Advent day 21: His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // instagram // youtube
A Nomad of the Time Streams by Michael Moorcock (Millenium edition 1993, ISBN 1-85798-033-6)
Intro 00:06 // Cover by Mark Reeve 01:20 // Foreword 02:12 // Synopsis 05:09 (The Warlord of the Air 06:37, The Land Leviathan 12:45, The Steel Tsar 19:27) // Remarks 24:37 (temporal adventurers, politics) // Place in the sequence 37:43
Support this podcast on The Fictoplasm Patreon!
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // instagram // youtube
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear, “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
Sailing to Utopia by Michael Moorcock (Millenium 1993 ISBN 1-85798-032-8)
comprising The Ice Schooner, The Black Corridor, The Distant Suns, Flux
Intro 00:07 // The cover 01:26 // The foreword 03:21 // Synopsis 05:31 (The Ice Schooner 05:34, The Black Corridor 10:41, The Distant Suns 14:44, Flux 18:01) // Remarks 21:56 // Final thoughts and ratings 31:30_
Support this podcast on The Fictoplasm Patreon!
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // instagram // youtube
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear and “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
With Dirk the Dice from The Grognard Files
The first book of Corum (volume 4 of the Eternal Champion) by Michael Moorcock.
Intro 00:07 // Introducing Dirk 00:45 // Dirk and Corum 1:55 // The book, and this edition 11:02 // The cover 16:05 // Rodney Matthews 18:45 // the foreword 19:55 // Synopsis 24:20 (The Knight of Swords, the Queen of Swords, the King of Swords) // Scenes 41:20 (the maiming of Corum, echoes of the multiverse, calling Arkyn out) // Corum’s place in the 14 volume sequence 55:58 // RPG stuff 1:05:55 (13th Age, Darcsyde’s Corum for Stormbringer)
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear // “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
Hawkmoon by Michael Moorcock
Millenium edition, 1992 HB ISBN 1 85798 027 1
Ralph with Dirk the Dice from the Grognard Files podcast
Introductions 00:07
The Cover 04:46
The Foreword 09:44
Synopsis 10:41 (The Jewel in the Skull, The Mad God’s Amulet, The Sword of Dawn, The Runestaff)
Favorite bits 23:43 (Count Brass, Soryandum, the Black Jewel, Granbretan, the Multiverse, gods)
Sequence 43:33
Dirk’s Eternal Champion 51:59
Rodney Matthews page on Moorcock inspired art including the magnificent Hawkmoon defends Castle Brass
Cover of The Jewel in the Skull by Bob Haberfield from the blog Good Show Sir “only the worst Sci-fi/Fantasy book covers”
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear // “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
The Eternal Champion by Michael Moorcock
Millenium edition, 1992 HB ISBN 1 85798 026 3
Intro 00:07 // The Cover 00:39 // Foreword 01:15 // Summaries 02:18 (The Eternal Champion, Phoenix in Obsidian, The Dragon in the Sword) // Favorite bits 19:10 (Arrival of Erekose, The Good One, no good deaths, endings) // 31:48 This volume in sequence // Mirenburg FC (thanks John Hagan) 34:27
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear // “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
Von Bek by Michael Moorcock
Millenium edition, 1992 HB ISBN 1 85798 023 9
Intro 00:07 // Preface to this edition 02:30 // Summaries 05:17 (The Warhound and the World’s Pain, the City in the Autumn Stars, the Pleasure Gardens of Filipe Saggitarius) // Favorite bits 15:01 (Demon in the Sphere at Bakinax, The Eagle in the Sword, Antichrist Ritual, Arrival in the City // Mirenburg as Viriconium 22:24 // Von Bek in sequence 24:40
Music is by Chris Zabriskie: chriszabriskie.com // bandcamp // free music archive
Samples: “Is that you or are you you?” from Reappear // “Another version of you” from Thoughtless
In this seasonal special, Ralph interviews John Cocking and Peter Williams, authors of Beyond the Wall.
Ralph Lovegrove with John Cocking and Peter Williams of Flatland Games.
About Flatland Games 00:30 // Reading background 01:35 // Fantasy and D&D 04:40 // Swallows and Amazons 05:40 // Aiming for a roleplaying experience 07:05 // The lone wolf hero in fiction and RPGs 08:30 // The World of Darkness 10:45 // A shout out for Dragon Warriors 18:35 // How Beyond the Wall came to be 20:45 // What is the “D&D experience”? 24:30 // A four year-old’s perspective on system matching 25:55 // The lingua franca 29:30 // The playbooks and layers for other D&D 31:05 // BtW’s spells (and Ars Magica) 33:10 // Design — what came first? 36:25 // BtW and Appendix N 41:40 // Other fiction properties that should be RPGs 43:00 // Your favourite Eternal Champion (Ralph blathers a bit here…) 44:50 // Stormbringer RPG 48:30 // US-UK cross-cultural 49:20 // Flatland Games’ other offerings (Action Movie World, Wizard’s Museum Construction Kit) 52:20
“Cylinder Eight“ and “Cylinder Nine” from Cylinders by Chris Zabriskie
In this very special episode we decided the best way to treat Herman Melville’s classic was to go back to our analogue roots. We discuss open seas, confined spaces, love among the sailors, Ahab the Eternal Champion, and more.
To get your copy please send a stamped self-addressed envelope together with a 50p cheque or postal order to the address given at the end of the podcast.
This episode Josh and Ralph dip into Moorcock’s Multiverse!
Elric of Melnibone and The Eternal Champion by Michael Moorcock
Ralph Lovegrove and Josh Fox
Elric of Melnibone synopsis 00:50 // Eternal Champion synopsis 04:00 // Themes 10:10 // Stormbringer RPG and others 23:30 // Dungeon Crawl Classics 28:30 // Sorcerer 30:00 // Sorcerer and Sword 31:10 // Josh’s game 35:10 // Ralph’s game 41:30
Stormbringer by Ken St Andre, Lynn Willis et al // Elric! by Lynn Willis, Richard Watts, Mark Morrison et al // Elric of Melnibone by Mongoose Publishing // Mournblade by Department des Sombres Projets // Dungeon Crawl Classics by Goodman Games // Sorcerer by Ron Edwards // Vast and Starlit by Epidiah Ravachol
When you sense social, political or metaphysical upheaval, roll +Ennui.
On a 10+, take +3 forward when confronting the change.
On a 7-9 take +1 forward but lose
On a miss, lose two of the above
You can read Ralph’s Mournblade review (with run down of other Moorcock RPGs) here
Also Ralph’s WIP on OSR demons: part one and part two
We mentioned Kill the Dead and Night’s Master by Tanith Lee
“Is That You Or Are You You?” from Reappear by Chris Zabriskie
“But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton” from Direct To Video by Chris Zabriskie
