Tag Archives: Unspeakable Oath

Speaking with the Unspeakable (Oath Podcast)

I had the distinct pleasure recently to talk with Shane Ivey, Adam Scott Glancy, and Ross Payton

An ashcan copy of the Companion

of the Unspeakable Oath podcast.  We talked about their respective projects (The Unspeakable Oath #25, Horrors of War, Role-playing Public Radio and other projects), my projects (The Arkham Gazette) and, for most of the show Masks of Nyarlathotep and The Masks of Nyarlathotep Companion.  Do give it a listen.

It was a lot of fun to chat with the UO crew and hear about their experiences running Masks.  I hope I remembered to speak slowly and enunciate.  If you haven’t taken a look yet, there are (currently) about 5 days to go in the MoNC Kickstarter.

Is Delta Green the new ‘Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius’?

I spotted a story today that, somehow, Delta Green was described as a real organization in A Covert Affair: Julia Child and Paul Child in the OSS. First Saucerwatch is real, now Delta Green? Tlön approaches, apparently.

In other news, we’ve had the first review of the latest episode of the Unspeakable Oath.

On a personal note, I wrapped up the revisions on one scenario today and wrapped up some fiction writing as well. That’s a productive day, gaming-wise.

Thank you, nameless Postal servitors (Updated)

Look out! The Dover Demon is, uh, mute! Any tiny! And probably not very dangerous!

{Of course as soon as I post something about the mail, I get more things to report.  I’ve added those at the end.}

Whilst enjoying some positive feedback on the Arkham Gazette’s demo issue, I was also fortunate enough to get a batch of books in the mail, so expected, some ordered long ago and forgotten. Let’s have a rundown, shall we?

  • The Unspeakable Oath #22.  Excellent as ever, with a really interesting modern scenario (“Die High”, which is not about a German High School despite the name).  Have you subscribed yet?
  • Stone Structures of New England, a pamphlet about, well, stone structures in New England.  An interesting resource.
  • Monsters of Massachusetts, which sadly doesn’t contain any beasties I’ve not heard of already, but has some interesting scenario building material nevertheless.
  • Shotguns v. Cthulhu, which contains Adam Scott Glancy’s fictional take on my Shotgun Scenario “Last Things Last“.  It is simultaneously thrilling and odd to see what one of the creators of Delta Green does with my little scenario.  I appreciate Scott’s enthusiasm for the scenario and his gentlemanly willingness to split the payment and contributor copies 50/50.
  • Three issues of Lovecraft Studies arrived at long (long long) last from Necronomicon Press (#33, 39, & 41 if you were curious).  I ordered these back in early June, having had my interest piqued about Foxfield, so I went right to the source… that source being Will Murray’s article “Where Was Foxfield” in #33.  Finally!

I’m expecting The Sense of the Sleight of Hand Man any day now (already have PDF but prefer to read the print version)… certain occult signs suggest that Sixtystone Press’ first book will see print soon as well.  I’ve got a lot of good reading ahead of me… now I just need to get my scenarios ready for NecronomiCon.

The Oath Approachest

Creepy doll… ooohhhhh….

Shane Ivey at Arc Dream has just announced that the next issue of the Unspeakable Oath (aka issue #23) is on the verge of being released (and available for pre-order if you count their subscription option).  While I weep the bitterest of tears over the fact that my submissions did not make the cut (sob!) I’ve enjoyed every issue of the Oath, even those not including my stuff.  This issue features an extended scenario by Adam Scott Glancy set during the Russian coup of 1991 among other items.  Awesome.

Books! Books! Books! (updated)

(Just after I posted this… accidentally mind you… I heard that the Unspeakable Oath released a new issue.  I’ve updated to reflect new info and fix my many typos.)

February has turned out to be very productive month for Lovecraftian gaming.  We’ve had some books-

  • Cubicle 7’s long-awaited Folklore has finally escaped from the electronic world into the medium of print and is now sitting on my night stand.
  • Chaosium also unleashed Atomic Age Cthulhu.
  • The newest issue of the Unspeakable Oath is now available. My reflections on all three shall be shared once I’ve had the chance to read them.

We also have had some podcast news and other odds and ends-

  • The gents at the Miskatonic University Podcast released another episode, this time covering prop making, problem players, and psychics (among other topics).  I want to kindly point out to my readers that they’re having a fund raiser and that for a scant $25 you can pick a topic for the crew to discuss (and for $50 you pick the main topic of an episode)… any topic.  That’s some cheap fun for the creative.
  • I’ve also been listening to Role Playing Public Radio a bit of late.  While they don’t always talk about Call of Cthulhu or other Lovecraftian games, it is hard to beat their summary of the straight to the dumpster 90s action ‘classic’ McBain.  Plus, loads of CoC actual plays are there for the listening.
  • Dean Englehart has also expanded his State of the Tentacle interviews with Graham Walmsley and Oscar Rios.

