Dragonmeet 2013

Today I dropped by Kensington Town Hall for Dragonmeet 2013 with two of the next generation of gamers* in tow.

We had barely entered the building when we bumped into Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone CBE, who were giving the first seminar of the day on the early days of Games Workshop. It was a surreal experience to later find ourselves sitting in said seminar with FF and GW artist Tony Hough, the Tin Man himself Neil Rennsion and Mr Joe Dever, the creator and writer of the classic Lone Wolf series of gamebooks.

Mr Joe Dever and Yours Truly

We weren't there for long but did manage to catch up with Graham Bottley of Arion Games (and take delivery of my copy of Maelstrom: Domesday, that I'd backed via Kickstarter), say a quick hello to Jay Wallis of Greywood Publishing, FF fans Stuart Lloyd, James Aukett and John Berry, Dominic McDowall and Andrew Kendrick of Cubicle 7, one time artistic collaborator of mine Ralph Horsley, and Paco Jaen of G*M*S Magazine. Oh, and buy a lot of dice of course**.

Tony Hough, Neil Rennison and Stuart Lloyd

FF fans James Aukett and John Berry

Graham Bottley of Arion Games

Messrs Jackson and Livingstone did reveal one interesting snippet about the future of Fighting Fantasy, involving a possible game involving miniatures of FF monsters, and possibly being crowdfunded. So, backers of YOU ARE THE HERO, watch this space...


* And maybe even games designers, judging by the way they were changing the rules of 'Loopin' Louie'.

** But then why wouldn't you?

Forthcoming Events

I shall be attending Dragonmeet this Saturday 1 December, and generally hanging out with the Tin Man and the Warlock at the Fighting Fantasy stand. Also in attendance will be Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone, Ralph Horsley, Sarah Newton, and the guys from Cubicle 7 (who are actually organising everything). If you see me on Saturday, do come and say "Hi!"

I shall also be a guest at next year's Sci-Fi Weekender - 1-3 March 2013 - where I shall hosting at least one panel, taking part in a signing session or two, and hopefully selling some of my books. Gav Thorpe is also going, and the two of us have been cooking up some ideas for the weekend - but more on that another time. The doyenne of crime-horror Sarah Pinborough herself shall also be in attendance.

And that's your lot for now. Until next time...

Warhammer Wednesday: Talisman Prologue

If you're a hardcore gamer who's getting a bit long in the tooth, then you may well remember Talisman from its early days as a boardgame back in the 1980s. There have been various iterations since, including the Fourth Edition - as illustrated by the inestimable Ralph Horsley - but 2012 sees it transfer to the PC.



If you're a fan of fantasy, boardgames, or Games Workshop then you should check out Talisman Prologue from Nomad Games for yourself. I've already whiled away far too many hours playing the game, and have so far completed all of the Warrior's quests. If you think you'd like to do the same, then follow this link.

R is for Ralph Horsley

I first became aware of Ralph Horsley's work when Black Library asked me to make up some words to go with his illustration of The Siege of Gisoreux. After that, we collaborated again (and properly this time) on The Doom of Kazad Grund. (Think Where's Wally given a Warhammer twist.)

And I'm pleased to say that he's agreed to be interviewed for my blog today...

1. How did you start out as a professional artist?

I had always been an enthusiastic amateur, contributing to a large number of games and comics fanzine/small press publications, but having left college with an English Lit degree I decided to pursue illustration more seriously. I looked for work wherever I could get it, and kept submitting to publishers – usual story I suppose.

2. What was it that gave you your big break and led to what you are doing now?

I am always loathe to attribute a career to a single 'big break', it is usually a sequence of steps, and creating as many opportunities as possible. That said when James Wallis hired me to work for Hogshead Publishing that opened a doorway into Games Workshop, through Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, which fortuitously coincided with the launch of the Black Library and Inferno! magazine. I was commissioned to work on the first issue, and that was a 'big break'.

3. What is your preferred method of working? Which medium suits your style best?

I like working in acrylics onto illustration board. I sketch directly onto the board, then paint over my pencil work. I tend to build up layers in wash, culminating in more opaque layers for the final rendering.

4. Which setting do you prefer – Warhammer or Warhammer 40,000?

Warhammer – I have always been drawn more to swords than guns.

5. What is the appeal of working creatively within these settings?

A rich and diverse background, chock full of flavour, but at the same time there is the flexibility to be creative within those settings.

6. How did you enjoy collaborating on The Siege of Giseroux and The Doom of Kazad Grund?

It was great fun. I work better when spurred with an initial idea, and the collaboration really gave me something to spin off from. Plus I loved doing those mad complex scenes.

