Oerth Journal 27

It's been a while since our last post. We are currently putting the final touches on the next Oerth Journal. The theme will focus on Races of Oerth. We also have a few other articles that are not racially specific in the next installment of the Oerth Journal. Last but not least, Rick "Duicarthan" Miller has returned to assist us with the next installment of the Oerth Journal.

Once we're ready to publish, I'll post an update for the community.

"Sure as a Shielding Oath."

Argon

Canonfire! Chronicles Now Available!

Earlier this week I informed all the Greyhawk fans out there a new ezine was going to be making its way to our download section. Many hours toiling away at computer screens and several hundred emails later--Canonfire! Chronicles is alive!

Issue 1 is over 150 pages and boasts three adventures plus two companion articles. you can view and  download the issue here.

It is also available in our download section Canonfire! Chronicles Downloads to your right! 

Enjoy, and happy hawking!

Argon

Moving Forward

"Launching a fully realized "Canonfire! Chronicles"(working title) special features format PDF specifically for featuring fully contained Adventures, select Article collections, Postfest! compilations, map collections, and similar things.As a part of getting this put in place, it may be that The Oerth Journal will be re-tasked, similar to what happened with Dragon Magazine when Dungeon Magazine came onto the scene. As such, The Oerth Journal would be more like Dragon Magazine, featuring all of the varied special interest articles that The Oerth Journal has mostly been known for. Lengthy adventures, really large gazetteer-style offerings that literally could stand on their own as a supplement book, and anything not really fitting the format of The Oerth Journal all that well would be relegated to being featured in Canonfire! Chronicles."

This message was received on this very blog a year ago. Hope swelled once again, and Greyhawk fans both rejoiced and sighed. This is just another empty based announcement. Once again nothing has come to fruition. No schism was in the works to prevent the Oerth Journal from seeing print, nor was the Canonfire! Chronicles going to become the substitute for the Oerth Journal. Instead as many of you can see these were joint ventures put about to make sure the fans get their Greyhawk fix.

The previous Editor-in-Chief of the Oerth Journal Rick "Duicarthan" Miller did a fantastic job providing us fans with a quality product. Under his leadership nine Oerth Journals saw publication. Things have changed for the Oerth Journal as a whole new staff with a few familiar faces have taken up residence. Myself and Skip "Sir Xaris" Twitchell have shared editing duties for both the Oerth Journal and the soon to be released Canonfire! Chronicles. I say shared though truth be told Skip has final say in the line editing department, while I function more on the managing and content.  Wade "Icarus" K. Nolen remains as the Art director for the Oerth Journal with his counterpart Mike "Wolfling" Lowe taking on the Art director duties for the Canonfire! Chronicles. Rory "Darkherald" Klein has been instrumental in providing design and layout for the Canonfire! Chronicles, with Mike "Wolfling" Lowe taking on many of those responsibilities for its inaugural issue. Design and layout for the Oerth Journal will be the responsibility of James "Mempter" Tillman working closely with Wade "Icarus" K. Nolen.

Lastly, I'd like to add that Brian "Cebrion" McRae was instrumental in making all this possible. While most of his contribution was in an advisory role, it was definitely value added and appreciated.

Later

Dennis "Argon" Lovatt

The state of Canonfire!, 2012

A nice little letter from Cebrion on Canonfire!, specifically regarding that site and plans for the new year, but referencing the Oerth Journal as well.  Two bits are worth repeating here:

"Launching a fully realized "Canonfire! Chronicles"(working title) special features format PDF specifically for featuring fully contained Adventures, select Article collections, Postfest! compilations, map collections, and similar things.As a part of getting this put in place, it may be that The Oerth Journal will be re-tasked, similar to what happened with Dragon Magazine when Dungeon Magazine came onto the scene. As such, The Oerth Journal would be more like Dragon Magazine, featuring all of the varied special interest articles that The Oerth Journal has mostly been known for. Lengthy adventures, really large gazetteer-style offerings that literally could stand on their own as a supplement book, and anything not really fitting the format of The Oerth Journal all that well would be relegated to being featured in Canonfire! Chronicles."

