Steve Long

The only other thing I've written for Tuala Morn (which is part of an overall setting I call "the Northlands" or "the Septentrion") is my PDF detailing Acquitaine (which is the "France" part of the setting, where Tuala Morn is the "Ireland"). I believe that's on sale in the Online Store (and is on DriveThruRPG as well). I'd love to do more stuff with the setting -- it's one of my most favorite of the many I've created -- but they usually require a certain amount of research and "detail" that make them harder to produce than most stuff. But still, one of these days, some of my notes will get turned into more Tualan stuff.

I hope you enjoy CB! 

Great stuff as usual, Dean!

On 11/28/2019 at 10:30 PM, Nemblamenchisus said:

 

I for one would love to see more of your fantasy setting material. All of those ideas sound good - especially your take on sword and sorcery, and low fantasy.

 

It doesn't have to be a doorstopper like Turakian Age. Perhaps an ongoing series of short PDFs which could eventually be collected into a book? 

We're currently trying just such an experiment with Champions International, and if that works well for us the possibility of creating more Fantasy settings, or expanding on TA and the others we have, is a definite possibility. Like many of y'all, I love creating worlds. (Which reminds me, at some point I need to get back to working on my Worldbuilding Guidebook, based on the methods and tips I often teach in seminars at gaming cons.)

On 1/20/2019 at 1:54 PM, Scott Ruggels said:

 

Did someone say artist?

 

In point of fact, Scott, when I designed some of the races and creatures in TA, I drew a little bit of inspiration from some of the art you published in Rogues' Gallery over the years.

On 1/18/2019 at 9:07 AM, sentry0 said:

Also, an update to 6th edition would be fantastic although strictly not necessary.

I've thought about doing a PDF of 6E updates to the TA setting, to cover things that haven't already been updated (e.g., I don't have to update the spells from FHG I and II, since the HSG already does that, albeit with genericized names; same for the monsters and the HSB). Things like Templates and such-all wouldn't be too hard to "convert." But as always, I need to find the time to work on all the little projects that spring to mind, while keeping major projects moving forward too.

On 3/21/2021 at 3:13 PM, Acroyear II said:

Hello There,

 

I was wondering if anyone knew if the Aquatic Powers pdf contains powers different from what was previously released in the UNTIL Superpowers Database I and II? 

That depends on how you look at things. It has (typically slightly tweaked) versions of many powers from Champions Powers (for which USPD I and II were of course predecessors). But there are some powers which are entirely new. There are 46 powers in total (many of which have options to change them, of course).

On 3/18/2021 at 9:43 PM, Mark Rand said:

I own Aquatic Powers and Hard Energy Powers.  Both are great.  I plan to buy Super-Magic Powers soon.  Keep up the great work, Steve.

Thanx! I am currently working on Super-Archery Powers and Metal Powers. I have a few ideas for a couple other power sets, but they're somewhat more complex and may require some actual rules design, so I haven't done much work on 'em yet.

On 3/18/2021 at 10:06 PM, steriaca said:

Steve, any form of Super Magic matches the powers of anime/manga style magical girls?

Unfortunately, no. I barely know anything about the genre, so I don't want to try to write for it. Sounds like it might be an interesting topic for someone to explore who knows what it's all about.

On 3/20/2021 at 3:34 PM, steriaca said:

Steve, I know your not exactly an "anime guy", but I expected a magical girl power list. Not that the list is bad...just incomplete (which may be the entire idea...).

I certainly understand that, but I don't know a thing about that genre, so I can't write about it. But I'm sure there's someone out there who can.

On 3/21/2021 at 11:09 AM, HeroGM said:

I always go back to [Mystic Masters] as reference.

 

I often do myself; I love Allen Varney's take on the subgenre. And the Willingham cover is top-notch!

