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Hand Of Vecna
Vecna ( ) is a fictional character appearing in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Vecna has been named one of the greatest villains in ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Originally appearing in the ''Greyhawk'' campaign setting, Vecna was described as a powerful wizard who became a lich. He was eventually destroyed, and his left hand and left eye were the only parts of his body to survive. Even after the character achieved godhood—being a member of the third edition's default pantheon of ''D&D'' gods (the pantheon of Oerth) Tweet, Jonathan, Cook, Monte, Williams, Skip. ''Player's Handbook'' (Wizards of the Coast, 2000)—he is still described as missing both his left eye and left hand. Vecna's holy symbol is an eye in the palm of a left hand. Vecna's "right-hand man", who ultimately became his betrayer, is Kas the Bloody-Handed, a vampire whose sword, the Sword of Kas, is also an artifact. Publication history Original ''Dungeons & Dragons'' In ''Eldritch Wizard ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deities & Demigods
''Deities & Demigods'' (abbreviated ''DDG''), alternatively known as ''Legends & Lore'' (abbreviated ''L&L'' or ''LL''), is a reference book for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game (D&D). The book provides descriptions and game statistics of gods and legendary creatures from various sources in mythology and fiction, and allows dungeon masters to incorporate aspects of religions and mythos into their D&D campaigns. The first ''Deities & Demigods'' was published in 1980 by TSR, Inc. while another book called ''Deities and Demigods'' was published in 2002 by Wizards of the Coast, which acquired the ''D&D'' brand with their purchase of TSR in 1998. The original 1980 edition was the first print appearance of various fictional non-human deities, such as Corellon Larethian, Moradin, Gruumsh, and others, many of which have become standard features of the D&D game and its derivatives. These deities were the creation of Jim Ward. Later printings of ''Deities & Demig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monte Cook
Monte Cook is an American professional tabletop role-playing game designer and writer, best known for his work on ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Role-playing industry career Early years Cook has been a professional game designer since 1988, working primarily on role-playing games. Much of his early work was for Iron Crown Enterprises as an editor and writer for the ''Rolemaster'' and ''Champions'' lines. For a time, Cook was the editor in charge of the "Campaign Classics" line of books for the ''Hero System'' and ''Rolemaster'' lines. Cook worked for Iron Crown Enterprises for four years; two as a freelancer and two as a full-time designer. During this period, Cook wrote the multi-genre setting ''Dark Space'' (1990), a fantasy/science-fiction/horror setting. Cook became the line editor for ''Hero System'', replacing Rob Bell, who left ICE in 1990. TSR Cook began working for TSR in 1992 as a freelancer: "writing a whole slew of stuff for the old Marvel game that never came out ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gary Gygax
Ernest Gary Gygax ( ; July 27, 1938 – March 4, 2008) was an American game designer and author best known for co-creating the pioneering role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') with Dave Arneson. In the 1960s, Gygax created an organization of wargaming clubs and founded the Gen Con gaming convention. In 1971, he helped develop ''Chainmail'', a miniatures wargame based on medieval warfare. He co-founded the company Tactical Studies Rules (TSR, Inc.) with childhood friend Don Kaye in 1973. The following year, he and Arneson created ''D&D'', which expanded on Gygax's ''Chainmail'' and included elements of the fantasy stories he loved as a child. In the same year, he founded '' The Dragon'', a magazine based around the new game. In 1977, Gygax began work on a more comprehensive version of the game, called ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons''. Gygax designed numerous manuals for the game system, as well as several pre-packaged adventures called "modules" that gave a pers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock (born 18 December 1939) is an English writer, best-known for science fiction and fantasy, who has published a number of well-received literary novels as well as comic thrillers, graphic novels and non-fiction. He has worked as an editor and is also a successful musician. He is best known for his novels about the character Elric of Melniboné, a seminal influence on the field of fantasy since the 1960s and '70s. As editor of the British science fiction magazine ''New Worlds'', from May 1964 until March 1971 and then again from 1976 to 1996, Moorcock fostered the development of the science fiction "New Wave" in the UK and indirectly in the United States, leading to the advent of cyberpunk. His publication of ''Bug Jack Barron'' (1969) by Norman Spinrad as a serial novel was notorious; in Parliament, some British MPs condemned the Arts Council of Great Britain for funding the magazine. He is also a recording musician, contributing to the bands Hawkwind, Blu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eternal Champion
The Eternal Champion is a fictional character created by British author Michael Moorcock and is a recurrent feature in many of his speculative fiction works. General overview Many of Moorcock's novels and short stories take place in a shared Multiverse: an array of interconnected parallel universes, many-layered dimensions, spheres, and alternative worlds, spanning from the Big Bang to the End of Time and from planet Earth to faraway galaxies. All these regions of spaces and parallel timelines are given shape by two metaphysical forces which are perpetually opposed to each other: Law and Chaos, which represent perpetual stasis and ever-changing disorder. Since a clear-cut prevalence of either Law or Chaos would erase all life from the Multiverse, a third force known as the Cosmic Balance enforces certain limits on the powers of Law and Chaos, which in turn ensure the continued existence of the Multiverse. Law, Chaos, and the Balance are implied to be non-sentient, but they do m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magic In Dungeons & Dragons