A quick note on this from someone who's been involved in the Oerth Journal for sometime, namely me: there has been a lot of discussion over the years (and I do mean -years-) about creating a sort of "Oerth Journal Presents" imprint to handle exactly the type of content discussed above.  Adventures can be editing nightmares, and reprinting articles from CF (or other sources) has not been seen as within our writ.  The CFC will put the best of Canonfire back into view, and allow the OJ to focus on what it does best: providing, new, high-quality, fan-created content for the World of Greyhawk. It's win all around.

And speaking of "fan-created"...


" It seems to be a popular misconception that only the work of a few people is published in The Oerth Journal in particular, but that is simply not true. Anyone can submit their writing to The Oerth Journal, or to Canonfire!, and the same can be said of Canonfire! Chronicles once it is launched. And don?t forget Postfest! too, as that is a great avenue for getting one's feet wet. That's how I started off myself. Little did I know what I was getting myself into, but don't let that put you off from doing so! :D"

The NEW Oerth Journal!

Issue 26 is now available!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5851594/Downloads_Section/Oerth_Journal/OJ_26te.pdf

Happy Needfest!

What We Got?

Currently submitted to the Oerth Journal: A well-developed & illustrated article on the Free City of Highvale; an article on Shaofeng (may need more development); an article on Secret Societies in Ket; a brief (1-page) magical-item article; and a Geoff adventure (this might not be a real submission. have to look into it. Might be just passing through.)

Page-wise we're looking good; Highvale will clock in at at least 30 pages, I think, Ket is 10, the magic box is 1, Shaofeng is 6 with lots of room for growth.  The adventure is 81 (!!!) pages; font and formatting might drop that to 70 or a little less, but we'll still have to decide what to do about it, assuming it's intended to be published.  I think we might be being used as some kind of courier service.  I feel so dirty.  ;)

Personally, I'd like to see:

• an article about a lesser known deity, or the (unique) servants of a powerful deity - creatures a PC party of moderate level might interact with.  
•  Articles that deal with mechanical issues & offer rules options are always hard to come by.  
•  GH specific races in 4e or Pathfinder format is a simple idea.  
•  4e domains for GH gods, or anything converting GH material to Pathfinder rules.  
• Magic items that aren't artifacts.  
• Spellbooks.  
• New races, though there are so many cliches this would be a real minefield (dragon-people; cat/badger/dog/animal-people; winged people; half-people; submissions from people that capitalize their Races like Elf and Dwarf; races that are outcast and misunderstood; races that are made up of solitary wandering immortal types (actual or functionally) and apparently breed by releasing spores into the air or something; races that are "like orcs, but different"; races that were created by their god (who is new to Oerth); races that were kicked out by their god (who never acted like this before); races from another planet/plane/sphere/dimension....  The uldra, from Dragon magazine, were a race that worked. IMO.
• Short, simple, adventure sites, at least a paragraph, no longer than a page.  Not mapped, just simple descriptions & rumors.  Solid locations on the map, not vague.
• Articles describing one hex of the Darlene map.
• Articles tying old (or new) D&D products to Greyhawk.

And Monkeyboyjones wants "more on Valley of the Mage, Fading Lands (which in my mind are gateways to Ravenloft), Scarlet Brotherhood (in context of them actually being monks), Hepmonaland and what exactly is beneath the Corusk Mtns."

Send for the doctor!

OJ #26 is on the way.  (Whether the post title references a birth or a heart attack is up to you.)  Aside from what I'm told is a minor formatting issue, it's all set (I'm also told this is a "New England" phrase that gets puzzled looks in other parts of the country and particularly overseas) and will be out later this week.

I'll post the link here absolutely as soon as I get it.