Witch: Day 4

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

The Witch begins Day 4 in the Cliff, surrounded by a multitude of monster and treasure chits.  She wants to leave the Cliff as soon as possible, for Bats can be summoned here, which she can neither kill nor escape.

The Witch is still looking for a Tremendous Troll or the Tremendous Flying Dragon.  Both provide her with a monster strong enough to be worth absorbing.

The Witch's next destination is the Cavern, but she cannot reach the Cavern today, since she can only use the two basic phases if she spends any time underground.  She also needs to rest, as she has two fatigued Type V black mana chits.

On Day 4, the Witch will move twice, to Ruins clearing 2, and Rest twice to recover her chits.

The Witch will not bother hiding in the Ruins.  If the Serpents are summoned, they will appear in clearing 6, far away from clearing 2, and if the Dragons are summoned, she can run away from the Heavy Dragon, towards Ruins clearing 1.

Witch: Move-Ruins 1, Move-Ruins 2, Rest, Rest
Familiar: Peer, Peer, Peer, Peer

Today's monster roll is a 3: Goblins and the Octopus.  The Witch's familiar performs four Peers, discovering the Bones W chit in the Nut Woods.  Bones summons the Ogres on a monster die roll of 3, but the Witch's familiar never causes monsters to be summoned to the board.

The Witch moves twice to Ruins 2, and Rests twice.  The Slither 6 and Smoke C chits are turned face up, but neither summons monsters, so Day ends uneventfully for the Witch.

Meanwhile at the Inn:  the Black Knight and Sorceror continue to loot the treasures at the Inn, recovering two more horses.  The Patrol appears at the end of the day, and the Sorceror vaporizes one of the horses with her Fiery Blast, then melts into mist as the Black Knight finishes off the associated Patrolman before running away.

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

Witch: Day 3

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

Let's move on to Day 3 of the Witch's adventures in the Magic Realm. The Witch starts the day deep in the Ruins, having flown here with her Broomstick spell on Day 2.  At the end of her turn, she reveals the Slither 6 and Smoke C chits, which summon Land Dragons and Giant Snakes. Yesterday's monster roll was 6 (Bats) so no prowling monsters were summoned to the Ruins on Day 2.

This is not a safe tile for the Witch.  She can run away from the two dragons that are summoned to this tile, for her Move L3* chit is faster than the move speeds of both the Heavy and Tremendous Land Dragons.  However, on a monster roll of 2 the Slither 6 chit also summons a pair of Heavy Snakes, who are invulnerable to the Witch's dagger, and are too fast to run from, having a move speed of 3 on their fast side.

The Witch would like to explore both the Cliff and the Cavern, as either might contain the Tremendous Flying Dragon or Tremendous Troll.  She also needs to rest her two black magic chits.  She does not want to linger at the Ruins, as the Tremendous Land Dragon is too slow to be a good candidate for Absorb Essence, and the Heavy Snakes are dangerous foes.

The Witch has at least three options for Day 3.

The Witch's first option is to move to the Cliff and do a single Hide.  A somewhat risky plan, though no more so that her Day 2 flight to the Ruins and single Hide.  Her second option is to move to the Oak Woods and do a single Hide.  The Oak Woods may be contain the Large Campfire (25% chance), or may contain a monster (75% chance).  She can run away from the Serpents and Ogres, but would be killed by the Wolves.  This is not a bad choice, but will put her a day behind in searching for monsters to absorb.  Her third option is to move to the Ruins 2 clearing and perform two Rest phases.  That will allow the Witch to cast Broomstick at the end of Day 3, so long as Dragons do not appear.  If Dragons do appear, the Witch would need to run away rather than casting her Broomstick spell.  She does not fear the immediate appearance of the Snakes, as they would appear in clearing 6 and would not trouble her in clearing 2.

In the end, the Witch's desire to locate the T Flying Dragon or T Troll trumps the other considerations, and she records three moves to the Cliff (three moves because she must record two moves for each mountain clearing she enters) and a Hide.

Witch: Move-Ruins 1, Move-Cliff 1, Move-Cliff 1, Hide.
Familiar:  Four Moves to Nut Woods 2

The Day 3 monster roll is a 2: Snakes and Demons.  The Witch is leaving the Ruins so Snakes will not be summoned to the Ruins today.  The Witch's black cat familiar moves to the Nut Woods and ends its turn.  The Witch moves to the Cliff and successfully hides.  

At the end of her turn, the Witch turns over the Cliff chits, revealing the Lost Castle 1 and Dank M chits.  She takes the 5 chits for the Lost Castle, and reveals Flutter 1, Flutter 2, Statue 2, Patter 5 and Pool 6.

The Flutter chits summon Heavy Flying Dragons and Bats.  The Statue chit is a minor treasure location with a usable spell that summons the Imp.  Patter and Dank chits summon Heavy Spiders.  And the Pool is a major treasure location guarded by the Octopus.  Because the monster roll was 2, none of those monsters were (luckily) summoned to the Cliff.

