Deck Plans Now on Sale!

Friday, my first Imperium Chronicles supplement, Deck Plans, went on sale! Coincidentally, I got the print version in the mail that day too, so I made that available also. The print one looks pretty good, although I’m not very happy with how much Lulu.com charges for full color. Since the deck plans wouldn’t look very good in black & white, I felt compelled to offer the supplement in color (for the print version that is). However, due to the printing costs, it’s almost prohibitively expensive to buy. On the other hand, the downloaded version is fairly short (24 pages), so I think plenty of people will be able to simply print it out on their own color printers.

Today I’ve been rendering like crazy. I got several new 3D models so I’ve been creating images for the creatures they represent. One of them (see below) is a new minor race called the Lutin. They are also called Hobgoblins due to their green skin and nasty demeanor. Basically, the Lutins are slave traders who smuggle slaves across the border into Magna territory. They also take them to planets within the Imperium that are too poor to buy robots (the de facto slaves of the Empire). They are pretty bad guys, so I’m hoping players will enjoy fighting them. ;-)

The other image below is a Siren. The Siren creature is grotesque, but (like the story from the Odyssey) sings a song that charms men into believing she’s beautiful (even without beer goggles).

Here are two sample images. The first is the Lutin (Hobgoblin) and the other is the Siren:

Naked Elf Women (Not Really)

The Deck Plans supplement is just about done. Actually, it is done, but I’m waiting until this weekend to release it since Saturday is a high volume day on DriveThruRPG/RPGNow. Just one of the things I’ve learned since joining the capitalist elite. I’m also offering a print version, but I’m waiting until I get the sample copy in the mail before I make it available (just to make sure it looks okay).

Now that the Deck Plans are done, I’ve turned my attention to my next project, which I’m calling Monster Menagerie. My goal is to include 30-40 new creatures, 3-4 new minor races, and some NPCs. I may also include some factions too, perhaps the ones I featured in the Grab Bag.

Speaking of minor races, the Dökk will be included. I was looking for some clothes for them (at least the female) and found the one below. The Wife thought it made her look a little slutty, but then I reminded her that “sex sales.” Also, since I had already bought the outfit, I was “damn well going to use it!” The Wife appreciates my business sense . . .

Btw, I’ve also been thinking about an adventure featuring the Dökk, which I’m calling The Crimson Kiss. I sketched out a few details for the adventure, but I’m not sure when I’ll be working on it . . .

To Bite or Not to Bite

Perhaps it’s fitting that on a dark and dreary day I’ve been thinking more about the Dökk. I wrote this quick blurb: “Some view the Dökk as only myth, but seasoned starfarers know that the black ships of the Shadow Fleet are all too real.” I picture them appearing without warning out of the abyss of space to attack vessels, and then disappearing again before help can arrive. I would like there to be some mystery about them, such as where they come from and their relation to the Dahl race. I thought about perhaps Dahl explorers who got cut off from the rest of their people and devolved into something sinister.

As you can see from the render in my previous post (and the new one below), they have vampire-like teeth. I don’t want the Dökk to be actual vampires (i.e.: undead), but I like the idea of them needing to drink blood. Instead of living underground (which is typical of dark elves in literature and games), my Dökk would live predominately in space, either in their ships or on a hidden space station (orbiting a dead planet). It’s a fact that animals that live without much sunlight have trouble producing red blood cells (and hemoglobin). Perhaps that’s why the Dökk would need to attack ships -- to feed on new victims.

I also picture them has using stealth a lot (including their ships). They would be adept at attacking from hiding (in space and on land), and then escaping. Due to their lack of hemoglobin, they would tend to be weaker than even their Dahl brethren, so they would need to pick their battles well to avoid injury or death.

Again, these are the thoughts I’m having (although I may want to turn on my Daylight lamp before I sink my teeth into the Wife’s neck). ;-)

She Looks Like My Prom Date . . .

I noticed yesterday that Daz3d.com was having a sale on some of 3d models I’ve been eyeing (here and here), so I snapped them up. Since I’m currently unemployed, I’d been hesitant to spend much money, but the deal was too good to pass up!

I wanted the model s because I can use them for both the Vogar and the Akiak races in my game. Although the previous model s were okay, I felt they needed an upgrade. The new ones give me a lot more variety, and they look pretty badass (much like myself):
Today I did the render below of a new minor race for my game. Based on the Dark Elves/Drow of fantasy fiction, my version is called the Dökk (based on the Old Norse word Dökkálfar, meaning "dark elf"). This is actually one of several minor races I’d like to include in the supplement after the current one I’m working on. It’ll have new creatures, races, and NPCs (essentially an expansion of Chapter 6 of the Basic Rules). Of course, I’m not done with the Deck Plans supplement yet, but it never hurts to plan ahead. ;-)

Mad Art Skillz!

Sorry it’s been awhile. I had to wait until the Wife recovered from proofreading my last post. She’d fallen into a boredom coma and had a “do not resuscitate” clause. I’m hopeful this time I can be more entertaining. ;-)

The deck plans supplement is going well. I’m at least halfway done, if not more. The last few days I’ve been doing artwork, and I’ve been experimenting with a new style. Basically, I’m using the sketch render functionality in Poser 7, and mixing that with a regular render. I’m still debating whether this new style is any better (or worse) than a regular render. However, since a recent review was badmouthing my wicked art skillz, I’ve been obsessing about it. Here are some samples. Please comment on what you think of them, but remember any tomatoes you throw will be hitting your own monitor: