20k

A minor milestone happened just in the past day: The number of free downloads of Ars Magica 4th Edition from RPGNow passed the 20,000 mark!

While we're eagerly awaiting the arrival of 5th Edition (I should have it in my hands in less than three weeks now), we're plowing ahead with the new supplements in the pipeline. This very morning, in fact, I'm working on the layout of Guardians of the Forests, the sourcebook we're planning to release in January, covering the mythic wonders of the Rhine tribunal and the founding covenant of Durenmar, among other things.

Posted by John Nephew
10/30/2004 10:56:00 AM

Add a Little Gloom to Your Life

At the request of a certain designer who shall remain nameless, I just put up a GLOOM T-SHIRT on our CafePress store. Go to www.cafepress.com/atlasgames to check it out, and take a look at the new Cult Crossing fob I added while I was at it. Enjoy!



Posted by Michelle Nephew
10/29/2004 02:57:00 PM
0 comments

Fond Farewells

We regret to announce that Atlas Games is losing two valued employees -- regret tempered by our happiness for the exciting things they are moving on to, and our gratitude for the superb work they've done here at Atlas.

Scott Reeves has been our Art Director and Staff Artist for the past four years. As well as coordinating the art and doing layout for projects like the Penumbra Fantasy Bestiary, he's also done some fantastic illustrations and graphic design on games like Cthulhu 500, Gloom, and Ars Magica 5th Edition. Scott has decided to return to school to pursue a master's degree. We're pleased that he's still finding some time to illustrate some hand-picked projects for us on a freelance basis.

After proving himself a top-notch writer though his work for Atlas as a freelance author, Will Hindmarch joined our staff in August of 2002, taking on diverse jobs including Feng Shui Line Developer and website manager. Will recently married his true love, Sara Young, and considering his creative and organizational abilities we weren't entirely surprised when he was offered the job of Vampire Line Developer for White Wolf in Atlanta, Georgia. We are very happy for Will; as much as we'll miss his help here at Atlas, we have to admit that this job is a great opportunity and he'd be a fool not to take it.

We'll miss you both, Will and Scott. And we're sure it's just a coincidence that you're both leaving just before another Minnesota winter blows in...

- John and Michelle Nephew


Posted by John Nephew
10/28/2004 02:29:00 PM

Nine New Ars Magica 5th Edition Previews
That's right, I said nine. Fans have been making a lot of noise lately, and with good reason. A new edition of Ars Magica is on the way and we've hardly shown you anything yet! Today that changes. Check out the Ars Magica Fifth Edition preview page for eight new characters and David Chart's first Designer's Notes PDF article. They're all up right now for you to enjoy!

All the companion characters for Semita Errabunda, the Living Covenant, are now online to support the first wizard character: Darius. You'll find Darius in the fifth edition rulebook, too, so we're starting with him.

If you've been wondering what's different in Ars Magica's fifth edition, how, and why, then you're in luck. David Chart, the game's developer, has written four frank articles explaining the revision and expansion process. Today we've got the first one for you, which hints at the game's new combat system. Check back on Friday for the next Designer's note!

Posted by Will
10/26/2004 03:16:00 PM
1 comments

Horror in Austin

Lunch Money creator Charlie Wiedman dropped us a line to say that he and the RuffHouse Studios team survived "Bloodshots": "RuffHouse Studios has completed the 48HR HORROR FILM COMPETITION on time!(Actually half an hour early.) We were one of 16 teams who actually made itbefore the deadline. Seven teams dropped out.For those who don't know how it works, each team gets their horror genre,prop and a line of dialoge on friday and they have 48 hours to create,write, produce, shoot and edit a 4-8 minute movie.

If you're in or near Austin, Texas, check it out and see if you can't make it to the screenings on Halloween!


Posted by John Nephew
10/25/2004 02:59:00 PM

New in PDF: Seven Serpents

Earlier this summer, we produced Seven Serpents on a print-to-order basis. That has meant that it can be a bit hard to find (be sure to pick it up if you spot a copy in your local game store!), but we're pleased now to make the book available in PDF format on RPGNow.com. As I write this it has been uploaded, but it may be a few hours or a day before it's available for download. Just keep checking this link: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=3568&src=AtlasBlog

Edit: It's now available, and I've edited that URL into a hyperlink.