Howdy, Herophiles! My latest book (in PDF form) is now available: The Celtic Bestiary, a collection of monsters and creatures from Celtic myth, legend, and folklore, is now available at the Hero Games Online Store for a mere $12.99! It features 67 monsters, and is just the right thing if you're in a campaign set in Tuala Morn, have a Celtic-influenced setting in your own campaign world, or would just like to have some cool, unusual monsters to throw at your heroes. Please check it out and pick up a copy today!

https://www.herogames.com/index.html/store-items/new-for-the-hero-system-the-celtic-bestiary-r399/

Howdy, Herophiles! My latest book (in PDF form) is now available: The Celtic Bestiary, a collection of monsters and creatures from Celtic myth, legend, and folklore, is now available at the Hero Games Online Store for a mere $12.99! It features 67 monsters, and is just the right thing if you're in a campaign set in Tuala Morn, have a Celtic-influenced setting in your own campaign world, or would just like to have some cool, unusual monsters to throw at your heroes. Please check it out and pick up a copy today!

https://www.herogames.com/index.html/store-items/new-for-the-hero-system-the-celtic-bestiary-r399/

Pinnacle Entertainment Group has just made available for just $2 an audiobook of a superhero short story I wrote for them some years ago, entitled "The Third War." Here are the basics:

On 3/3/2021 at 7:01 PM, Jhamin said:

 

What are the odds Steve is posting these same images on the Fountain Pen Forums he frequents?

 

Oh, I'd say 100%.

On 3/2/2021 at 7:28 PM, Jhamin said:

 

Well, now we know *why* Steve was writing a new 5th edition supplement every 6 weeks for a while there.....

In all seriousness though, I feel like one of my changes from early to mid adulthood was when I figured out the value of spending more for the better built furniture, home finishes, etc.  This room looks like something you will be able to enjoy for decades to come.

That's my plan. I built it as soon as I could so that I can enjoy it as long as possible.

Banning yourself might create some sort of meta-black hole that would suck the website into another dimension.... O.o

18 minutes ago, Simon said:

Can you get Cancer from Steve Long liking PP Porn?  The answer in our 6 o'clock segment!

No, but you can get Taurus or Scorpio.

23 minutes ago, archer said:

 

Actually, I wanted to ask you about the library shelves in the background of the room.

 

I'm wanting to put in something like that something (ideally around 15' long x 8') tall but everything I'm finding that's even remotely close to what I'd want is $10,000-15,000 at the very low end and going up dramatically from there.

 

I was wondering if that was your experience or whether you found some way of getting nice bookshelves without having to sell a kidney. 

I wish I could have gotten mine for only $15,000. If memory serves, the wood alone for all the shelves (I needed a particularly high quality wood due to the nature of the project) cost more than $15,000. Overall I believe the bookshelves alone were 20-25% of my budget for renovating my entire house. That's why I had to save up so long to do it -- since I intend to live in this house for the rest of my life, I insisted on getting the best materials and craftsmen available to me.

Unfortunately I had to sell a kidney, a lung, a leg, and my Red Ryder BB gun -- but at least I had lot to read while I was recuperatin'.

44 minutes ago, Cancer said:

The chest reminds me of the ones in which astronomy departments and libraries stored their original Palomar Sky Survey prints.  That amounted to not quite 2,000 14-by-17-inch photographic prints.  Most such chests were steel rather than carpentry, though.

Sure, I've seen those. My pen chest is essentially a specialized variant of the "flat file" cabinets used by architects, libraries, and other places that need to store large pieces of paper without folding or rolling them.

23 minutes ago, Bazza said:

Those pictures are no good...I can’t read the book spines...  

 

And the chest of pens & maps looks very stylish. 

Perhaps I should return to posting "book porn" pictures of a shelf in my library every week....

38 minutes ago, archer said:

When someone shows off pictures of their fancy or well-stocked pantry, it's called "pantry porn".

 

But somehow it just seems wrong to call this "pen porn".

Actually, some of us in the pen collecting community do use the term "pen porn" to refer to pictures of pens and pen collections.

I've never heard of "pantry porn" before, but as a somewhat OCD-ish person who loves to organize things, I'm sure I'd enjoy looking at some of it.

16 minutes ago, Jhamin said:

So is this a new piece of furniture you ordered?  Or did you find something really great at a second hand shop somewhere?

It looks great!

Thanks! I commissioned it from Hartwood Pens in Fredericksburg, VA; it took nearly three years to finish (due to various unavoidable delays, mostly).

As some of y'all out there know, one of my other hobbies is collecting fountain pens. I have a semi-valuable array of a bit under 900 pens so far, ranging from ultra-cheap everyday use kinda pens to expensive works of art that I'd never dare write with.

Another hobby is collecting antique maps from the 1920s and '30s, partly to help with Pulp Hero writing. If you need to know exactly where the police station is on Gibraltar in 1934, where the short-lived nation of Tannu Tuva was, or where the railroads run in the Pulp Era Belgian Congo, I'm your man.

