Suspended Transmission

 

Suppressed Transmission:  The First Broadcast and Suppressed Transmission The  Second Broadcast (pub 2000) published by Steve Jackson Games

Both volumes of Suppressed Transmission:  The First Broadcast and Suppressed Transmission The Second Broadcast  were published by Steve Jackson Games  back in 2000 and consist of collections of columns by Kenneth Hite, known for the RPGs, Trail of Cthulhu and Night’s Dark Agents, as well as several books for White Wolf Publishing and recently announced as the lead designer for Vampire The Masquerade 5^th Edition, published in Pyramid Magazine, which had morphed at the time from a money losing glossy paged print magazine to a (theoretically) non-money losing web based magazine. The  topic of the column was loosely defined as Hite rattling on about whatever he wanted to write about, just so long as it did not cover game industry news or gaming reviews. Given pretty much carte blanche to write on whatever topics he wanted, Hite eventually decided to focus on four genres- alternate history, horror, conspiracies and secret history-and how players and GMs could incorporate the topic at hand into a RPG campaign.

For example, the very 1^st Transmission touches on all four, looking at an early conspiracy belief among some people that Abraham Lincoln was too good a politician and lawyer to be some backwoods nobody and that he was actually the son of Supreme Court Justice John Marshall or former Vice President John C. Calhoun. After all, Lincoln leaves no historical paper trail until he begins his legal career so all we really know about his early life is what he told the public. Similarly, the theme of secret or alternate history could take the suicide of Merriweather Lewis and ague that he was murdered because He Knew Too Much. For horror, he touches upon Edgar Allen Poe, setting a campaign in a world in which Poe’s stories were real. Finally, for alternate history in the first column, he briefly looks at what might have happened in the Napoleonic Wars if Wellington had died fighting in 1809 instead of leading the campaign that defeated Napoleon at Waterloo? How would European history have changed? Could England have found another general with Wellington’s ability? The rest of the book and the next one looks at similar questions, only in more detail in each column. After all, when was the last time you read any discussion of Paul Bunyan as an American God and other larger than life American myths?

The columns collected in each book generally focus on a particular topic, (strange)historical event or conspiracy theory, along with annotations. Anyone familiar with the X-Files television series should know about Roswell and the spaceship that allegedly crash-landed there but imagine what would could have happened if the crash landing had taken place a century or two earlier? Hite looks a six potential alternative histories that games could use in a campaign. Other columns in the First Transmission look at the Philadelphia Experiment, Norton 1:  Emperor of the United States and the history of Chess, which is certainly a bit weirder than you would expect. The Second Transmission meanwhile looks at Robin Hood and his predecessors,  the occult Shakespeare, Who REALLY sunk the Titanic and why,  and the Knights Templar in America (which, if you remember , is a major plot device in the first National Treasure movie). Oh, and Hite tosses in a comparison between the Maid of Orleans, Joan of Arc and Gilles De Rais, better known as Bluebeard.

Both books are highly entertaining romps through the borderlands of history and sociology and it is obvious that Hite loves this stuff and, even more, loves talking about it. Either is the sort of book that you can pick up, open to any page and, assuming you have an interest in conspiracy theories and the secret history of Planet Earth, find yourself immediately engrossed in the subject matter. You won’t find any pre-stated NPCs in either book (for that, look for a copy of GURPS Who’s Who) but you will find plenty of adventure  seeds and ideas as well as hours of entertaining reading. Both books, are as already noted, well annotated and have a pretty exhaustive indexes. Actual reference pages at the end of each column would be helpful, if only to see what sources Hite drew upon  for his columns, but that is a minor quibble. For anyone running a pulp or modern day RPG campaign, the Suppressed Transmission books are wonderful resources. For anyone else, they are incredibly fun reads.

