Reports are coming in from DaveCon, one of the conventions arranged to commemorate the legacy of Dungeons & Dragons Co-Creator Dave Arneson. This is the third time, Victor Dorso organizes this convention, which is taking place this weekend in Minnesota. I wrote about DaveCon3 and its wide range of honored guests a few days ago.
Are you at DaveCon right now? I would love to hear from you!
-Havard
Officially Licensed Dungeons & Dragons Apparel for Women - Men - Boys - Girls - Toddler; D&D 50th Anniversary T-Shirts; Hasbro T-Shirts; Wizards of the Coast; RPG; Role Playing Game; Fantasy; Adventure; Monsters; Magic; 20 Sided Dice; Blackmoor; Vintage;
This is interesting given the discussion of ownership of the Blackmoor name and logo.
I have to say I love the text on the shirt saying "It started with Blackmoor".
For some reason, I am unable to to click buy on this product. Does it mean the shirt is not available yet?
Check out the Amazon Link yourself!
-Havard
I can't believe we are already going to see the third DaveCon and it is coming up in less than a week! For those who felt the first DaveCon was more about D&D in general and less about Dave Arneson and the original Twin City Gaming legacy, dismiss those concerns right away. With its third instalment, DaveCon is living up to its name like never before with a foundation is that is stronger than ever. This is the year of the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons, the game co-created by Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax and coming up next weekend (April 26-28, 2024) in, Bloomington, MN, USA, DaveCon 3 organizer Victor Dorso promises Three-days of Gaming, Vendors and Art, plus The Auction.
The special guests lineup looks incredible. First of all, there are guests who were there at the beginning with Dave Arneson:
But also, a list of people who will be known to many of you:
D&D 50 is definitely going to be a year of celebration for Dave Arneson fans. We already had amazing Blackmoor and Arneson Alumni presence at GaryCon and more events are coming later this year!
Are you going to DaveCon this year? I would love to hear about your plans and your experiences!
-Havard
I am pleased to learn that Bill Hoyt now, with the help of Rob Ritchie, has compiled the notes from his own D&D campaign and has made them available in a Free PDF! I have not yet had time to go through the document in detail, but we have lots of old school maps and other awesome details for anyone who appreciates learning more about the early days of our hobby.
More discussion of Bill Hoyts work at The Comeback Inn forum
-Havard
Edit: I just talked to a source within Ink Bat Studios. They have clarified that the Age of the Wolf Sourcebook was not written by Dave Arneson: "like all but one of the Blackmoor supplements during the 3e and 4e eras, Dave did not write any of the book. He simply oversaw and approved it. We're just trying to honor Dave's own wishes and make sure he's not forgotten." They also says that from their perspective, Ink Bat's contact with Fellowship of the Thing (Griffith Morgan and Chris Graves) was just established and that they were still trying to make a deal. They were surprised that Fellowship contacted myself and other bloggers before negtotiations were finalized. Lets hope this is all just a misunderstanding and that things can be cleared up!
Yesterday we were excited to report that the legendary sourcebook Blackmoor Age of the Wolf will be released by Ink Bat Studio this August. The Age of the Wolf sourcebook was a project started during the 3E and 4E eras when Dave Arneson's company Zeitgeist Games and later their partners Code Monkey Press wanted to develop a new subsetting for Blackmoor. The manuscript along with a lot of illustrations were completed when Dave passed away and WotC announced that the Blackmoor lisence had been rewoked. This marked the end of Zeitgeist Games venturing into RPG publishing.
What happened to the Age of the Wolf manuscript since then is not yet known, but I have confirmation that some of those working on Age of the Wolf are currently involved with Ink Bat Studios. Some of the designers involved have a long list of credits working in the industry and the final Blackmoor sourcebook, dubbed Blackmoor: The First Campaign was highly acclaimed by fans of newer and older editions. It is possible that they have spent all these years seeking to find a way to get the manuscript published.
According to Griffith Morgan from the company Fellowship of the Thing (Secrets of Blackmoor Documentary, Tonisborg Sourcebook), Ink Bat Studios will not be allowed to publish Blackmoor: Age of the Wolf. "It is not sanctioned by the Estate", Morgan says. "If this is Arneson material it belongs to [Arneson's daughter]. They cannot use the Blackmoor Trade [Mark]. Wthout the family's permission, they cannot put Dave Arneson's name on it." I have not yet been able to get confirmation from the family, but Morgan says his company are operating under a lisence from the Estate.
Morgan says Ink Bat Studios have been in contact with both the Estate and Fellowship of the Thing. Morgan says his company would love to publish the manuscript, but according to Morgan, no agreement was reached.
Legalities about Blackmoor have always been complicated. Although I am no expert on these matters It is important to realize that Trade Marks and IP are two separate issues. An entity called the Arneson Estate LLC has made claim to the Blackmoor Trademark, but the Trademark registry status is still listed as pending, although an extension was granted on Feb 1. 2024. WotC also claim to own the Blackmoor Trademark through continued publication of PDF and Print material.
When it comes to Blackmoor IP, things are even more complicated as multiple parties have supported Blackmoor across the years.
For the sake of fans, many of us have been waiting for this source book since we first heard about the concept in the early 2000s, let us hope that some solution can be found so that we can finally see what this book was about. Before we know more, it is dangerous to speculate too much.
-Havard
"It is an honor to do the cover for the great author and scholar Jon Peterson’s “Playing at the World: 2E”! I am hoping the artwork calls to mind monochromatic publications from the earlier days like “The Strategic Review” and Fanzines:" Otus said.
