How I Stopped Being a Grown-up and Learned to Re-love Comics

Pathfinder #1,
Dynamite Entertainment

Last August, Dynamite Entertainment released the first of their ongoing, licensed Pathfinder comics, and I, being a good Paizo employee and undying fan of the setting, picked it up. I loved it. And over the last 9 months, I've read every issue the second it came out, even going so far as to sneak a preview glimpse from Publisher Erik Mona, who always has the next issue or so in his office for licensing approvals.

It took a few months, but I realized sometime around the first of the year that I had missed the joy of episodic comic book reading. It was in 1993 or so that I stopped following comics on an obsessive basis. I'd moved on to other nerdy obsessions (Star Trek, movies, David Bowie, among others). I missed the days of talking among my fellow comic fans in middle school about the newest development in the lives of Spider-man or the X-Men. I missed collecting Marvel trading cards, trading them with friends, and trading comics after I'd read and reread them until they were no longer in NM or even Good condition.

The Spider #1,
Dynamite Entertainment

I'd been following Dynamite's solicitations page periodically to look for new issues of Pathfinder to put up on PathfinderWiki and in the process read about some of the other title in their catalogue. I was particularly intrigued by some of their pulp titles like The Spider, Dejah Thoris, and the pulp superhero crossover series Masks. Between a few of these titles that I picked up a la carte at my local comic shop and DC's Before Watchmen series, I quickly got myself back into the habit of stopping in once a month to grab a few items off the shelf.

Toward the end of last month, I set up a pull box at the comic store nearest my apartment, The Dreaming Comics and Games in Seattle's University District. The pull box only had a few titles in it, including the above-mentioned Masks, The Spider, as well as The Black Bat, Green Hornet, and Miss Fury. I was totally on Dynamite's pulp bandwagon, and I loved it! But every time I walked into the store to get my weekly pull on Wednesday evenings, I was inexplicably drawn to some of the titles of my youth (or at least to the heroes of my youth—many of the titles themselves have been replaced or relaunched so many times I feel like I no longer have any connection to them.) It only took a few more weeks before I was fully engrossed in DC's "New 52" and Marvel's similar "Marvel Now" relaunches.

This weekend was Free Comic Book Day, and also saw the grand opening of a new comic book and game store in the middle of Capital Hill, miles closer to my apartment than The Dreaming. Phoenix Comics and Games looks like it's going to be an incredible store, with a super-convenient location right on my way home from work (and with late hours every night of the week)! In addition to picking up a bunch of back-issues and new titles I wanted to check out, I also set up a pull box there (set to start in July, after I've given the courtesy 2-month notice to The Dreaming of my move. I'd only had my pull box at The Dreaming for a few weeks, but I feel the need to support a new, local business in my own neighborhood.

The Movement #1,
DC Comics

What's on my pull list, you ask? I can't say I really remember, honestly. It's been such a whirlwind these last few weeks as I've dived in head-first to this whole comic thing again that I can't recall what I committed to on a monthly basis and what I plan(ned) to pick up issue by issue from the shelf. So I guess I'll be in for a surprise every Wednesday for a bit. Some titles I know I will likely add to it if they're not already on it, however, are Justice League America, Wolverine, Superior Spider-Man, and The Movement. I'm keeping all my Dynamite pulp titles from my previous pull-list, of course.

In the coming weeks, I plan to do some catching up on the New 52 and Marvel Now and will do my best to post my thoughts as I do so here. For anyone stumbling across this blog—my first that isn't simply a product description of a book I wrote or edited—I can also be found on Twitter @yoda8myhead and on Facebook. Hope to see you around!

