I have a meeting today at Bad Moons Gaming in Apache Junction, Arizona, USA. I will be talking with the owner about The One Ring and doing some in-store demos. I am taking my books and my laptop (to utilize the online character generator).

I was wondering if there are any promotional materials or posters I could download and bring to the store?

Ack! I was hopeful I could connect you with something James, but it's right at the end of the working day here in the UK, right at the end of the working week, so organising anything for today looks extremely doubtful. I'll still see if I can organise something. And thank you for your continuing support!

James, check your email.

Got your email and sent you a reply. Thanks Jon! I am actually on my way out the door, headed to Bad Moons. Todays meeting is a follow-up to a phone conversation with the owner and I will be showing him the game and walking him through character creation, etc. They play mostly Pathfinder and D&D there, but he is interested in learning about the game. I offered free in-store demos of TOR and we will be setting up those times. So, as long as I have some posters I can give him by next week some time, that would be great!

I know that I'm on-line quite a bit it seems, but honestly, I'm a VERY, VERY, busy person myself and I understand. I even hired a guy recently to take care of my yard work at home because I haven't had the time to get out there and do it myself.

Happy weekend!

Just an update. I met with Tom, the owner of Bad Moons Gaming today (Friday the store was unexpectedly closed). I found out that the store, like so many others, makes all its money on Magic: The Gathering. They play some D&D and Pathfinder there, but Tom hasn't really gotten into roleplaying and I don't think he sells many books, if any. I didn't really get a good look around to actually see if he had any RPGs on the shelves. I saw lots of GamesWorkshop stuff and cards.

Tom has tried roleplaying, but he doesn't like it very much because of the hack-and-slash style gaming, and the bickering between players. I brought in my TOR slipcase, with the books, the dice, and the maps. I also brought my laptop to show him the online character generator. I explained the setting, the character creation process, the combat mechanics, and the structure of the game. I also talked to him about the planned development of TOR.

Some of the questions he asked about the game were:

#1. How is the game different from D&D and Pathfinder and other roleplaying games?

#2. Are there published adventures to go along with the core rulebooks?

#3. How many players does it take to have an enjoyable game?

#4. Is the online character generator free?

#5. How long does a session of gaming usually last?

He really seemed to like the idea of Middle-earth being revealed over 3 core sets. He also liked the emphasis on story and simplicity of rules, rather than dungeon-crawl and complicated character creation.

At the end of our meeting, he made the statement that even though he didn't like D&D and Pathfinder, he was interested in playing TOR and he thought he might like it! He gave me his cell phone number and we are going to get in contact next week. He asked if I would be interested in doing TOR demos on Saturdays. I told him yes. He really liked the poster I brought him (which is basically an image of the game's cover with a space at the bottom to write in times and dates for the demos).

So, I would say it was a successful meeting and I'm looking forward to sharing the game even more. I hope lots of people get interested and buy the game. With the Hobbit movie coming, the timing is incredible. I fully expect a revival of The Lord of the Rings games with an emphasis on The Hobbit from 2012-2014.

Im running TOR at a few UK CONS this year, if you want fliers etc being on display

derby conquest and UKEXPO to be precise

probably Indiecon later in year

The same is true for my store. When doing research before opening my store, we visited MANY game stores up and down the east coast of the U.S. We had many tell us that the biggest drain on their cash resources was stocking GW products to the degree that GW insists on stores having on hand. A couple we met in Charleston, SC said carrying GW product is what caused them to CLOSE their business. As a result of much input, we opted to not carry GW products on hand, but make them available for order. That has worked OK, so far. It doesn't for those who want instant gratification, but we decided not to jeopardize our business for such a small niche market.

Would it be possible to get a copy of this poster for my store? PLEASE?

If you haven't done so already, PM Jon Hodgson and see if he can help you with that.

Just sent. Thanks!

I plan on running TOR at a couple of conventions this year, and I may even run it at my FLGS (even though it is all Pathfinder, Warhammer 40K, Malifaux, wargaming, and board games). The Marsh-bell can be run within a 4 hour time block with only a couple of tweaks. I'd love any promo stuff that I could distribute at these conventions. Even if it is just an image file, I'd be happy to print it on photo paper and hang up at my games.

Game store Demos of The One Ring are scheduled at Bad Moons Gaming at 2015 W. Apache Trail, Apache Junction, AZ 85120 (480-983-1060).

Saturday, March 31, 10:00 AM
Saturday, April 7, 10:00 AM

There will be a sign up sheet at the store, but everyone is welcome. I will have enough character sheets for anyone that wants to be part of the character creation process.

The way I plan on running the demo is as follows (please give me ideas if you have them):

1. Introduce The One Ring: Explain the setting and talk about future expansions and support for the game.

2. Character Creation: Have the audience pick one culture and have everyone create a character of that culture. I will use azrapse's online character creator at http://azrapse.es/tor/sheet.html to make the process easier.