Hammer's Slammers RPG

 

Hammer’s Slammers RPG Campaign Setting published by Mongoose Publishing

Mongroose Publishing got its start in 2001 as a publisher of OGL (Open Gaming License) supplements for  the Third edition, and later 3.5 edition of the Dungeons and Dragons role playing game starting with the Quintessential Series (Fighter, Rogue, Druid, etc.) along with a series of OGL books focused on general themes (Horror, Steampunk, Wild West ,etc), all of which did pretty well during the prolific release of OGL material for the D&D system. Shortly after WTOC released D&D 3.0, players demanded massive amounts of material for the game,  which publishers like Mongoose  sprung up to supply. As a glut of OGL material started to swamp the market, OGL publishers either closed up shop or pivoted into publishing other material that the companies felt players would demand. Mongoose decided to take a three pronged approach, releasing miniature rules and miniatures (Victory at Sea, Mighty Armies, Noble Armada), taking previously released RPGs and producing them in an upgraded and revised format (Macho Women with Guns, Traveller and Paranoia) and licensing media properties (Babylon 5, Conan, Slaine) for campaign sourcebooks, either under the  OGL or for one of the  other rules systems  for which it had the rights to produce materials. Hammer Slammer’s falls into the third category.

Hammer’s Slammers is a 208 page campaign setting based on the novels and short stories written by David Drake and  using Mongoose Publications updated Traveller rules system. In Drake’s fiction, humanity has spread throughout the stars and colonized hundreds of worlds. However, the bonds that once united that same humanity  have grown weak and the galaxy has plunged into trade war, civil war and anarchy. Warfare is dominated by regiments of  iridium armored tanks, powered by fusion engines and armed with powerguns . However, these tanks are so expensive to run and so complicated to maintain that few worlds can afford them, giving rise to dozens of mercenary tank units, fighting for whichever planet pays them the most, often taking fees of a quarter of the planet’s GDP. Players take on the roles of tank crews and specialists, doing battle as part of the best known and most capable tank unit in the galaxy:  Hammer’s Slammers.

As mentioned earlier, Hammer’s Slammers, released in 2009, uses the Traveller rules system for character creation and game play so gamemasters and players need to have a working familiarity with that system. The sourcebook starts with a brief (really brief) look at the setting that covers the galaxy in less than six pages. Similarly the business of being a mercenary gets covered in another 6 pages.  Character creation allows the player’s character to go through multiple terms in the Army or a Mercenary career , adding skills and benefits as they go. There is also a detailed look at the history of the Slammers and write ups on notable characters from the series. Almost a third of the book details equipment, vehicles and vehicle combat  Hammer’s Slammers finishes with several pages of scenario ideas, the outline of a campaign and a short combat oriented scenario.

For players that like Traveller and want a heavily military oriented SF setting. Hammer’s Slammers makes a good choice. Unfortunately, it appears Mongoose overestimated the demand for such a setting as one seller on eBay has sold dozens of copies at $5 each, indicating a liquidation of the print run at some time in the past.

New GW

 Arriving Sept 5th 

Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress: Ascension (BF-14)   The last installment in the narrative adventure of Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress Contains 2 plastic Citadel Miniatures of Guardian Drones Includes rules for using these miniatures in games of Warhammer 40,000 – available for to every faction Also contains a 16-page booklet, 62 cards, 11 board tiles, 55 tokens, along with a host of other secret card, booklet, tile and token content that brings the Blackstone Fortress storyline to its epic conclusion! (BF-14) US $110/ CAN $130 For sale in your shop on Saturday 09-05-20

Blackstone Fortress: Ascension (BL2789)   Author: Darius Hinks Format: – Hardback English, 352pp Ties in to the boxed game Get into the heart of Blackstone Fortress and discover the bonds between the explorers in a novel packed with action, intrigue and character drama Stripped of his titles and riches, rogue trader Janus Draik leads a desperate expedition into the Blackstone Fortress in an attempt to restore his fortunes and save Precipice from deadly peril   (BL2789) US $27/ CAN $32 For sale in your shop on Saturday 09-05-20

Blackstone Fortress: Augur of Despair (BL2835)   Author: Chris Dows Duration: 55 minutes Format: CD audio drama Languages: English Blackstone Fortress Audio Drama, previously available in 3 parts during Advent 2019   (BL2835) US $17.50/ CAN $19 For sale in your shop on Saturday 09-05-20 Blackstone Fortress: Vaults of Obsidian (BL2815)   By Darius Hinks Venture into the treacherous depths of the Blackstone Fortress in a collection of tales of the many explorers of this alien labyrinth. Languages: English Format: Paperback, 432pp   (BL2815) US $16/ CAN $17

Jumpstart

 Hear from WOTC that the company does plan another print run of this set, just no idea when. At least that is a little more certain than the company's plans for Double Masters.