Shattered Star Player's Guide (author)

Shattered Star Player's Guide

The Shattered Star Player’s Guide gives players all the spoiler-free information, inspiration, and new rules they’ll need to create characters prepared for delving into the adventure and intrigue of the Shattered Star Adventure Path.
Within, players of this campaign will find everything they need to create character backgrounds tied to personalities and events vital to Pathfinder Adventure Path’s exploration of some of the many ancient dungeons spread throughout Varisia, along with new campaign-specific traits to give bold adventurers the edge they’ll need to take on the strange and deadly threats faced in these dark places. This player’s guide also features a view of Magnimar at a glance, and an introduction to the Pathfinder Society, including rewards and resources of the organization.
Adventurers don't need to descend into the darkened depths unprepared! Gather your allies and let the Shattered Star Player's Guide start your trip into the thrill and danger of the Shattered Star Adventure Path.

Available here!

Pathfinder Adventure Path #60: From Hell's Heart (author)

Pathfinder Adventure Path #60: From Hell's Heart

With an enemy fleet intent on conquering the Shackles looming on the horizon, the adventurers must launch their own fleet of pirates and buccaneers to defend against the invaders, culminating in an epic naval battle at the edge of the Eye of Abendego. Will the adventurers defeat the invading navy and save the Shackles? Or will the independence of the Free Captains be eradicated forever?
This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path includes:

• “From Hell’s Heart,” a Pathfinder RPG adventure for 13th-level characters, by Jason Nelson.
• Pirate plots and sinister situations to expand the horizon of your Skull & Shackles campaign, by Adam Daigle.
• More menacing sea monsters and terrors from the deep plaguing the Shackles, by Adam Daigle.
• A pirate showdown in the Pathfinder’s Journal, by Robin D. Laws.
• Seven new monsters, by Adam Daigle, Amanda Hamon, Mark Moreland, Eric Morton, and William Thrasher.

Each monthly full-color softcover Pathfinder Adventure Path volume contains an in-depth adventure scenario, stats for several new monsters, and support articles meant to give Game Masters additional material to expand their campaign. Pathfinder Adventure Path volumes use the Open Game License and work with both the Pathfinder RPG and the world’s oldest fantasy RPG.

Available here!

Pathfinder Adventure Path #59: The Price of Infamy (author)

Pathfinder Adventure Path #59: The Price of Infamy

The adventurers now have their own island and port, but they’ll need more than one ship to defend it. When a past rival sends a fleet to attack them, they’re forced to pull out all the stops to defend their island home, scouring the harbors and docks of the Shackles in order to recruit more ships and crews to their flag. Yet when they sail to the attacker’s own island to get their revenge, the adventurers discover a traitor—one whose betrayal threatens not only their own fleet, but the very islands of the Shackles themselves.
This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path includes:

• “The Price of Infamy,” a Pathfinder RPG adventure for 11th-level characters, by Tim Hitchcock.
• Fleet battle rules that allow players to stand as admirals and commodores directing their own armadas against enemy fleets in large-scale naval warfare, by James Jacobs.
• A glimpse behind the gray veil of Norgorber, Golarion’s most secretive deity, by Sean K Reynolds.
• Lock-breakers and sea-devils in the Pathfinder’s Journal, by Robin D. Laws. Four new monsters, by Savannah Broadway, Ryan Costello, Mark Moreland, and Sean K Reynolds.

Each monthly full-color softcover Pathfinder Adventure Path volume contains an in-depth adventure scenario, stats for several new monsters, and support articles meant to give Game Masters additional material to expand their campaign. Pathfinder Adventure Path volumes use the Open Game License and work with both the Pathfinder RPG and the world’s oldest fantasy RPG.

Available here!

Pathfinder Adventure Path #58: Island of Empty Eyes (author)

Pathfinder Adventure Path #58: Island of Empty Eyes

Having won the Free Captains’ Regatta, the adventurers must now claim their prize—the uninhabited Island of Empty Eyes. Yet exploring strange ruins and fighting the isle’s monstrous denizens won’t be enough. Once they’ve got things well in hand, the adventurers must host a feast for the Shackles' infamous Pirate Council, only to have a dangerous situation turn even worse when a mysterious saboteur threatens to disrupt the party. Can the adventurers tame their island and protect their influential guests? Or will they lose the respect of the pirate lords and fade into obscurity?
This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path includes:

• “Island of Empty Eyes,” a Pathfinder RPG adventure for 9th-level characters, by Neil Spicer.
• Pirate legends and mysteries of the Shackles, by Jack Graham.
• Details on the cyclopes who once ruled the Shackles, by Gareth Hanrahan.
• Island harpies in the Pathfinder’s Journal, by Robin D. Laws.
• Five new monsters, by Alex Greenshields, Michael Kenway, Mark Moreland, and Tork Shaw.