3. Combat Mechanics: Have the audience form an alliance against a band of orcs and a troll.

4. Journeys & Encounters: Highlight the rules for these.

5. Standing & Treasure: Highlight the rules for these.

6. Questions

Just an idea for a possible visual aid...

While I cannot provide an example, I know that various gaming products and magazines have included cardboard props and dioramas. If one of these include a cube, with a scanner, art program and the aaatord.ttf font, you could create jumbo sized TOR dice as a visual aid / prop.

It would be much easier to pass those jumbo dice around to give people an idea what the game dice are like. Additionally, since there large size makes them easier to see, it might assist when you're initially demonstrating game mechanics based on the dice.

They cannot be played with since they're not going to have mathematically accurate results, but as a prop they should be fine.


You might want to include on the Sign-up sheet that the use of an internet enabled laptop or smartphone would assist with character creation, but is not necessary. This alleviates some of the potential back-log and delay if even 20% bring their own.

Garn, those are both excellent suggestions! I began looking for a pattern last night for my giant-sized d12. Maybe when I get it done, I'll post it here.

I also like the laptop suggestion, as long as the store is O.K. with giving free Wi-fi access to everyone. He gave me the password for demonstration, but I'll have to ask about everyone.

One of my groups has played with laptops while sitting around my living room.

Oh my, I never considered security & passwords. I just assumed that the shop was in a down town / densely populated area and would have both cell tower and public wifi access.

I would hesitate to provide so many complete strangers with access to a private internet connection. Particularly as you cannot control those computers once access is given to them. While the router's password can be changed, knowing the access point exists and having the name and subnet mask means you only need a password guesser. Brute force does the rest.

You, or the owner/staff, could make an extra laptop available temporarily (using a Limited User Account in Vista / Win7, thereby separating private files from public viewing). But in this case someone needs to be dedicated to watching it to make sure it does not wander off.

Maybe start with all extra computers in a protected area (office, behind counter, etc) and only bring them out during the character creation phase of the event. After a player is done, print out the CS, repeat the process with the next player. When all demo players are done creating characters, return the extra laptop to the protected area again. At the end of play, perhaps offer to update the character sheets and re-print them?

Since we're talking about security, remember to create and use a separate account for Azrapse's website. All of those attendees will have access to the account name and password if they do a little looking around. You don't want anyone to write it down and then start messing with your gaming group's characters.

Maybe send all the demo gamers home with the account name and password of your demo group account, along with a warning that the account you used is publicly available for all demo's you do, so they should copy their character to another account if they wish to keep them safely online perpetually. Between the updated print-out and access to the demo group account, these demo players should be fine and content.

(Its kind of funny how we may never play the game again, but as gamers we all hate losing any character we've ever played!)

As for the d12 diorama, cannot recall seeing one of those - although I never looked.

Assuming you have to make your own, you could make two cones with the appropriate printing, then crease them afterwords to create the faces. Tape the open bottom edges together and you have a rudimentary version.

Depending on how it is designed, a 'round' tower's roof might also work. Or at least provide an base upon which to create the rest of the design.

My most recent character sheet revision includes a reminder on the sheet that 11=Sauron and 12=Gandalf. Not as good as having the right dice handy... but it's better than nothing.

And next to the Weary checkbox, [1][2][3]=[0].

And that's just for my home game.

So, this past Saturday I ran the first TOR demonstration at Bad Moon's Gaming for six guys that had never played (well actually there were seven guys, but only six created a character as the last one showed up late in the process). The guys included the owner of the store, one employee, and the rest Pathfinder players. Here is a summary of the day...

• I started at 10:15 AM by giving them a brief history of the game and talking about Cubicle7's plan for supplements and support. During this time, I showed off the slip case of core books, maps, and dice. I also mentioned the nomination for the 38th Annual Origin's Award for Best Roleplaying Game.
• I passed out high-resolution, full-color character sheets and showed them the TOR Online Character Server by Azrapse.
• To keep things moving smoothly, I suggested they all create characters of the same culture and they voted to make Dwarves. Using the Online Character Server as a guide, I led them in creating their characters. This went smooth and it seemed like everyone was really immersed in the process and enjoying themselves. When making their choices, they used the Adventurer's Book and the PDF copy on my laptop to read more about Virtues, Rewards, weapons and armour.
• Time was going by quickly, so we went straight into Combat mechanics. I set up a scenario where they were adventuring through a mountain pass and attacked by Orcs (one for each of them). They learned about Combat advantage, initiative, opening volleys, engagements, Combat stances, Combat tasks and the value of Hope and Fellowship Points. This is where I really could have used some of the fan-made supplements I've seen. After defeating the Orcs, they moved ahead and encountered a Cave Troll (which they easily downed, the six of them working together) They really liked Forward position and using Intimidate Foe to get rid of the Troll's Hate points.
• We took a short break to stretch and get snacks and drinks.
• Coming back, I explained the Journey rules and had them all choose travelling assignments. They really liked this so I rolled a random hazard to show them how a failed Travel roll with an EYE result should be handled.
• I briefly explained how Encounters work and ended the demo at roughly 1:15 PM.