7. How long does it take you to produce a fully painted piece of art for Wizards of the Coast?

It depends – size and complexity are always a factor. A single figure might be 1.5/2 days, a cover or double-page spread could be 10-14 days.

8. Of which piece of work are you most proud?

I tend to fall out of love with a piece shortly after having completed it. It can take a bit of distance for me to like it again, and for it to slot into the body of work. There are lots of pieces which are important to me because of their part in the narrative of my career, and I guess they tend to be the larger, complex pieces which required a lot of problem solving, and investment of emotion and time. The cover to ‘Tome of Salvation’ (GW) slots in there, whilst more recently I'd put the ‘Gates of Neverdeath’ (WotC).

Tome of Salvation

Gates of Neverdeath

9. Is there anything you haven’t illustrated yet that you would like to?

I have ideas buzzing around, but no single IP or character, more the desire to create more epic paintings.

10. What are you working on at the moment?

D&D illustrations, WoW trading cards, an app game, some concepting, and a few other projects are in the pipeline.

11. What advice would you give to any aspiring artists wanting to follow in your footsteps?

It's hard work, you've got to want it, and it's all about the quality.

Thanks again to Ralph for taking the time to answer my questions. You can enjoy many fine examples of this work here.

Mission: Games Workshop - Bath

I was in Bath yesterday, a city I know very well having grown up just outside it and spent ten years attending school within it.

So - inevitably, you might say - I decided to visit the GW store there. When I used to visit Bath more regularly the store was on Upper Borough Walls and once, as I was walking passed, I saw a window display based on The Doom of Kazad Grund, a piece I created with Ralph Horsley for Inferno! magazine.

And then - not so long ago, it seemed - it moved to St James's Parade and became a grand Hobby Centre. And that was where I headed yesterday, only to find that particular property is now a hair salon! That's right, the GW store has moved once again. It's still on St James's Parade but in a much smaller premises.

However, I was delighted to find a copy of Phil Kelly's Dreadfleet novel in the store (having missed it on BL's web store) and saw a rather fine Arachnarok Spider model (that reminded me of this story) and a [CENSORED] which appears in my latest BL project. Perhaps, one day, that book will be on the shelves in the Bath store too...

Ralph Horsely - Dungeons & Dragons

If you're a fan of Dungeons & Dragons, Ralph Horsley or just damn fine artwork, then you should check out the album of gorgeous paintings that Ralph's posted on Facebook. You can find the album here and it includes such delights as these.

Did you know...?

Ralph and I worked together on a couple of projects for Inferno! magazine back in the late 90s, including The Siege of Giseroux and The Doom of Kazad Grund (which was turned into a window display at the old GW store in Bath). Did you? Well you do now.

UK Games Expo 2010

I had a very enjoyable weekend up in Birmingham at the 2010 UK Games Expo. This was my first visit, and I was taken aback by the size and accomplishment of the event. As well as the expected traders, demo games and tournaments, there were no less than three Daleks, three different Doctors, stormtroopers and Darth Vadar, as well as Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone!

In fact, Fighting Fantasy had a notable presence at the event. Not only was there an FF stand, hosted by Wizard Books, and the aforementioned Jackson and Livingstone, there were also fans, old and new, by the score, and me. And best of all, the cover of the programme was Emerson Tung's glorious painting of the Eye of the Storm from Stormslayer! That gave me a real buzz, I can tell you.

One of the highlights of the weekend was the talk on Saturday give by Steve and Ian about the history of Games Workshop and Fighting Fantasy. It was very amusing and not only because of all the photos from the 70s. I even got an honourable mention and a round of applause - which was nice.

Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone and yours truly - what a fine collection of shirts.

The crowds waiting to meet Steve and Ian (the queue went out the door!) whilst Gav Thorpe and Alessio Cavatore sign too.

FF editor Nick Sidwell proudly displaying his wares.

His wares - the brand-spanking-new FF gamebooks!

I also caught up with Ralph Horsley (who I collaborated with a couple of times back in the day), chatted jungle maintenance and work avoidance tactics with Gav Thorpe, and met Alessio Cavatore who was there promoting his new board game Shuuro (which I heard a punter describe as 'Chesshammer').

Ralph Horsley surrounded by his phenomenal body of (vibrantly colourful) work.

Alessio demonstrates Shuuro.

So all that remains now is for me to thank all those who organised the weekend (Tony and his team), everyone who dropped by and said "Hi!" and let me deface their new books, and Nick Sidwell, the FF editor, who manned the stand all weekend, doing sterling work, and who scored me a pass for the event.