Each monthly full-color softcover Pathfinder Adventure Path volume contains an in-depth adventure scenario, stats for several new monsters, and support articles meant to give Game Masters additional material to expand their campaign. Pathfinder Adventure Path volumes use the Open Game License and work with both the Pathfinder RPG and the world’s oldest fantasy RPG.

Available here!

Pathfinder Adventure Path #56: Raiders of the Fever Sea (author)

Pathfinder Adventure Path #56: Raiders of the Fever Sea

Bound for adventure upon the pirate vessel they’ve taken as their own, the heroes face a sea of dangers as they chart a course to become true Free Captains of the Shackles. But life as a pirate doesn’t prove any easier now that they’re in command, as deadly sea monsters, the corpses of drowned scallywags, and raiders from the deep rise to oppose them. When a most unusual map falls into the adventurers’ hands, they have the chance to change their fate in a single daring raid. Is it the heroes’ destiny to be the next victims of the merciless waves, or will fortune smile upon them and spur their rise as the newest and most infamous pirates of the Shackles?
This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path includes:

• “Raiders of the Fever Sea,” a Pathfinder RPG adventure for 4th-level characters, by Greg A. Vaughan.
• A gazetteer of Golarion’s many oceans and seas, and an exploration of the various aquatic races that inhabit them, by Adam Daigle, with Patrick Renie, F. Wesley Schneider, and James L. Sutter.
• A journey to Butcher’s Rock and deadly cyclopean prophecies in the Pathfinder’s Journal, by Robin D. Laws.
• Six new monsters, by Jesse Benner, Mark Moreland, Steven D. Russell, and Greg A. Vaughan.

Each monthly full-color softcover Pathfinder Adventure Path volume contains an in-depth adventure scenario, stats for several new monsters, and support articles meant to give Game Masters additional material to expand their campaign. Pathfinder Adventure Path volumes use the Open Game License and work with both the Pathfinder RPG and the world’s oldest fantasy RPG.

Available here!

Pathfinder Society Field Guide (author)

Pathfinder Society Field Guide

The Pathfinder Society is an eccentric organization of adventurers, explorers, and scholars with agents spread across Golarion and beyond. While members are expected to be fairly self-sufficient, the organization’s leadership knows that those equipped with the knowledge and gear to face the challenges of the job are most likely to survive to bring back priceless treasures and to fill the Pathfinder Chronicles with tales of their daring exploits. The Pathfinder Society Field Guide breaks down what it means to be a Pathfinder and gives players and GMs tools to build characters and campaigns around the illustrious organization. In addition, all content within this book is 100% legal for use in the world-spanning Pathfinder Society Organized Play campaign.
Within this 64-page book, Pathfinders will find:

• An overview of Absalom, City at the Center of the World, where the Pathfinder Society keeps its headquarters
• Details on 10 factions within the Pathfinder Society, and the benefits available to those agents loyal to each
• New archetypes for Pathfinders of all three branches of the organization: the Scrolls, the Spells, and the Swords
• A complete field guide covering threats to Pathfinder agents, as well as suggestions on building PCs prepared to face them
• Rules for day jobs and professions, property, followers, and other ways to customize your character
• A system for turning characters’ fame and prestige into valuable in-game rewards Dozens of new spells, magic items, specialized adventuring tools, and more!

The Pathfinder Society Field Guide is intended for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can easily be used in any fantasy game setting.

Available here!