Gamebook Friday: Review of the Year - 2022

It's that time of the year again - can you believe it? - when I like to look back on the past year and look forward to the next.

Despite all the other books I had published this year, 2022 was only ever going to be the Year of Fighting Fantasy, as it saw the 40th anniversary of the publication of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain.

However, I didn't expect to find myself writing a new Fighting Fantasy gamebook - but it turned out Steve Jackson had other ideas. In January Steve asked me to help him finish the FF adventure he was writing to mark the 40th anniversary, and so Secrets of Salamonis was born, which resulted in me working with Italian illustrator Tazio Bettin for the first time (and hopefully not the last).

I also provided technical assistance for the two Marvel Multiverse Missions gamebooks published by Aconyte Books this year - You Are (Not) Deadpool and She-Hulk Goes To Murderworld.

The first quarter of 2022 saw me write the 'Making of...' features for the final graphic novels in the All Killer No Filler Deadpool Collection, the very last of which was Deadpool Does Shakespeare.

In April I attended Taunton Comic Con for the first time, and June saw me attend the UK Games Expo for the first time since 2019, which meant I sold out of a lot of stock! I also playtested a new card game with some friends which I hope to have on sale at UKGE 2023.

Summer saw the publication of RONIN 47, the first science fiction-themed ACE Gamebook.

2022 was also a year of upheaval for Family Green as in the summer as we swapped West London for the West Country, moving from the Queen of the Suburbs - a.k.a. Ealing - to the County Town of Somerset - a.k.a.Taunton.

Then September saw Fighting Fantasy Fest 4 take place, back in Ealing, and the publication of Secrets of Salamonis, alongside Sir Ian Livingstone's Shadow of the Giants.

At the end of October I visited Lucca Comics and Games Fair in Italy for the first time. It was an incredible, full-on, five day event, during which I met all sorts of wonderful people and signed numerous copies of the Italian editions of Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and The Wicked Wizard of Oz.

November was remarkable because it saw the Kickstarter to fund production of YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks become my most successful crowdfunding project to date! If you missed it, there's still time to place a Late Pledge.

I also finished the Heorot RPG, at long last, which will be out in time for the UK Games Expo 2023.

At the start of December I was back at Dragonmeet in London, where I hung out with Sir Ian Livingstone during the day and the Lone Wolf crew during the evening.

December also saw the 20th anniversary of the publication of my first Warhammer novel, The Dead and the Damned.

As well as publishing another title in the ACE Gamebooks series in 2022, I have continued to release new content for 'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas. 

If you have yet to grab the latest supplements, you might want to make the most of the ACE Gamebooks Roleplay New Year Sale, but it's only here for a short time, so don't miss out!

New foreign language editions of ACE Gamebooks that have been published this year include the Czech translation of NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!, the Ialian The Wicked Wizard of Oz, and the Polish edition of Dracula - Curse of the Vampire. And there are even more to come in 2023!

Talking of 2023, next year marks the 30th anniversary of me becoming a published author, as Spellbreaker, my first Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook, was published in June 1993. And there are plenty more books to come next year.

I already have two gamebook projects pencilled into my schedule, while the Heorot RPG and YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks will both see print next year. And I have my next ACE Gamebooks Roleplay Kickstarter ready to go.

So it only remains for me to wish you and yours a happy and healthy New Year, and I'll see you again in 2023!

Gamebook Friday: Dracula - Klątwa wampira

Warhammer Wednesday: Journey of the Magi

Now that Christmas is over and we are approaching Twelfth Night, it seemed like the perfect time to plug my Warhammer 40,000 short story Journey of the Magi, in which three wise men follow a star...

On an artificial world far from the light of any sun, three sorcerers of the Thousand Sons emerge from a portal. Together, this trio will face ancient horrors – but the prize that awaits them is worth any danger. Long have these three sought the Godstar, piecing together its location from scattered scraps of knowledge. The immortal guardians of the place sleep, but it is not undefended, and the children of Prospero will pay a heavy price for that which they seek as they delve deep into the ancient mysteries of the necrons. 

You can buy Journey of the Magi here, and you can read more about the story here.

Gamebook Friday: 'TWAS is a Silver Bestseller!