Double Masters

 Latest we have heard from WOTC regarding Double Masters is that the company is trying do decide if the product is popular enough to warrant the costs of a reprint. If it gets reprinted, we likely would not see any more of the set until 2021

Website

 The store website is back up. We have updated the calendar and will be added photos to the galleries and used boardgames to the used games list over time.  Thanks for your patience.

Three Jokers

 For you comic fans, the first issue of the heavily touted Three Jokers arrives this Wednesday. We have the two regular covers and one of the 1:25 variant covers available.

Blood Bowl and Necromunda Shipping This Week

 This week sees new releases for Blood Bowl and Necromunda. Unless we get special orders for them, we will not be bringing in the dice sets or card packs.

Blood Bowl: Crud Creek Nosepickers Team (202-03)   Contains 20 brand-new plastic Citadel miniatures, for use by Snotling Teams in games of Blood Bowl Includes 2x Snotling Pump Wagons (including crew), 2x Snotling Fungus Flingas, 2x Snotling Fun-Hoppas, 2x Snotling Stilty Runners, 12x Snotling linemen Also includes 4 Balls, 2 Team Tokens, 2 Turn and Reroll counters, all themed to Snotlings Rules available in Blood Bowl Spike! Journal Issue 10 (202-03)

Spike! Journal Issue 10 (200-88)   The essential quarterly Blood Bowl Magazine Contains rules for using Snotling teams, including the Crud Creek Nosepickers Includes new rules, inducements, background team rosters and tactics   (200-88)

Snotling Team Dice Set (200-83)   A set of Snotling-themed Blood Bowl dice Translucent yellow/green gem dice, with purple symbols Contains 7 Dice: 3x Blood Bowl 6-sided dice, 2x 6-sided dice, 1 Blood Bowl 8-sided dice, and 1x Blood Bowl 16-sided dice

Snotling Pitch & Dugouts (202-03)   Double-sided Blood Bowl pitch and set of two dugouts Features artwork of a Snotling Fungal Bog Pitch with a fungal bloom on one side, and choking spores have taken over the field of play on the reverse Includes unique rules for using each side of the pitch

Snotling Team Cards Pack (200-89)   A deck of 44 reference cards for use with a Snotling Blood Bowl Team Includes 6 Special Play cards that can be used by any Blood Bowl Team

Aeronautica Imperialis: Imperial Navy Avenger Strike Fighters (500-34)   • Contains 4 Imperial Navy Avenger Strike Fighter aircraft, for use in Imperial Navy or Astra Militarum forces in Aeronautica Imperialis Includes 32 weapon upgrades for use across the aircraft Includes an all new Avenger Strike Fighter transfer sheet

Warhammer Crime: No Good Men (BL2858)   By Various The first anthology of the new Warhammer Crime Series, containing 7 stories each by different authors Related products: Warhammer 40,000, Necromunda Languages: English Format: Paperback, 336pp

Farsight: Empire of Lies (BL2859)   By Phil Kelly Discover the real story behind the defining moment of Commander Farsight’s life Related products: Commander Farsight, T’au Empire Languages: English Format: Paperback, 400pp

Oaths and Conquests (BL2860)   By Various Anthology of stories from the Mortal Realms. Featuring a brand-new short story from William King Related products: Nagash, Stormcast Eternals, Chaos Languages: English Format: Paperback, 432pp

Watchers of the Throne: The Regent’s Shadow (BL2861)   By Chris Wraight Book 2 in the Watchers of the Throne series Related products: Valerian and Aleya, Adeptus Custodes, Sister of Silence, Roboute Guilliman Languages: English Format: Paperback, 416pp   Necromunda: Slave Ogryn Gang (300-67)   A brand-new gang for Necromunda of Slave Ogryns, containing 6 plastic miniatures Includes numerous weapon options and contains a large number of accessories with which to accessories the miniatures Rules contained in the House of Chains expansion Approx 50% added value   (300-67)

Necromunda: House of Blades (300-53)   A 128 page hardback expansion for Escher Gangs in Necromunda An essential purchase for House Escher players Includes rules for House Escher Death Maidens and Wyld Runners Contains new rules, new gang profiles, background, scenarios, terrain rules and 3 new Special Characters for House Escher NOTE: This expansion is a replacement, in every way, for the Escher content in Gangs of the Underhive.