The magic in ''Dungeons & Dragons'' consists of the spells and magic systems used in the settings of the role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). ''D&D'' defined the genre of fantasy role-playing games, and remains the most popular table-top version. Many of the original concepts have become widely used in the role-playing community across many different fictional worlds, as well as across all manner of popular media including books, board games, video games, and films. The specific effects of each spell, and even the names of some spells, vary from edition to edition of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' corpus. Development Origins In 1974, the 36-page " Volume 1: Men & Magic" pamphlet was published as part of the original ''Dungeons & Dragons'' boxed set and included 12 pages about magic. It primarily describes individual spells where the "spells often but not always have both duration and ranges, and the explanation of spells frequently references earlier ''C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Vance
John Holbrook Vance (August 28, 1916 – May 26, 2013) was an American mystery, fantasy, and science fiction writer. Though most of his work has been published under the name Jack Vance, he also wrote several mystery novels under pen names. Vance won the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 1984, and he was a Guest of Honor at the 1992 World Science Fiction Convention in Orlando, Florida. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America made him its 15th SFWA Grand Master, Grand Master in 1997, and the EMP Museum#Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Science Fiction Hall of Fame inducted him in 2001, its sixth class of two deceased and two living writers. His most notable awards included Hugo Awards in 1963 for ''The Dragon Masters'', in 1967 for ''The Last Castle (novella), The Last Castle'', and in 2010 for his memoir ''This Is Me, Jack Vance!''; the Nebula Award in 1966, also for ''The Last Castle''; the Jupiter Award (science fiction award), Jupiter Award in 1975 and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eye Of Vecna
Vecna ( ) is a fictional character appearing in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Vecna has been named one of the greatest villains in ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Originally appearing in the ''Greyhawk'' campaign setting, Vecna was described as a powerful wizard who became a lich (Dungeons & Dragons), lich. He was eventually destroyed, and his left hand and left eye were the only parts of his body to survive. Even after the character achieved godhood—being a member of the third edition's List of Dungeons & Dragons deities, default pantheon of ''D&D'' gods (the pantheon of Oerth)Jonathan Tweet, Tweet, Jonathan, Monte Cook, Cook, Monte, Skip Williams, Williams, Skip. ''Player's Handbook'' (Wizards of the Coast, 2000)—he is still described as missing both his left eye and left hand. Vecna's holy symbol is an eye in the palm of a left hand. Vecna's "right-hand man", who ultimately became his betrayer, is Kas the Bloody-Handed, a vampire (Dungeons & Dragons), vam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dungeons & Dragons (1974)
The original ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated ''D&D'') boxed set by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson was published by TSR, Inc. in 1974. It included the original edition of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Its product designation was TSR 2002. Contents The original ''Dungeons & Dragons'' boxed set was the first role-playing game, a fantasy system with a medieval European flavor. This set introduced concepts which would become standard in later editions, including abilities (such as strength, intelligence, and dexterity); character classes ( fighting-man, magic-user, cleric) and levels; races (human, dwarf, elf, halfling); armor class; monsters and treasure; subterranean dungeons of halls, rooms, and doors replete with tricks and traps; and magic items, such as intelligent swords. The set also includes rules for wilderness travel by land and sea, hiring specialists and men-at-arms, building fortifications and setting up baronies. Movement rates and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sword Of Kas
This is a list of characters from the Greyhawk campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. A Acererak Acererak was a powerful wizard who became a lich, and later a demilich. Publication history Acererak first appears in the original ''Tomb of Horrors'' adventure (1978) by Gary Gygax as the main adversary. One of the areas in the Tomb is a "Chapel of Evil", described as "obviously some form of temple area - there are scenes of normal life painted on the walls, but the people have rotting flesh, skeletal hands, worms eating them, etc."Gygax, Gary. ''Tomb of Horrors'' (TSR, 1978) The adventure described him as "a human magic-user/cleric of surpassing evil" who took the steps necessary to preserve his life force as the lich, Acererak." The boxed set adventure ''Return to the Tomb of Horrors'' (1998) by Bruce Cordell included a small booklet titled "The Journal of the Tomb", which notes that the character Desatysso discovered that Acererak " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vampire (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, a vampire is an undead creature. A humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature can become a vampire, and looks as it did in life, with pale skin, haunting red eyes, and a feral cast to its features. A new vampire is created when another vampire drains the life out of a living creature. Its depiction is related to those in the 1930s and 1940s Hollywood ''Dracula'' and monster movies. In writing vampires into the game, as with other creatures arising in folklore, the authors had to consider what elements arising in more recent popular culture should be incorporated into their description and characteristics. Publication history The vampire was one of the earliest creatures introduced in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' game. The vampire as a player character concept was present in Dave Arneson's playtest group for the original version of the rules. It led to the creation of a vampire-hunter, which became the basis of the cleric clas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kas The Bloody-Handed
This is a list of characters from the Greyhawk campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. A Acererak Acererak was a powerful wizard who became a lich, and later a demilich. Publication history Acererak first appears in the original ''Tomb of Horrors'' adventure (1978) by Gary Gygax as the main adversary. One of the areas in the Tomb is a "Chapel of Evil", described as "obviously some form of temple area - there are scenes of normal life painted on the walls, but the people have rotting flesh, skeletal hands, worms eating them, etc."Gygax, Gary. ''Tomb of Horrors'' (TSR, 1978) The adventure described him as "a human magic-user/cleric of surpassing evil" who took the steps necessary to preserve his life force as the lich, Acererak." The boxed set adventure ''Return to the Tomb of Horrors'' (1998) by Bruce Cordell included a small booklet titled "The Journal of the Tomb", which notes that the character Desatysso discovered that Acererak "o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