So, after many years of waiting, I just got a new pen chest that will hold all my pens on the left, and many of my large-ish antique maps on the right. Check it out! Even Persimmon approves.

On 2/9/2021 at 4:39 PM, Tech said:

It's hard for me to believe I'm saying this but come this June, our campaign will be 40 years old, along with the 40th Anniversary of the game Champions. It's actually mind-boggling to me, that any campaign could be that long. The campaign is older than my friend's marriage as well as some people in the campaign. I'm planning on buying some plastic award medals that you can put your own emblem inside of and giving them out in June. By the way, this is the same continuous campaign - never stopped or retconned. It's gone through changes over the decades and has seen players & characters come and go, but the core players are still playing some of the same characters that the campaign started with.

 

So along with saying it's been 40 years, I also want to say that it is the Champions game that is so durable and flexible that made this happen. My hat off to you, Hero Games and more specifically, to Champions.

Congrats! I can barely keep a campaign going for a few months, never mind years. The mind boggles -- but in a good way.

On 2/14/2021 at 9:00 PM, Grailknight said:

Though usually a plot device, I have been thinking of making some villain underlings(that were empowered by the Master) that have Vulnerabilities that can be exploited by the Master Villain but only if a certain code/power sequence is used to activate it. Obviously the Master knows them but anyone who learns them can use them.

 

Examples:  2x vs Mind Control but only if the command is phrased with "My dear(target name)" at the beginning

                    

                    1-1/2 Damage from Energy Blasts linked to or coordinated with a Flash Attack.

 

I am leaning toward making these 1/2 the regular value but I thought I would get some other opinions.

Intriguing idea! I may have to swipe it for APG3.

On 2/11/2021 at 5:16 PM, chall said:

I would have loved to see an updated Lands of Mystery, but unfortunately I know that is not going to happen.

As you probably know from posts we made years ago, we had planned to do one and I was really looking forward to writing it -- Aaron was going to do all the setting and NPC stuff, while I would write the genre material, character sheets, and other such stuff. Unfortunately, Aaron's death torpedoed the project. While I'd love to tackle the book myself (maybe even as a sectional book), but the sad fact is that we have lots of data that Pulp Hero supplements simply don't sell well. I love the genre and would love to write more for it, but aside from the occasional small PDF product that I can produce myself in my spare time, it simply isn't economically feasible.

On 2/11/2021 at 7:54 AM, HeroGM said:

 

I think [Danger International] basically got folded into Dark Champions

That is true, but we have considered doing Danger International as a subgenre book for the Dark Champions line that would cover espionage, terrorism, and related subjects. The problem is that it would require an insane amount of research, because if I'm going to write a book about espionage for gaming, it's going to be the book on espionage for gaming. It would cover everything from one caveman keeping a secret from the others, all the way up to the present day; would include bios/descriptions of many famous spies and espionage capers; tons of espionage equipment; "Espionage Super-Skills" like the ones we see in James Bond movies and the like; and of course a section discussing the genre in general, presenting information and campaigning options from the ultra-realistic to the totally absurd but deliciously fun. Especially since I want to keep moving forward on Mythic Hero, a new DI would take at least a year or two of non-stop effort to write -- and even though I do have a couple of potential contributors in mind (one of whom has worked in the US intelligence community for the past three decades), this is a subject that intensely interests me and that I want to write, not assign to other writers.

On 2/11/2021 at 12:52 PM, zslane said:

In terms of "unfolding", as dmjalund puts it, I would revamp Dark Champions for 6e and call it Action Hero, and then put out a Danger International campaign book, providing a complete espionage campaign setting.

I'd definitely like to revamp DC for 6E (you can find PDFs where I've already updated the Templates and some other stuff in the Hero Online Store), but we're not going to change the name. Back in 1993 I wasn't entirely wild about it, but eventually I realized that it was better than my original title (Heroes Of Vengeance, which became the subtitle), and since it's been in use for 30 years we don't want to lose whatever brand recognition we've built up for it.

On 2/8/2021 at 12:31 PM, zslane said:

Oh, I'd also love to see the 6e Vehicles book get revived and completed.

