#Steve Swenston

[oldschoolfrp]

"Maybe there is something to this fantasy nonsense." (Comic signed Swenston & Stafford -- presumably Steve Swenston and perhaps Greg Stafford, Dragon magazine #11, December 1977, showing 2 men in traditional business suits behind the Avalon Hill booth at Origins '77, surrounded by fantasy characters)

The first two Origins Game Fairs were held in Baltimore, Maryland, home of board wargame publisher Avalon Hill, which co-ran those early conventions. The "Origins" name paid respect to Avalon Hill as the publisher of the first modern commercial wargames in the 1950s. The third Origins was held in July 1977 in Staten Island, New York, by which time fantasy gaming was becoming a more dominant part of gaming business and culture.

[vintagerpg]

Different Worlds 1 (February/March, 1979). Kind of a grisly cover by Steve Swenston, but I really like it. Everything goes back to nature, eventually! Not super psyched about the white text over everything, but what can you do? Though this magazine was published initially by Chaosium, it remained pretty editorially independent.

[vintagerpg]

Dragon 39 (July, 1980). Cover by Steve Swenston, it isn’t my cup of tea, really, but still has an interesting bejeweled quality to it. This is the first of the framed magazine covers — they dominate for nearly a year, then start to trickle off until disappearing entirely in 1983. Also, they dropped the “The,” so it is just Dragon now. 

[vintagerpg]

Dragon 46 (February, 1981). Cover by Steve Swenston. It’s tied to the launch of Swenston’s new comic strip, debuting this issue, called Pinsom. They are apparently elves, with, like, dog noses? I hate it. I guess so did everyone else, because Pinsom never appeared again. This is my pick for the worst Dragon cover art, in case I wasn’t clear. 

[vintagerpg]

The Dragon 22 (January, 1979). Some explanation is needed on this one. TSR’s first magazine was The Strategic Review (which, ha, look at the initials, clever lads). In 1976, that magazine was split into two publications, The Dragon, focusing on D&D and RPGS, and Little Wars, focusing on wargaming. Little Wars ran twelve issues. The content of what would have been the thirteenth issue was included in this issue of The Dragon, once again reuniting the two publications.

That should explain the odd composite cover. The drawing portion is by Steve Swenston.

[oldschoolfrp]

Cults of Prax, the first major supplement for 1st ed Runequest by Steve Perrin and Greg Stafford, describing 15 cults of Glorantha with new spells and skills, Steve Swenston cover art, Chaosium, 1979

[vintagerpg]

This is the first issue of Different Worlds (1979), Chaosium’s second magazine (the first, Wyrm’s Footnotes, was basically an all-Glorantha magazine).

Despite my love of Chaosium, I only recently snagged some issues of Different Worlds for the first time. I am hard pressed to call it a magazine, actually, because the cover and page stock is the same as Chaosium’s other saddle stapled RPG books. That makes for one heck of a sturdy magazine.

Different Worlds was created by Tadashi Ehara (who edited the magazine’s entire run) and Greg Stafford. Tabletop gaming magazines of the time were mostly produced by an RPG publisher and, to greater or lesser degree, the magazines served as house organs, promoting their own products. Different Worlds does too, but to a lesser degree than most.

You can see that in the “My Life and Role-playing” column, which featured short autobiographical essays from game designers. This issue has a shocking collection for the time, including Ken St. Andre (Tunnels & Trolls), David Hargrave (Arduin), Jennell Jaquays (Judges Guild at this particular moment), Ed Simbalist (Chivalry & Sorcery), Lee Gold (Alarums & Excursions), B. Dennis Sustare (Bunnies and Burrows), Greg Costikyan (then working as a board game designer at SPI), Marc Miller (Traveller) and more. Other features look at general practices in RPGs, a generic campaign world and some new magic. Only two articles focus on Chaosium products. It kind of feels like an industry water cooler, in a way.

Amazing cover by Steve Swenston. Lots of fun interior art, though no clear credit. I particularly like the psychedelic space stuff from Tom Clark though.

Oh, also, this was Greg Stafford’s personal copy. That might sound like bragging, but it mostly bums me out.

[oldschoolfrp]

Steve Swenston illustration from the Dragon Pass boardgame designed by Robert Corbett and Greg Stafford, a reworking of the game White Bear & Red Moon, set in Glorantha the world of RuneQuest, Chaosium, 1980.

[oldschoolfrp]

Illus. by Steve Swenston, from Dragon Pass by Robert Corbett and Greg Stafford, Chaosium, 1980.

Dragon Pass is the 2nd edition of the board game White Bear & Red Moon, set in Stafford's world of Glorantha, which also became the setting for the RuneQuest RPG.