Memorable Moments:

• I was reading off the list of Specialties to choose from and when I came to 'Smoking' they all immediately wanted an explanation. When I read the description, everyone laughed and most of them chose it.
• After hearing that I was coming back the following Saturday for another demonstration, one of the guys says to his friend, "There's a wedding that day." His friend responds by saying, "Well, I'd rather be here playing this. It's much more entertaining. The wedding's going to be boring!"

My Thoughts: I think I was able to create 6-7 new TOR fans by just presenting the game. The owner of the store looked like he was really having fun and he had told me prior that he hadn't enjoyed roleplaying games in the past but would give The One Ring a try. All the guys wanted to keep their character sheets and showed genuine interest in actually playing a game. I am fairly confident that they would all jump on the chance to play regularly if we scheduled it in. Some of them inquired about how much the game costs and indicated an interest in purchasing a copy (even if it was just the PDFs). All-in-all, a great day and I'm looking forward to this weekend.

Out of curiousity, did you ever find a d12 diorama? I had started to create a simple mock-up of one and forgot to post it.


Sounds like everyone enjoyed themselves, very encouraging. Although I foresee a potential problem next weekend. How are you going to handle the addition of new players?

Assuming both last Saturday's Demo Crew (with Mister Plus One himself, the Late Arrival) and some New Kids on the Block, both show up, however are you going to manage things? Both have a legitimate prior claim to your attention.

(Think about an answer, I'll just keep blathering along while you do so.)

One suggestion that I can make is to have the Demo Crew show the Kids how to create characters, as best they remember. Teaching something to someone else is a remarkably good way to confirm your understanding of things. Make yourself available to everyone as needed to clarify obscure points, etc.

Once gaming begins, engage the Demo Crew with some storytelling time-waster. One thing that might be particularly apt is a sing-along or a miniature drinking competition. Whatever it takes to kind of get both the players and their characters into sitting around, keeping each other entertained, while you teach some (but not all) of the game mechanics to the New Kids. After a bit of adventuring with the New Kids, have them suddenly drop in on the Demo Crew. Or versa vica.

For instance, perhaps a crew of hobbits gets lost in the woods and, absolutely starving to death (they haven't eaten for more than 3 hours!), they manage to win free to civilization - that is the road and the dwarven encampment next to it - by the heavenly aroma of crispy bacon! Unfortunately the hobbits have aroused the curiosity of a minor (just enough to teach some basic combat to the New Kids) adversary. (You could even break into a sing-a-long of "That's what Bilbo Baggins hates" after doing away with the critter and cleaning up the dishes. Perhaps after Bilbo left Erebor it became a popular ditty among the dwarves.)

At which point it will probably be very late and you'll need to shut things down. Perhaps somewhat un-encouragingly, but at least everyone has played.


Hmmm... I don't know if you've shown off the chat features on Azrapse's site, but you might want to point it out to them. If things go well on this second occasion I imagine they will want you back. I think you said that store is a bit outside of practical range. Maybe they're willing to go digital? Cannot advise further as I have not used the chat features as yet myself.

Fantastic stuff, James!

Unfortunately, I never made any oversized dice. But, that might make a good paper mache project with my daughter! Maybe we'll do it on Saturday when I get home from the demo...right after we play table tennis (my wife just picked up a ping pong table for me at a garage sale last weekend...so excited).

Actually, Bad Moons Gaming store is right around the corner from the church that I pastor. So, is convenient. In fact, I'm thinking about asking the group if they want to get together once or twice a month over the summer. We'll see.

I enjoyed running the demonstration so much, though, that I am planning on visiting some other stores in the area and scheduling demos there too. Maybe I can get permission to set up a video camera and take some footage. If so, I'll link to it.

James, I don't think you need it any more, but since I ran across this completely by accident, I thought I would post it. Just in case. You can never have too many dice.

http://www.rpgnow.com/product/17686/Doktor...board-Dice?it=1

Garn, thanks for thinking of me. I am hoping to do some more demos over the next three months. I think the interest for The Hobbit movie is rising (especially with the new trailer!) and timing could not be better for The One Ring. I'm not sure how big those cardboard dice are, however. For 50 cents they look pretty small. I want a 'giant-sized' Feat die! I may still have to make one myself. Maybe I'll use cardboard, Duck Tape, glue, card stock, paint, and newspaper filler. We'll see!

I know I saw a couple of other cardboard dice sets, but I think this was one of the few whole sets, but I wasn't looking for them specifically.

I think that if the output format is scalable (PostScript, PDF, PNG, SVG, etc) you should be able to easily increase the size without too much degradation of the source image. The vital part is the placement of slots/tabs, alignment of faces and the instructions - which you'll get no matter what.

You would have to adjust the images to change them from generic polyhedron dice into TOR specific versions. With the Eye/Gandalf available in a font, makes things much easier.