchant for transmutation takes hold of his imagination..."

7/7/07

Will this be the mark of the Owlbear? Since 666 is already taken, perhaps we can start a new trend with the official startup date of Tricky Owlbear. :) We're gathering a few new art pieces and the logo for Behind the Monsters as well as a new logo for Behind the Spells from our talented friend Rick Hershey at Empty Room Studios. I'm putting the final touches on BtS: Vampiric Touch and BtM: Owlbear. Now, if only I can track down that Mike Ferguson guy and see how he's doing on Xorn and Bulette...

TrickyOwlbear.com

Just a quick little update: We bought the domain www.TrickyOwlbear.com about a month ago, and now it finally goes somewhere...

...

Yeah, yeah, it goes back here; but I'm working on it! While I build the new home of the Owlbear, if you have any recommendations for features you would like to see on TrickyOwlbear.com, feel free to voice them here.

TBMC follow-up

After meeting with the accountant today, I can now say Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. (more specifically, S-Corp) is a-go! The acct. was friendly and informative (at least for me). Once the paperwork is complete (and our several hundred dollars received), I will assume presidency with Scot as secretary of the endeavor.

We're definitely planning on three releases for our grand opening (besides the 36 Behind the Spells that will shift under TOP's umbrella at RPGNow). BtM: Owlbear will be our free pdf. BtM: Xorn and a new Behind the Spells (Vampiric Touch) will be the other two premiere pdfs. Now, it's back to work!

Talkin' Bout My Corporation

This week, Scot and I meet with an accountant about the ins and outs of incorporating the Tricky Owlbear. Despite getting a good laugh from our name, I'm hoping the man has some good advice for us. :) On the product end, I finished a draft I'm happy with for Behind the Monsters: Owlbear while Mike is working on BtM: Xorn.

And this idea keeps popping into my head to develop a mini-setting where the PCs awake to find themselves and a sampling of all races from their world on an entirely new planet (although they don't know this). In a lush valley, the transplanted races and PCs escape a downed spaceship. Their captors are either dead or escaped before the crash but some of their technology survived for use. It would be cool to keep Dragonstar alive by using the tech from that since it's already "compatible" with d20 fantasy. Eh, probably just an idle fancy but I think adventuring in and investigating a totally new realm would be a lot of fun!

Still Going

My brother and his wife are off to New Orleans today on business so Tricky Owlbear is on hold until his return. Mike Ferguson and I have had some good discussion on the structure for Behind the Monsters. There is also a new narrator for the new series--Jadrin Nelv, monk of the Order of the Sacred Branch. This headmaster of the Order instructs classes of monks on the world's creatures and we, the readers, get to listen in.

Update

Some of you folks are probably thinking that we're just a logo and a dream at this point. Well, you'd be right! For now, Scot's purchasing the software and whatnot we'll need and then I'll send him what I've written and run from there. The Tricky Owlbear may be silent at the moment, but that's when it's deadliest!

Logo Complete

The logo is complete!



Special thanks to Rick Hershey over at Empty Room Studios for his hard work and advice.

Logo Work

Rick at ERS has been a gem to work with and the logo is very nearly completed already. I'll post it here as soon as I have it. Today I'm working on some freelance stuff but tomorrow I'd like to devote a good chunk of time to some Tricky Owlbear material (and the BSG finale, of course).

In Production

Scot says he's buckling down this weekend to prepare for Tricky Owlbear's eventual breakthrough into the gaming world. We're a-go with Rick Hershey and ERS to design the logo and I've already been contacted by a known freelancer for work! As mentioned over on my own freelancing blog, I've begun designing the template for Behind the Monsters--"History", "Combat", and "Post Mortem" are the current section headers.

With any luck, we'll have 2 BtM releases, a Campaign Theme Pack: Aberrations I, and a fourth pdf to release when we finally surface on gaming sites near you!

Logo Design

I'm playing with the notion of having Empty Room Studios craft a logo for the Trocky Owlbear. This is the company that did one helluva nice job on my Temporality cover and the interior artwork for Hoards. Rick Hershey, the honcho of ERS, was extremely easy to work with. Have to see what Scot thinks...

Product Line Ideas

Just my own random brainstorming here, but I'd like to see the following things blossom beneath the Tricky Owlbear umbrella.

Sci-Fi Bits: I suppose we could use d20Future for this line but I'm also leaning toward system-less bites of information for any science fiction game. Random crew generation of a starship and so forth (not to step too much on the Ronin Arts pdfs for this type of thing). In the same vein, but more grand in scope, is my newest dream of a mega sci-fi adventure which just throws the PCs into one harrowing encounter after another with one or more planets hanging in the balance. This thought comes after viewing 80s artwork for such games which usually feature grand collages of a setting's main components.

Behind the Monsters: Your favorite monsters from the SRD exposed like never before! Using the first product on the owlbear as a starting point, this line would actually be player-focused. Where did the creature come from? Does it have one or more weak spots and how does one go about exploiting them? Once the monster is dead, can its corpse bring more to the PC than simple experience?

Campaign Theme Pack: This was the original title for my Dread Codex book from Adamant Ent. before it grew into its current larger, all-encompassing, form. I'd like to draw from the copious amount of open content I own to develop smaller products that each feature a single monster type (undead, plant, ooze, etc.). You would get a handful of monsters, related items, and a generic sample lair typical of the monster type.

Behind the Spells: I can't see not contributing the ocassional pdf to this already-established line. There's still plenty of knowledge left in Maxolt!

OSRIC: Almost forgot! I absolutely want to help scratch the 1st edition itch of myself and others with some OSRIC adventure material. The market is out there, no question.

Titles and content of the above are all subject to change, of course. :)

The First Product

Besides our disastrous trip to scare up some capital, Scot and I also agreed to make our first product one that involves, you guessed it, the owlbear. We think that a free product will at least get more people to take notice of us and (who knows?) they might even like what they see. :)

First Post

Welcome! Please, come in! Have a seat and make yourself at home.

This blog will be devoted to the development of my latest, greatest entrepreneurial endeavor: an e-publishing company for fantasy roleplaying products. Together with my brother & renown author of the industry, Bret Boyd, we will spread the enjoyment and creativity of roleplaying games to all who care to participate. How can you participate? Go get some books from your RPG of choice and start playing!

OK, now that we have that out of the way, let me tell you about our first semi-official company meeting for our not-yet-existent company:

My brother, Bret, calls me on Saturday to tell me he has the afternoon off and wants to meet to discuss our future e-publishing company. We agree to meet at my apartment in Philly, and follow-up the meeting with a trip to the casinos to raise some start-up capital. Following perhaps 5 minutes of constructive discussion, we adjourned the meeting and drove to Delaware. After a few hours playing the slots at Delaware Park, we are now even farther from our monetary goals, but at least we had a good time.