House Escher Death Maidens & Wyld Runners (300-66)   Contains 2 Escher Death-Maidens (champions), 4 Wyld Runners (Prospects) and 4 Phelynx exotic beasts Contains a number of different accessories, equipment and head options to enable every miniature to be different

Jotunn H-Grade Servitor Ogryns (300-64)   Can be hired by any gang in Necromunda Rules are available in: – Gangs of the Underhive – The House of Chains and – The House of Blades   House of Blades Dice Set (300-02)   A set of themed dice to match House Escher Translucent gem yellow, with purple ink 3x D6, 2x Ammo Dice, 2x Injury Dice, 1x Scatter Dice (300-02)

House of Chains Dice Set (300-68)   A set of themed dice to match House Goliath Translucent gem red, with gold ink 3x D6, 2x Ammo Dice, 2x Injury Dice, 1x Scatter Dice

Escher Gang Tactics Cards (300-07)   A handy set of 26 cards for use by House Escher Gangs in games of Necromunda Contains 18 tactics cards and 8 blank fighter cards with Escher Gang iconography

Slave Ogryn Gang Tactics Cards (300-54)   A handy set of 26 cards for use by Slave Ogryn Gangs in games of Necromunda Contains 18 tactics cards and 8 blank fighter cards with Slave Ogryn Gang iconography

Éomer, Marshal of the Riddermark (30-50)   Brand-new plastic kit of Rohan’s mightiest hero – a must have for every Rohan player Contains 2 plastic multipart Citadel Miniatures of Éomer – 1 mounted and 1 on foot Capable of building all wargear options available to Éomer   (30-50)

Commander Legends

 Commander Legends releases on October 30 and we tentatively plan to host a Commander draft that weekend, assuming that the epidemic has lessened enough that we can safely host events here. We will post more as the event gets closer.

Zendikar Rising

 We currently will not host an instore pre-release for Zendikar Rising. Due to uncertainty about COVID-19 we currently plan to hold another At-Home release, starting Sept. 18. Up to Sept 13, you may prepay for pre-release kits at the rate of $20 each for 4 or more or $25 each for 3 or less. After the 13, the price will change to $30. You may pick up the Pre-release kits after 3 p.m on the 18, although that may change based on what we hear from WOTC.

Used Boardgames

From now on, if you bring in boardgames to trade in to you, upon request, you are going to have to show us they are complete. That may mean you have to sit down in the game room and sort them out. Unfortunately, we are getting more boardgames traded in that have been played and the contents put unsorted back in the box, which means we have to take an extra 15 minutes to an hour to sort them. Case in point was a boardgame that we took in for trade recently. After we sorted it we found out it was missing two small tokens. Not having them doesn't really hurt game play but we cannot mark the game as complete and you would not want to buy it as complete if it was missing two tokens. So, if you want to trade in boardgames, we ask that you go through and make sure they are complete before bringing them in.

Why Shop Local

 5 reasons to shop at a local store.

1. Immediacy—when the customer buys a product at a brick and mortar store, they get to use it immediately. When the exception of digital media and PDFs, everything else purchased online takes time to reach them, anywhere from a day to a month or better.  I was just checking out a Kickstarter produced by a local publisher and backers will not receive the game until next March. Even modeling miniatures with a 3D printer takes several hours to complete

2. Finding New Stuff—Despite the vast amount of products available for sale online, in general customers don’t find new product online. They are 3 times more likely to find a new product that delights them in a physical store than in an online one (and don’t worry a lot about showrooming. According to Harris,  70% of customers webroom while only 45% of them showroom).

