AGE OF THE WOLF?

In yesterdays entry I mentioned the new line that CMP has planned for Blackmoor 4E is called Age of the Wolf, but what do we know about it really, and is this something Blackmoor fans should be interested in?

A large portion of the old school fans of Blackmoor are concerned about how much of the new products have anything to do with Arneson's setting. Age of the Wolf Player's Guide author, Ari Marmell revealed the following:

In fact, Dave was co-owner of Zeitgeist Games at the time the 3E books were published. Nothing appeared in those books without his personal approval.

Due to illness, he was a little less hands-on for the 4E conversion and Age of the Wolf materials. But before his passing (may he rest in peace), he did approve detailed outlines/summaries of both, as well as request a few changes here and there on a few details. I can pretty well assure everyone that while Dave may not have written much of 3E and 4E Blackmoor, it's absolutely still what he wanted for the line and the setting.

The future of the Blackmoor setting has always been a topic of dicussions among the fans. With so much tension to the setting presented in the FCC and the DA series and the early introductions of technology into the fantasy setting, it is only natural to think about how the future of the setting would develop.

The following priducts have been announced for the Age of the Wolf Line:
Age of the Wolf - Player's Guide
Age of the Wolf - GM's Guide
Age of the Wolf - Ruins of Blackmoor

What is Age of the Wolf all about?
We do know the following:
* It describes Blackmoor 269 (in 1299) years after the First Campaign setting
* This will be the default era for the 4E MMRPG (aka 'Living Blackmoor') and much of the upcoming 4E line
* The Player's Guide will include a new class, the Inventor (adaptation from Clock & Steam)
* Speculation: This era will see fully fledged Tieflings as opposed to the almost human looking Tieflings from the First Campaign. Most likely Dragonborn, Eladrin and other 4E races may also play a bigger part, though this remains to be seen.

The Player's Guide was originally set to be released in August, but has been delayed untill mid October. Barring further delays, this means it should be out soon. I assume the other books in the series will follow.

I see this as a big test for CMP. Will they be able to keep producing Blackmoor products, and will these products be something the fans are interested in? We will know in the coming months. I am keeping my fingers crossed! :)





Havard