  • Medieval LARPers

    Finally, while doing some research I came across this fine site- the Medieval Macabre Gallery.  If you need something to punch up your bogus page from that 1588 Blackletter edition of the Necronomicon, here you go.  There are also links to all sorts of more mundane woodcuts

Six years of the Masks Companion and other news

The Companion

It is a little hard for me to comprehend, but I’ve been working on the Masks of Nyarlathotep Companion for over six years now.  Damn.  In that interval I’ve lost two cats, created a homunculus, and eaten a great deal of pudding.  I hope to have news to announce soon… good news.

In other news Arc Dream has announced its production schedule for 2013, including (ideally) four (!!) new issues of the Unspeakable Oath, release The Sense of the Sleight of Hand Man, and a bunch of other stuff.  Hopefully I’ll wrap up my latest submission to the Oath and it will see print soon.  I think it is one of the creepier things I’ve written.

The Dan Harms media empire also had similar news about his Ghouls sourcebook, Tales of the Sleepless City, some secret project (oooooh!), and a bunch of non-fiction about magic (an oxymoron I suspect, save from an academic perspective).

The DGML Shotgun scenario contest has wrapped with a total of six entries.  Members should vote now.

2012: The year in Lovecraftian RPGs

It’s that time again… time for my year-in-review recap of 2012’s Lovecraftian RPG releases.  I suppose the first thing I should mention is that caring for the homunculus is rather time intensive and my free time for reading has greatly diminished. I find that books sit on my nightstand longer and longer and my desire to sacrifice sleep to finish another scenario shrinking. C’est la vie. Without further ado (and with apologies for the delay), let’s get started — Continue reading →

Halloween minus seven days

It’s been a busy month here in WinstonP-land, with family trips, pressing assignments, and an exciting bout of illness keeping me occupied.  To put it another way, it wasn’t until today when I found time to get the Halloween decorations out of the attic… three weeks after my usual unpack the decorations date.

First off, I’ve finished the Hapden County graveyard map.  See it here.

Next, my friends at the Unspeakable Oath have updated their submission guidelines.  On the plus side, the rate for the short fiction “Message in a Bottle” section has been upped to $100.   On the down side, regular pieces like “Mysterious Manuscripts” and “Arcane Artifacts” have been switched from a by the word rate of 4 cents to a flat $20.  Incentive to keep them short I suppose… (and for reference, I was paid around $30ish for my previous submissions)  At least the longer articles remain at 4 cents a word.  I’m still working on a piece for a future issue, pending acceptance (and completion, of course.)  If they don’t have a new episode of their podcast soon though, I might unleash Hecubus upon them again.

Finally, I have updated the 2012 Lovecraftian RPG list to include the latest PDF release from the gang at Pelgrane – Sister of Sorrow; yet another WWI scenario from the fertile mind of Adam Gauntlett… this time, featuring submarines!

That’s it for now… hopefully I will have more news on the Companion… and other projects… soon.  (Oh, and I’ve passed the 4000th page hit.  Thank you Russian Spam millionaires!)

Holding pattern

Not much to report on the ‘Tomes’ front recently; waiting for my print copies of The Unspeakable Oath #21 to arrive, waiting for news from Chaoisum about the Masks of Nyarlathotep Companion (and watching their Kickstarter hit $75k), waiting for my copy of Bumps in the Night to arrive, waiting for any news from the various books I’ve had a hand in, waiting for Arc Dream to post audio from their Delta Green session at GenCon, waiting for my daughter to start sleeping regularly again (thanks teething!), waiting for any of my regular podcasts to release a new episode… lots of waiting.  I suppose we can blame August?

In the mean time, I have, very nicely, been gifted a copy of Cthulhu by Gaslight, which, 34 pages in, I am enjoying greatly.  I’m also doing research for some Lovecraft Country projects (when I’m not tinkering about their edges), added some content to my LC graveyards book (3000 words so far), and went to take better pictures at a local cemetery.  Unfortunately I forgot what time of day it was, leaving me with the sun in the wrong position relative the stones, so they were damned hard to photograph clearly.  Next time I won’t forget my mirror.

Hopefully I will stop waiting for something from the above list soon…