3. Reinvestment —More of their money stays in the local community when a customer shops at a local store. If a customer spends $100 at a local store, 68% stays in the local community  while if they shop at a chain store, only 45% stays in the community to generate jobs and, of course, if they buy online, none stays in the local community . In addition,  there is a multiplier effect when that money is spent in the community, meaning that money circulates to other business such as office supply stores, janitorial services etc. . In a smaller community like here in Carbondale or London Kentucky, the multiplier effect is only around 1 or 2 times before the money leaves the community but in a more metropolitan area such as Seattle, St. Louis or Chicago, you are looking at a multiplier of 7 to 10 times. And, of course, the sales taxes go back into such things as sidewalks, police, fire safety, sewers ect.

4.  Stronger Communities—Research shows that the more local businesses a community has, residents have stronger civic ties and are more likely to participate in civic affairs. Economic concentration among businesses leads to a monolithic   local power structure and civic apathy. A larger number of locally owned  businesses is positively correlated with participation in local elections and civic activism, helping to counter the decline in civic engagement in the US over the past several decades.

5. More Jobs—Local businesses create more jobs for local people. Maybe it indicates inefficiency, but local retailers create twice as many jobs as Amazon does for the same amount of revenue. Spending money at the FLGS helps maintain jobs, both there and in the large community.

How Dark Star Books is Handling COVID-19

 Mary Alice Wilson, owner  of Dark Star Books in Yellow Springs, Ohio. sent an email to the store on how her shop is handling COVID-19

“Dark Star is doing ok with ebay and one employee.  Our comic guy whom we laid off, is getting the unemployment boost to his check . The check is for more than his salary.  he was hinting it would be   good thing if he stayed laid off. and that we hire a newbie. Kate wasn't good with that idea! 

Our Gov. De Wine just announced plans for the future.  First doctor, dentist and then veterinarian.  then construction and factory work.  and on May 12, WE can open.  Already have the $335 plastic shield at cash register. trying to buy a large hand sanitizer dispenser for at the front door,  which is  hard to find.  However, i could see Magic and Pokemon games with a plastic shield between the players across from each other.  I don't really know much about gaming, but it might work.

One of our staff has been making masks like a demon - and today i saw one with clear plastic over the mouth area, so folks a little hard of hearing, like me, can read lips a bit.  i either have to have visitors lift the mask up  or have someone tell me what they said.  Getting folks to just talk louder doesn't seem to be in my skill set.  Our staff mask maker  said, “oh yes, I know about those”.  Well, MAKE some, for goodness sake.  i wouldn't know how.   I said, there is one thing a comic book store has, is plastic, and Mylar. 

Hoarding is great!  I don't know why I bought - and much less KEPT - bathroom decals from the 30's; a whole box full of boxed 12" figures from the 70'S (well i know NOW it was a good idea - best one sold for  $400); boxes full of mads and cracked and warren mags like elvira.....we have a double house. The other side was was where we put stuff we didn't know what to do with after we bought it.  or stuff that came in while buying things we DID know what to do with.  but along comes our staff member Kate and her pop culture know how, and all that stuff now has price tags.  Being in the book biz means we had hoarded lots of first editions for when we got an on-line presence.  Well we have that now, and 1700+ items currently listed.  Some of the things that sell are from early days.  we sold something the other  day that had been on eBay for 10 years, maybe, and i cringed at the way it was listed and the price - too low - but hey, it sold, that's all good.

Where do I sell online? Ebay, baby! and abe and amazon.  Gary does abe, which is strictly books.  He also does amazon - and Kate and staff do ebay.  and the latter does amazingly well.  if there is someone out there that wants to pay some outrageous price - and remember this is being available to everyone in the world with an internet device - that person can find us.  They would NEVER find us on our website.  The most looked at items on our website are cat pictures.  (They are really cool; kate finally put up a video.) 

