Character Art from the German Space 1889 Game

The German Space 1889 role-playing game will be released later this year by Uhrwerk Verlag and here is a sneak peek at two of the character archtype illustrations: the female scientist and the gentleman adventurer. I love this artwork! If the rest of the game is to this standard (and that of the other material I've seen) this will definitely be a winner.

These were posted by Patric Goetz of Uhrwerk Verlag on the new Space: 1889, Science Fiction Roleplaying In a More Civilized Age Facebook page. I've added that to the links section (as Space 1889 RPG, because the full title wouldn't fit). The page was just started within the last month or so but is active and will probably see a lot of news of upcoming products as well as discussions about the game. Worth a look.

Dark Side of Luna -- Coming This Week

Book six, and the finale to the first season of Space 1889 and Beyond stories, will be out from Untreed Reads by the end of this week. The finished cover is above and it has a suitably menacing look to it. I co-authored this piece and I think you'll really like it. Dark Side of Luna has lots of action, including a sort of "small war" military campaign (if you can conduct an extended campaign with one section of Royal Marine Light Infantry -- and it seems you can if you are a sufficiently determined and resourceful chap).

So those of you who have purchased A Prince of Mars but not yet read it might want to, so as to be primed for this new epic adventure. Those of you who have not purchased it . . . well, I hardly know what to offer you other than a revolver and some privacy.

Andy Frankham-Allen , the series editor, and I are co-authoring the lead book in the second series, Conspiracy of Silence, which picks up where Dark Side of Luna leaves off. In fact, I've got to finish up the last chapter, so back to it.

Abney Park -- Steampunk Revolution

For those of you primarily into gaming and/or reading -- and I think that's most of you -- I've suggested before there's a whole other steampunk world out there. Here's a nice taste of it, a really arresting music video from the renowned steampunk band Abney Park. Definitely worth a look and listen.

Murdoch Mysteries: A Fun Steampunkish TV Series

I recently was pointed to a very fun TV series with a definite Steampunk flavor, called Murdoch Mysteries. It's a Canadian-produced series now in its fifth season and available through a variety of cable outlets and on DVD, but also with a lot of episodes up on YouTube. It follows the crime-solving career of police detective William Murdoch in 1890's Toronto, Canada. He uses many unconventional scientific techniques to solve cases -- fingerprints, trace evidence, etc. -- and is supported by his young assistant Constable Crabtree, his superior Inspector Brackenreid, and the lovely medical examiner Doctor Julia Ogden. The show has frequent nods to future science and regular encounters with famous historical characters. Nikola Tesla is in the first episode (dealing with a murder by electrocution and touching on both the commercial struggle between AC and DC current and the bitter rivalry between Tesla and Edison). H.G. Wells, Buffalo Bill Cody, Jack London, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Queen Victoria all appear in various episodes, to drop just a few names.

It's good fun. I think it suffers a bit from having only four regulars, which is a bit thin for an ensemble cast, (seven or eight seems about right) and a bit much for a classic mystery duo (Holmes and Watson, Poirot and Hastings, Dalziel and Pascoe, etc.), which keeps the character interactions between them fairly predictable. That said, the show is great fun and touches on a few interesting social issues, including the impossibility of Murdoch ever rising above detective due to his catholic faith.

Here's a link to the first episode on YouTube, the one featuring Tesla. It's worth a look. See if you like it.

Upcoming Mars Needs Steam Convention Games

I'll be running Mars Needs Steam at two conventions in the coming month, both in the mid-west.

The weekend of April 27/28/29 I will be at Little Wars, sponsored by the Historical Miniature Gaming Society (HMGS) Mid-west chapter, at the DuPage Expo Center in St. Charles, Illinois (Chicago-land) . Tom Harris and I will run a big Mars Needs Steam game. Heres the link to their website.

The following weekend, May 4/5/6 I will be out at Kansas Ciy, KS at Border Wars, sponsored by HMGS Heart of America. I'll be attending that show with my old pal Duke Seifried, where we'll be the convention's special guests. We'll run a big refight of the Battle of Borodino from 1812 (it's the centennial, after all) using his beautiful figures and terrain and my Volley & Bayonet rules on Saturday, but on Friday I'll be running Mars Needs Steam, probably with him sitting in as a co-referee, or color commentator. Here's the link to their website.

If you're in the area, why not stop in and play a game or two or just have a look?

What Is Steampunk?

Yes, yes, I know. This is something people can argue about endlessly and never resolve to everyone's satisfaction. But if you are more interested in exploring the question than proving one opinion correct to the exclusion of all others, there is a fair amount of interesting material out there. I recently read a column on this subject by author G. D. Falksen. I think his position is thoughtful and informed without becoming either authoritarian or dogmatic, an approach I appreciate. Here is a link to his column, which is short, to the point, and worth a read.

A Blog Worth Following

J. Womak, Esquire, friend of this blog, has his own blog entitled Victoria's Boys in Red. As you might imagine, it deals with things military and Victorian, with a heavy emphasis on miniature gaming and modeling. The above picture of his new steam tank, HMLS Suffolk, is one of his recent blog entries.

This month he is starting a regular daily feature entitled Victorian Science Fiction A to Z, with tomorrow seeing the first entry. As you'd guess, tomorrow's entry will feature the letter "A" and so on until he's reached "Zed." I've added the web address to the main links. Should be worth following.