Posted by John Nephew
10/16/2004 03:41:00 PM

Preorder Ars Magica 5th Edition Now!
Atlas Games is happy to announce that customers can now preorder Ars Magica Fifth Edition from the Atlas Games website. By ordering now, buyers can take advantage of a low introductory price on the 240-page, two-color hardcover book. For a limited time only, Ars Magica Fifth Edition is priced at just $25 (US).

As usual, all website orders through the Atlas Games website will be fulfilled by Warehouse 23. Ars Magica 5th Edition is expected to ship to distributors in November.

The first supplement for this new edition, The Broken Covenant of Calebais is also available to preorder now and will be available simultaneously with the new rulebook. Calebais is a complete revision of a classic introductory adventure for Ars Magica, originally written by Mark Rein-Hagen and Jonathan Tweet. This newly revised and expanded version of the adventure was updated by Erik Dahl.

Living Covenant Update
Two new grog characters are now available for download from the Ars Magica 5th Edition preview page. We're nearing the end of the grogs, now, and will soon be introducing you to the covenant's companions and, finally, its wizards. With the book finally off to press and due back in just a few weeks, we expect to post multiple characters each week, so you'll be able to try out the new wizards as soon as you've got your new copy of the game.

Posted by Will
10/15/2004 01:05:00 PM
0 comments

A new product announcement going out to distributors today...

Guardians of the Forest: The Rhine Tribunal
A Sourcebook for Ars Magica 5th Edition
by Andrew P. Smith and Mark Shirley

Guardians of the Forests details the birthplace of the Order of Hermes, Mythic Germany. From the sinister faerie heights of the Black Forest, home to Durenmar, through the prosperous and venerable cities of the Rhineland, to the fog-ridden Harz Mountains, to the lowland plain and Crintera's island retreat on the Baltic coast, the northern Holy Roman Empire is a diverse landscape of countless magical and faerie forests, interspersed with a patchwork of powerful realms, where prince-bishops vie with dukes and merchant gilds for temporal power. This is the land of the epic Nibelungenlied, the heroic conquests of Charlemagne and Frederick Barbarossa, the miracles of St. Boniface, the splendour of the Imperial Cathedrals, the gifts of minstrels and wood-wives, and the curses of witches and the Wild Hunt.

Guardians of the Forests reveals the many unique traditions of the First Tribunal, its archaic politics and lost glories, its reverence for its founders and its woodlands, the workings of the Great Library of Durenmar, and the secrets of those who pursue obscure wilderness paths in search of the primal power of the Forest. The richness of the German landscape is fully explored, replete with numerous story and saga ideas. The region of the Rhine Gorge receives a special focus -- its lost covenants, vis sources, sites of legend, towns, castles, inhabitants, and a mysterious curse are all detailed -- providing a perfect location to jump-start an Ars Magica 5th Edition saga.

Description: 144 pages, hardcover; Stock Number: AG0276; ISBN: 1-58978-072-8; SRP $29.95

Shipping to Distributors in January 2005


Posted by John Nephew
10/14/2004 03:40:00 PM

Coming Soon: Dungeoneer in Translation

It's my pleasure to announce that we now have several translations of Dungeoneer: Tomb of the Lich Lord in the works, to bring this wonderful game to yet wider audiences worldwide. The languages, and our licensees producing them, are:

French: UBIK
Italian: Raven Distribution
Spanish: Edge Entertainment
German: Truant Verlag

We've previously done business with all of these folks (either as distributors or translator-licensees), and we're very pleased to work with them to bring Dungeoneer into their native languages.


Posted by John Nephew
10/14/2004 02:10:00 PM

Quiet = Busy

The blog has been a bit quiet this past week, due in no small part to the horrible crunch getting the finishing touches on Ars Magica 5th Edition. Now it's done, and the printer confirmed receiving our materials this morning.

So here's a catch-up on a bunch of topics -- since I just had to write it up as an update to our distributors, I figured I'd post it here, too!