A Few Questions for the Co-Creator of "Getting It Together"

 We sent a few questions to Omar Sphai, co-creator of Image Comics' "Getting It Together". Here are his responses:

1. Fans of what series do you think will like Getting It Together

To me, it's a no brainer, I grew up on Friends, Cheers, How I met Your Mother, and you name it, I watched way too much TV. If you're talking about comics, we took inspiration from all over the industry, we wanted to take a page out of Chip Zdarasky's humor and Mark Waid's ability to find the emotional core of the characters. We've drawn on so much and of so many that we admire to bring this book to life.

We wanted to take those concepts and series and make them fresh and relevant to our generation. Could you imagine owning the first issue of the FRIENDS TV show comic (if it existed) and how much that would be worth if it came out before the show?

2. What other work either in the comic industry or other media have you and your co-creator done

Well, Sina's done it all, he's written for Marvel's Iceman as the first openly gay lead for a Marvel Solo series, he's also written BOOM!'s Go Go Power Rangers and Ghosted in LA as well as written for DC Comics' Shazam and Green Lantern. As for myself, Omar Spahi, I've got another Image book out in the Stairway Anthology out on the same day and I've written for Cartoon Network's Ben 10.

3.Is this a mini or ongoing series? Monthly, bi-monthly or other schedules

It's a 4 issue mini-series coming out monthly, each issue will leave you wanting more and we couldn't be prouder of how the book turned out.

4. How many issues are completed? Can readers expect the book to hold to the schedule?

Yeah, we've got 3 issues completed and the 4th should be done before Issue # 1 is released. So it will def come out on time. You'll be able to stick with this to the end with no worries that there won't be an end!

5. Is Getting It Together part of Images No Risk #1 program

Yes, we wanted to make sure Retailers could go crazy ordering the book with no risk, so we're honored to be a part of Image's No Risk # 1 program. So make sure to check it out and support Castle Perilous Games & Books!

ACD Loses Magic

 One of the largest Game Industry distributors, ACD has lost a court case and may no longer sell Magic or other WOTC products. I am not sure why, but WOTC pulled the rights to sell its products from ACD a couple of years ago. ACD sued WOTC for the right to continue selling them and got an injuction stopping WOTC from pulling its products. The court has now ruled that WOTC is within its rights to no longer sell products to ACD. It will not affect us as we never bought WOTC products from ACD but a lot of other game stores did. They will not be looking for other sources of supply.

Secret Lair: April Fool's

 No it is not a joke. Yes we will get in 1 copy. According to WOTC it will arrive with Zendikar Rising so about mid September.

Dune RPG

 The original Dune Role Playing Game was the last RPG from Last Unicorn Games, a comparatively small publisher back in the late 1990s best known for its take on the Star Trek Universe in a series of RPGs as well as its Dune and Heresy TCG. Bought in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast, the company is probably best remembered for the Dune RPG. As part of the agreement under which WOTC purchased Last Unicorn, WOTC agreed to publish LUG's remaining games of which the most notable one was Dune. Despite demand, only 3000 copies were every released, primarily at GenCon 33. WOTC negotiated with the Herbert estate for a second printing but the two organizations could not agree upon terms.

When originally released, The Dune RPG sold for $34.95 but due to scarcity and demand, the available books soon sold regularly for $100-$200 and copies have proven extremely hard to find in the 20 years since the original release as collectors tend to hold onto them.

Batman Fluxx

 Looney Labs released Batman Fluxx back in 2015 and the game went out of print back about 2018. It plays just like Fluxx only with a Batman skin and I hate to think how much Looney Labs spent to get the license for the game. The game uses art from the Animated Adventures series and generally uses the villains as Creepers, however they also get incorporated into Goals.

I find it interesting that Looney Labs first license for Fluxx, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, still remains in print well over a decade after Looney first acquired the license.

Castle Panic

 If you are looking for a fun cooperative game that can be played with 1 to 6 players with kids as young as 5 or 6, take  a look at Fireside Games Castle Panic. The object is to defend the castle in the center of the board for a continuous onslaught of monsters. Players have to work together to kill the monsters as they move ever closer to the castle walls. If a monster hits a wall, the wall collapses and when the last wall falls, so does the castle.