-Havard
Looks like 2024 and the 50th Anniversary of D&D will have a lot of great things in store for fans of the creations of Dave Arneson. Loyal followers of this blog will be familiar with the Age of the Wolf which was supposed to be released just before Dave Arneson passed away. Now it seems like the original designers of that book have joined up with Studio Ink Bat to make sure the fans finally get to see what this was all about.
INK BAT TO PUBLISH D&D CO-CREATOR DAVE ARNESON’S FINAL RPG PROJECT
STUDIO TO RELEASE THE LONG-AWAITED NEW EDITION OF BLACKMOOR, THE FIRST FANTASY CAMPAIGN SETTING
WASHINGTON, DC (03/12/24): Studio Ink Bat announced today that it will release the final tabletop roleplaying game sourcebook directly overseen by the late Dave Arneson, co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons and the creator of Blackmoor, the fantasy setting in which the game was first incubated. Entitled Blackmoor: Age of the Wolf, the book is a fiction of ideas, taking the classic setting’s timeline and sending it centuries into the future.
The announcement was made by Denise Robinson, Art Director for Studio Ink Bat. “I had the chance to meet Dave Arneson,” said Robinson. “And as so many others did, I liked him immediately. When the opportunity arose to help release the last RPG project created by Dave’s own team, I knew we had to jump. The content is fantastic, too. If you aren’t a Blackmoor fan, yet, Age of the Wolf is sure to make a believer out of you.”
“After a fifteen-year wait, I could not be happier to see this project finally come to fruition,” added C.A. Suleiman, developer of Dave Arneson’s tabletop projects at the time of his passing in 2009. “With the 50th anniversary of D&D; the 20th anniversary of the launch of an independent Blackmoor line overseen by Dave, himself; and the 15th anniversary of the legend’s passing, the timing could scarcely be any more appropriate than it is right now.”
Back in 2009, the project was nearly complete and ready to be sent to the printer when Dave Arneson passed away suddenly. After that tragic turn of events, it didn’t seem right to release the book as planned originally, and so the project went into indefinite hibernation. “With the big anniversary year upon us,” Robinson concluded, “We feel the time is right to finally get this book into the hands of fans.”
Blackmoor: Age of the Wolf is scheduled for release this August, 2024. As a supplemental edition for the setting, the book will be released system-neutral, allowing players of any edition or expression of the world’s greatest roleplaying game to make immediate use of it.
About Studio Ink Bat
Ink Bat is a content development studio dedicated to the art of making excellent games. Blackmoor: Age of the Wolf is Ink Bat’s first major release, but will surely not be its last. Ink Bat can be found online at http://ink-bat.com
About Dave Arneson
Dave Arneson is the late co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons. He is regarded the creator of the roleplaying game and innovator of the ‘dungeon adventure’ concept in tabletop gaming. Blackmoor is his original fantasy setting and the environment in which he and Gary Gygax incubated their legendary game. He passed away in 2009, but his profound legacy endures.
Are you excited about this news? What do you think this book will contain?
More details at the Comeback Inn
-Havard
The 4th Category: a ground-breaking study which identifies D&D™'s true origins... The 4th Category is Rob Kuntz's major update on Dave Arneson's True Genius, as well as a preview to his upcoming opus, A New Ethos in Game Design. Available NOW from Three Line Studio Store.
Two legends from the TSR era are coming to Italy this year as is being reported on the dmmagazine blog:
David "Zeb" Cook will be a guest of honor at the Play Festival del Gioco in Modena, to be held in May, 17 to 19 in 2024. Frank Mentzer will be a host during Napoli ComiCon. This convention tales place in Naples from April 25 to 28 and is said to be one of Italy biggest pop culture events. Yet to be confirmed are rumours that Frank Mentzer will also attend to the Lucca convention, also in Italy. This convention takes place sometime in the fall.
Are you going to any Italian gaming conventions this year?
-Havard
"October 4-6, 2024 are the dates to lock out. Arnecon-2 is coming and you do not want to miss out on the fun of RPGs, War Games, Board Games, Computer Games, and a lot more! Buy a Ticket before March 1st! We have a 20% off early bird special on tickets. You can see last years events in the posted images. Check back for info on Special Guests - not yet announced."
Bob Meyer who played the legendary wizard Robert the Bald in Dave Arneson's Blackmoor campaign, should be relatively well known to readers of this blog. As one of the original Blackmoor players, Bob has always been supportive of my work here on this blog and at the Comeback Inn Forum and has always been helpful in providing answers when I have been struggling with my research of D&D history.
Bob told me he will be going to the convention with a crew of two helpers and two GMs who will be "carrying on Blackmoor". Bob and the other two GMs will be running a total of six Blackmoor games over three days. In addition to that, Bob will also be holding seminars on the same days.
Blackmoor fans who attend GaryCon will also have the chance of running into other Blackmoor players like Ross Maker, Mike Carr, Michael Mornard and David Wesely. Brent Chumley, the artist who made the Blackmoor hex world map for the d20 version of Blackmoor is also listed as a guest at GaryCon.
Will you be at GaryCon this year? If so, I would love to hear what you are looking the most forward to. Looks like Blackmoor fans who attend this year will have a blast!
-Havard
In addition to being a fan of her work, I was lucky enough to be one of many friends of hers on Facebook and we interracted a few times. She even helped with some information for a few articles on this very blog.
I reported on Jennel's medical issues and the fundraiser to cover her expenses back in October. If you haven't donated yet, it might be worth taking another look now as her wife likely has been left with many expenses.
May she rest in peace.
-Havard
Reports are coming in from DaveCon, one of the conventions arranged to commemorate the legacy of Dungeons & Dragons Co-Creator Dave Arn...
