Happy summer solstice! While I’ve missed some movies and local events lately because of travel and crowded schedules, I did get to Free RPG Day. On Saturday, 16 June 2012, Janice and I drove into Boston to visit the Compleat Strategist.
The staff at the small game shop was friendly as usual, and I declined an invitation to participate in a Pathfinder tabletop role-playing session. I did pick up the following free items:
- Cosmic Patrol RPG quickstart
- Harn world map with setting material
- Dungeon Crawl Classics quickstart and adventure
- NeoExodus adventure for Pathfinder
- Dawn of the Scarlet Sun adventure for Pathfinder
I also bought some Lord of the Rings HeroClix and Giants Revisited for Pathfinder (my Advanced Race Guide hardcopy is coming in the mail). I looked at the thick core rulebooks for Dungeon Crawl Classics and Adventurer, Conqueror, King because of fellow Game Master Brian W.‘s recommendations. I didn’t purchase either of these retro–clones yet, because I want to see what my current face-to-face groups are willing to try after various miniseries and our D&D Next playtest.
I didn’t see any of the planned books for FATE 3e Starblazer Adventures/Mindjammer (for “Vortex“) or Legends of Anglerre (for the “Vanished Lands“) but at least the FATE version of Bulldogs has gotten some good science fiction support online. I’m more inclined to stick with rules-light systems than invest in yet another potentially expensive, complicated game with a limited fan base.
Unfortunately, the staff at Pandemonium Books & Games in Cambridge, Mass., was surprisingly ignorant of Free RPG Day and seemed to be more interested in hosting collectible card tournaments than serving role-players. It seemed like a missed opportunity to get people into the store. It’s a shame that the larger shop has focused less on traditional RPGs lately.
Janice and I later enjoyed lunch at Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage and visited our usual book shops in Harvard Square. We missed Josh C. & Sara F., who were at the Compleat Strategist sometime after us. I look forward to looking more closely at my Free RPG Day swag. So many games, so little time!
Gene's Worlds 