Each turn a random number of monsters are added to the attacking horde but the players also get cards then can play to aid in the castle defense. Although Castle Panic does not have the variation of a tile laying game such as Betrayal at House on the Hill or Carcassonne,, the stress that builds among the players as the watch the walls of their castle collapse and hope that they can hold out another turn or the despair with that huge monster gets pulled from the bag makes up for it.

D&D

 Syd will be back running D&D this week and Wednesday for the foreseeable future. She will take off the weekend of the 20th so Isaiah will sub run in her place.

Darkness Ablaze

 Have the new Pokemon Darkness Ablaze set out for sale. We have pre-release kits, boosters, Elite Trainer Kits and Theme Decks. Even some singles, including the $150 Charizard.

Click and Mortar

 

YYou are going to see a greater moving to online sales by traditional brick and mortar stores in order to sell merchandise in the COVID-19 era. This morning, we sold almost as much online before we opened as we did during the hours we had the store open. We will never be Amazon or even Troll and Toad but we are going to have to move more of our sales, especially for out of print stuff, to eBay.

Out of Double Masters

 Like the title says, we sold out of Magic Double Masters today. We still have a binder with singles and will see if we can get in any more boosters but think we pretty much hit our allocation, especially since we didn't have much interest in them until the week before the release, which was far after the window for use to order the set had closed

Catan

 NPR ran a story on the history of the Catan boardgame, sales of which have shot up by 144% this year since the quarantine started.

Mariposas Releases

The new board game from the designer of Wingspan, Mariposas, releases August 28. Not sure if it will be as hot as Wingspan but wanted to let you know. From the press release

Mariposas is in Stores this Month!

August 28th is the release of Mariposas!  This highly-anticipated game from award-winning designer Elizabeth Hargrave (Wingspan) has you guiding monarch butterflies up the eastern seaboard of North America in their annual migration.  Starting in Mexico, you will go as far north as you dare - for big rewards - but must be aware of turning back south in time to reach Mexico again before the game ends.

Double Masters VIP Clarification

Apparently there is some confusion about various rarities in Magic VIP boosters. WOTC addresses it here and only seems to make things more confusing.

Jumpstart Delayed

It is not a huge set at least in terms of quantities ordered but WOTC certainly seems to have problems getting it to the marketplace. Just heard from our distributor that our remaining Jumpstart has been pushed back yet another 2 weeks, so now mid to late August

Yu Gi Oh Maximum Gold

arriving in December just in time for Christmas

Yu-Gi-Oh! Maximum Gold

This holiday season, prepare to experience the unparalleled beauty and style with new Premium Gold Rares in Maximum Gold! Striking Gold! Premium Gold Rares are the ultimate evolution of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME Gold Rares. Golden outlines and borders cleanly accentuate and enhance the art you love and add texture to the cards. Symbols like Level stars and Attribute icons shine like pools of precious molten metal. Premium Gold Rares inspire awe in the hearts of any Duelist who sees them, and Maximum Gold gives you the chance to add 52 of Duelings finest cards to your Decks as beautiful Premium Gold Rares! Unseen Treasures! New Premium Gold technology isnt the only way Maximum Gold is going to make your cards look amazing. Six wildly popular monsters are getting brand-new variant artwork as well as the Premium Gold Rare treatment, including Droll & Lock Bird, Elemental HERO Stratos, and Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess! In addition, a wide variety of cards will return as Rares, but since this is Maximum Gold, theyll be appearing as Rares with gold lettering instead of the standard silver! Each Display contains 5 boxes. Each box will include 4 Maximum Gold packs with 7 cards each: 2 Premium Gold Rares and 5 gold-letter Rares. Set Contains 52 Premium Gold Rares 110 Gold letter Rares

Yu Gi Oh Rise of the Duelist winners

Pulled the tickets for those that participated in the Rise of the Duelist premier event this past weekend.  If the following people will contact us regarding their prizes:

Anthony Brown

Eli Philips

Randy Brown (sp)

Friday Night Arena

WOTC has no plans to start running in store organized play until the end of September at the earliest, with the release of Zendikar Rising. However, we are still participating in the Friday Nigh Magic Arena events. Each week, send us a screen shot from your FNM Arena game and we will send you a code good for some form of digital add on.