That's something I'd very much like to do as well -- Vehicles is, I believe, the last remaining subject to be covered in what I think of as "The HERO System Core Library" (which is, basically speaking, all the books with blue and gold covers that discuss "fundamental" subjects such as Magic, Martial Arts, and Equipment). I'm not sure if it would be a good subject to write as a sectional book -- I'd need to do a lot of research to update existing vehicle write-ups and find new vehicles to cover (just last week I read a fascinating article on cool military vehicles currently in use or in development that I'd want to draw on for new vehicles, for instance), and it doesn't really break apart into small sections I can cover on a weekly basis (since I'm only budgeted for so much time per week at present). OTOH, a lot of it would just be updating the existing text to 6E rules, which would be much easier work. So I'll give that some thought.

On 2/8/2021 at 11:05 PM, greysword said:

3) If you want to see an IP that truly needs a a solid system that is dynamic yet relatively simple to adjudicate AND has a solid following, look no further than Shadowrun!  The Hero system would be excellent for this game, and the lore would make it an easy port.  You should contact Topps and/or Catalyst Game Labs to see if you can form a partnership.  A Hero core with CDL lore means you can both share in the tsunami of money that will rain from the sky!  (hyperbolic?  maybe, but you have to admit that Shadowrun gamers like crunchy rules and are begging for a ruleset that makes sense and is east to adjudicate at the table.

As a huge longtime fan of Shadowrun, I certainly love this idea, though I suspect that licensing fees would make it a non-starter (and as much as I love the SR setting, I'm kind of reluctant to spend a lot of effort writing up something that I don't own). In any event, though, before we can even consider this I will have to write a new Cyber Hero genre book, something I've wanted to do forever, have lots of ideas for, and am considering as a possibility for a sectional book or Kickstarter project.

On 2/4/2021 at 2:54 PM, Lord Liaden said:

(BTW I noticed a few details about the Caribbean in Cops, Crews, And Cabals and DEMON: Servants Of Darkness that might embellish Cost Azúl. Please pass on to Steve that I'd be happy to reference them when he gets around to writing that, as well as anything else I mention elsewhere. )

 

I have a suggestion for a future sectional book, which I would tentatively title Villains Beyond, kind of a sequel to Champions Beyond. That book names and briefly describes twenty-eight alien supervillains, sixteen enemies of the Star*Guard either free or in their prison, and twelve villains based in the Andromeda Galaxy. Details about Andromeda, and the Star*Prison, could flesh out the book even more.

 

Finally, it would be nice to see a book dealing with and updating ARGENT, like the book being done for the IHA. If it would help, I compiled and categorized all the published info I could find on ARGENT to the thread linked in my signature, and converted it to a PDF that's in the free Downloads section of the website. It's actually considerable.

 

Thank you and Steve again for all your efforts.

 

Thanks as usual for the excellent suggestions, LL!

I'd be happy to look at whatever data you've compiled that you think would be helpful for Costa Azul (which is the PDF I'm currently working on, assuming the ice storm raging outside my windows doesn't knock out my power like it did last weekend). Please send it to me by direct message, if you can -- or contact me for other options.

ARGENT is a subject that we've long wanted to explore in more detail (along with the IHA). Originally the idea was that Allen would write the book, which I was really looking forward to (not only because Allen was really creative and a skilled writer, but because his strongly pro-union, anti-corporations status would lead to a very different product than one written by anti-union, pro-corporations me -- and the final product, once edited by me, would have turned out pretty sweet IMO). Unfortunately that wasn't something we could get to before we had to cut back on staff. It might make a good subject for a sectional book, but I'm not sure; I'll have to ponder that.

On 2/4/2021 at 5:44 PM, Ninja-Bear said:

Martial Enemies? Here take my money! 😀 could Steve Long though maybe have an adventure written for use with Martial Enemies please? Not a seed but a short adventure would be extra sweet.

I have actually been thinking that we might change the title to The Martial World (thus making it consistent with The Mystic World, though it would cause abbreviation confusion  ). That way I could present information about subjects other than just martial arts-based villains (though they would, of course, make up the majority of the book). I could cover some martial arts heroes (like Nightwind and Shugoshin), revamp the Tournament of the Dragon, provide a section of "Super Martial Arts" powers in a CP-style format, and so on. When the time comes, I'll post a "What Do You Want To See?" thread that will let Herodom Assembled fling ideas at me like so many inspirational shuriken.

On 2/14/2021 at 3:28 PM, Norm said:

• Steve's Mythic Hero line.  Yes, I went there....

Have no fear, I'm still working on it, slowly but surely. I'm currently doing a lot of research for it and a nonfiction work-in-progress called The Encyclopedia Of Mages, Magic, And The Arcane (or "EMMA," as I like to call it ).