[Fanzine Focus XXXIX] Attack the Light: Issue 0

On the tail of the Old School Renaissance has come another movement—the rise of the fanzine. Although the fanzine—a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon, got its start in Science Fiction fandom, in the gaming hobby it first started with Chess and Diplomacy fanzines before finding fertile ground in the roleplaying hobby in the 1970s. Here these amateurish publications allowed the hobby a public space for two things. First, they were somewhere that the hobby could voice opinions and ideas that lay outside those of a game’s publisher. Second, in the Golden Age of roleplaying when the Dungeon Masters were expected to create their own settings and adventures, they also provided a rough and ready source of support for the game of your choice. Many also served as vehicles for the fanzine editor’s house campaign and thus they showed another Dungeon Master and group played said game. This would often change over time if a fanzine accepted submissions. Initially, fanzines were primarily dedicated to the big three RPGs of the 1970s—Dungeons & Dragons, RuneQuest, and Traveller—but fanzines have appeared dedicated to other RPGs since, some of which helped keep a game popular in the face of no official support.

Since 2008 with the publication of Fight On #1, the Old School Renaissance has had its own fanzines. The advantage of the Old School Renaissance is that the various Retroclones draw from the same source and thus one Dungeons & Dragons-style RPG is compatible with another. This means that the contents of one fanzine will be compatible with the Retroclone that you already run and play even if not specifically written for it. Labyrinth Lord and Lamentations of the Flame Princess Weird Fantasy Roleplay have proved to be popular choices to base fanzines around, as has Swords & Wizardry. A more recent Old School Renaissance-style roleplaying game which right from the start of its appearance started being supported by fanzines, is ShadowDark, published by The Arcane Library. Attack the Light is one such fanzine.

Attack the Light: Issue 0 is published by Night Noon Games and is written as a preview issue for the forthcoming first issue, being funded via Kickstarter. Despite what the cover might suggest, this preview of the full fanzine is not rushed or rough and ready, but rather comes with a complete mini-adventure, intended for First Level Player Characters, that is solidly written and well presented. The adventure is simple and straightforward, but easy to prepare or slot into a Game Master’s campaign, and it should only take a session or so to play though. It includes rumours, random encounters, details of the monsters encountered, and some nice bits of treasure.

The adventure is ‘Aulon Raid in the Temple of Ord’. It opens with news that Orcish soldiers from the city-state of Aulon have invaded and defiled the nearby Temple of Ord. They have penetrated the shrine and there installed a sinister Blood Gem of Ramlaat, which encourages others to pillage, spread the name of Ramlaat, and work towards a blood rite. The adventure provides a few rumours that the Player Characters can learn and a short table of random encounters before plunging into the temple itself. The temple consists of nine locations across two levels, each one is nicely detailed and there is sense that the complex is one that has just been attacked and is undergoing transition. An Aulon Priest is found re-etching the carvings of the temple dedicated to Ord to ones sacred to Ramlaat, murals are defaced, there is a captured priest to be found and rescued, and so on. Both of the gods at the heart of the scenario, Ord, the Neutral god of knowledge, secrets, and equilibrium, and Ramlaat, the Chaotic god known as the ‘Pillager’, are taken from the ShadowDark core rulebook, making the scenario even easier to use.

The scenario is supported with a selection of monsters, such as an Aulon Archer and Soldier, Priest, Shadow, Stone Hornet, and others, as well as spells such as Augury, Conceal Portal, Hold Portal, and others. These are a mix of old and new, some taken from the ShadowDark core rulebook, others new. The three magic items are the Blood Gem of Ramlaat, the Locket of Remembrance, and the Ring of Portals. These are nicely detailed. Lastly, ‘When the Light Goes Out’ is a table of events of what might happen when the Player Characters’ torch goes out and they cannot relight a new one. This is, of course, a key feature of ShadowDark and having a table like this to hand makes the scenario easier to run.

Physically, the cover to Attack the Light: Issue 0 is intentionally unfinished, but inside the layout is clean and tidy, the artwork decent, and the cartography excellent. There should be no surprise there, given it is by Dyson Logos.

Attack the Light: Issue 0 is a good little mini-issue. It gets to the point, gives the Game Master what she needs, and should provide a good session or two’s worth of play. If subsequent issues of Attack the Light provide more of the same, it is going to be worth looking at by the ShadowDark Game Master.

—oOo—

Details of Attack the Light: Issue 1 can be found here.