Status Report: Gloom

AG1250 Gloom is late. We have manufactured the game in India. Our original timetable had the game departing New Delhi in the first week of September. While we got our materials to the printer in time (before Gen Con), delays in India (and mishaps such as the first set of proofs being lost by a courier) have meant that the production was only completed this past weekend. The games are going to be on a ship to us this week. We looked into air freight, but it would increase our unit cost by about 36%, which is just not affordable. We've been told to expect approximately five weeks for delivery ocean freight (and that's supposing no further unpleasant surprises).

Status Report: Ars Magica 5th Edition and The Broken Covenant of Calebais (Revised)

On Friday we sent Ars Magica 5th Edition to press (AG0205). Our printer says to expect a five-week turnaround. This means that we should be getting it at approximately the same time as Gloom. The Broken Covenant of Calebais (AG0275) is already printed and waiting in our warehouse for the arrival of 5th Edition.

Remember, the price on Ars Magica 5th Edition is $25 only through December 31st.

Status Report: Lunch Money and Sticks & Stones

Our combined reprint of Lunch Money and the expansion deck Lunch Money: Sticks & Stones is proceeding on schedule. They should be arriving at distributor warehouses in the last week of October.

Later This Week: January Release Announcements

Later this week I'll be sending around the details of our two January releases: AG0276 Guardians of the Forest: The Rhine Tribunal (Ars Magica) and AG4014 Glimpse of the Abyss (Feng Shui). Both will be 144-page hardcovers, $29.95 MSRP.

Out of Stock: Over the Edge RPG

We've sold out of Over the Edge. We expect a reprint of some sort in 2005 -- possibly in hardcover.

Speaking of RPG core rulebooks, please remember that Feng Shui and Unknown Armies are now back in stock and available for immediate shipping.


Posted by John Nephew
10/11/2004 03:54:00 PM

Special Ops Quarterly Prize Awarded

Atlas Games is pleased to announce that Paul Tevis of Santa Barbara, CA is the winner of this quarter's Special Ops prize drawing. Paul will get to choose a prize from among the rare and and one-of-a-kind Atlas Games items reserved for the Special Ops drawing.

Special Ops is Atlas Games' corps of loyal fans who organize and run demos and tournaments at retail stores and conventions across the country and around the world. At the end of each quarter, Special Ops demo team members who have run a game in the last three months are entered into a prize drawing for special Atlas items. The next drawing will be December 31st, and will feature a choice of prizes such as press sheets and original art from our popular Ars Magica, Feng Shui, Penumbra D20, Over the Edge, and Unknown Armies RPGs, and from card game favorites like Dungeoneer, Lunch Money, and Once Upon a Time.

Atlas is also happy to announce that the following Special Ops members have gone up in rank this quarter:

Paul Tevis (Godwalker, 1000 HP)
Jesús Couto Fandińo (Companion, 100 HP)
Kevin Powe (Companion, 100 HP)
Bill Korsak (Grog, 50 HP)

Congratulations to all of you, and keep up the great work!

Also, we'd like to welcome the following new recruits:

Shea Bliss
Daria Giovannoni
Helene Devost
Eric Guebin
Evan Torner
Miguel Tuimil
Gregg Bingham
Mike Dewar
Jeff Mckahan
Reuel Miller
Nicholas Peterson
Elton John Robb
Tracy Bloom
Stefan Borgs
Darrin Bright
Rubén Grande Garcia
Jerry Koudelik
Thomas Nichols
Jukka Seppanen
Paul Seyfarth
David Walker

Thanks for being a part of Special Ops!

If you're interested in joining Atlas Games' Special Ops demo team, just fill out and send in the application form at www.atlas-games.com/specialops .

To request a demo at your convention or retail store, send in the demo request form located at www.atlas-games.com/pdf_storage/SOdemorequestform.rtf .


Posted by Michelle Nephew
10/04/2004 10:47:00 AM
0 comments

Another Grog for the Job

Amelle is the newest Ars Magica 5th Edition character, and she's just been posted up at www.atlas-games.com/arm5 . Enjoy!


Posted by Michelle Nephew
10/01/2004 01:33:00 PM
0 comments