'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas is a Silver Bestseller on DriveThruRPG, and just in time for Christmas too.

Don't forget, there are numerous supplements for the RPG too, including The 'TWAS Advent-ure Calendar, which was new for Christmas 2022, and including news Scenes, creatures, and Player Characters for your games.

Check out the ACE Gamebooks Roleplay storefront to see everything else that's on offer at the moment.

And Merry Christmas!

God Yule!

Happy Winter Solstice, everybody! To celebrate the occasion, readers of this blog can download The 'TWAS Advent-ure Calendar for just $5 today, and 'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas for just $2! 

So what are you waiting for? Simply click on the images below to benefit from these crazy Christmas discounts!

Gamebook Friday: ACE Gamebooks Roleplay Update

I am busy finishing off Heorot: Roleplaying in the World of Beowulf Beastslayer at the moment, so today's news concerns roleplaying games that have spun off from the ACE Gamebooks series, in one way or another.

Available now in both PDF and print formats is The 'TWAS Advent-ure Calendar, containing brand new material for your games of the 'TWAS RPG. It includes 5 new Player Characters, 9 new Scenes, new Spells, and more. Check out the video below and follow this link to purchase your copy via DriveThruRPG.

ACE Gamebooks are based on out of copyright works of literature on the whole, but The Box of Delights: The Roleplaying Game is the first time I have licensed a work that is not yet out of copyright.

Having referenced The Box of Delights in 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas, I originally wanted to adapt it to be a supplement for the 'TWAS RPG. but then I decided to turn it into its own, self-contained RPG instead.

The Kickstarter to fund production of the book will begin in January 2023, with The Box of Delights: The Roleplaying Game coming out in time for Christmas next year. Click this link to be notified of when the Kickstarter goes live.

Alicia: Pesadilla en el País de las Maravillas

Alicia: Pesadilla en el País de las Maravillas, the Spanish edition of the first ACE Gamebook, Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland, went live on the crowdfunding platform Verkami last night and not only did it fund in two hours, as of writing it has raised 230% of its funding goal and still has 39 days to run!

Congratulations to everyone at Celaeno Books who has been working on this for months in order to make it a success, and if you are a Spanish speaker, or you would just like to add to your ACE Gamebooks collection, you can check out the rewards for yourself here.

The Celaeno Books Team

Managing Editor

Editorial Coordinator and Layout Designer

Art Director

Copywriter

Warhammer Wednesday: The Dead and the Damned is 20 years old!

Unbelievably, my very first published novel, the Warhammer short story collection The Dead and the Damned, is 20 years old today! What's more, it is still available to buy from the Black Library as an eBook.

The Warhammer universe explodes with adventure and sudden violence as Badenov's Band, rogues and brigands all, take on all comers as they roam the Old World. Led by their raven-haired commander Torben Badenov, whose lust for glory is only surpassed by his ferocity in battle, the motley gang roams the wretched towns and haunted forests fighting until every last unholy creature they encounter joins the dead or the damned.

One of the best things* about The Dead and the Damned being published, apart from the fact that it was a proper novel**, was that Clint Langley produced the cover. Since 2002, I have written another 15 novels, many of which are also still available to buy as eBooks.

* One of the worst things was it was the first book of mine that was reviewed in SFX Magazine, and the reviewer gave it one star. That was a humbling experience.

** Although it wasn't. Not really.

Happy Krampusnacht!

Tonight is the night when Krampus the Christmas Devil stalks the world, searching for naughty children to beat with his birch broom before stuffing them into his basket and carrying them away to Hell.

Krampusnacht is rather like Halloween, in that it comes before a Christian celebration. In the case of Halloween it's All Souls' Day, and for Krampusnacht it's Saint Nicholas' Day.

So, to mark these 48 hours of Pagan Vs. Christian festivities, every ACE Gamebooks Roleplay product on DriveThruRPG is on sale at 30% off. In some cases, some products were already discounted so the new discount has taken them even lower. Not only that, but the new The 'TWAS Advent-ure Calendar is included in the sale. So if you've been considering picking it up, now would seem like the perfect time.

I'm off to watch the Krampus movie. Enjoy your Krampusnacht, whatever you're doing tonight.