Neither the T Flying Dragon nor the T Troll are summoned to the Cliff.  The Witch's turn ends.

Meanwhile, at the Inn:  The Black Knight and Sorceror continue to rest, and then loot the Rogues' treasures.  The Black Knight loots two horses and a treasure card, and the Sorceror loots a horse.

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

Witch: Day 2

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

On Day 1 of the Witch's adventures, she travelled to the Bad Valley and prepared her Broomstick spell.  Meanwhile, her familiar slunk to the Maple Woods and performed two failed peer attempts.

On Day 2, the Witch will use her Broomstick to fly three tiles, to the Ruins (on the far side of the map) and attempt to hide on her fourth phase.  The Witch's black cat will perform four more peer attempts at the Maple Woods. 

Witch: Fly-Caves, Fly-Cavern, Fly-Ruins, Hide
Black Cat: Peer, Peer, Peer, Peer

Some might consider a broomstick flight to the far side of the Magic Realm, with no safe valley available, concluding with a single hide attempt, to be somewhat incautious. I'm inclined to agree.

However, the Witch can afford to be incautious at this stage since we're only at Day 2, and if the Witch fails to hide and dies at the claws of a monster she can rejoin on the following day and lose only two days.  But she will have gained some important information about the Ruins.  Where you DO want to be cautious is past Day 5, and certainly on Day 27 or 28, when you've otherwise fulfilled your victory conditions.  Of course, this is a multi-player game, so rejoining is available.  That won't be the case in a single player game.

The name of the game for the Witch, at this point, is to find a Tremendous Troll or Tremendous Flying Dragon, and quickly.  We will look at why those two monsters are important once we find one.

On Day 2, the monster die roll is 6: Bats.  Hopefully we are not flying into a swarm of Bats, as the Witch is too slow to escape death by Bats. 

The Witch's familiar acts first, and finds the Smoke W chit in the Maple Woods.  The Witch's familiar finds the location of the Small Campfire.  The Bashkars (who are friendly to the Witch), the Lancers and the Woodfolk can visit the Small Campfire.

The Witch flies three tiles to the Ruins and successfully hides.  When the chits are turned over at the end of her turn, they are revealed to be Slither 6 and Smoke C. 

Slither summons Land Dragons and Giant Snakes, on monster rolls of 1 and 2 respectively, and Smoke C also summons Land Dragons on a monster roll of 1. 

No Tremendous Trolls or Tremendous Flying Dragons here. 

As the Witch has used up the power of her Broomstick, she will need to cast it again if she wants to fly again.  The magic chit powering the Broomstick fatigues and she now has no Type V rituals available to cast spells, as two are fatigued and one has been converted into black mana.  She will need to find a place to rest and recover her strength.

Meanwhile, at the Inn:  The Black Knight and the Sorceror spend the entire day resting after an exhausting Day 1 battle versus the Rogues.

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

Witch: Day 1

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

It's Day 1 of the Witch's adventures in the Magic Realm.  There are two other characters in this game, the Black Knight and the Sorceror, who have arranged the map with the valleys in close proximity, to facilitate their probable plan of initiating a kill-loot-sell strategy.  Employing that strategy is an efficient way to learn how to choreograph combats for various characters, racking up notoriety and gold in the process. 

All of the valleys are on the left side of the map and the wild areas are on the right.  This configuration will make things difficult for the Witch, as she will have few safe valleys to retreat to as she strikes out into the wild.  If you are just beginning to play the Witch, try constructing the map to give you valleys to retreat to, so you can retreat and prepare new spells.

The Witch's strategy is a dangerous one.  She has chosen Broomstick, Absorb Essence and Remedy as her beginning spells.  Using the Broomstick, she intends to fly to the Ruins, deep in the northeast corner of the wild area.  Then the Witch will quickly search for either the Tremendous Flying Dragon or the Tremendous Troll, absorb their essence, and transform into that monster to kill other monsters and natives, thereby racking up fame and notoriety.  The Witch will need to manage her chits carefully, to ensure she has black mana available when needed.  She would like to find a monster to absorb before Day 7, as she gets free black mana on Day 7 to power her spells.  This explains the urgency for locating a suitable monster to absorb.

While the Witch is looking for the Dragon or the Troll, her black cat familiar will be making a circle through the woods to the north, over the Ledges, and under the Caves and Borderland, assisting in the search.

On Day 1, the monster roll is a 4.  The Witch's familiar moves two clearings to the Maple Woods and fails both peer attempts, rolling a 6 for each.  The Witch moves three clearings to Bad Valley and successfully hides.  The Daylight phase of Day 1 ends, and we move to the Combat phase. 

The Black Knight and Sorceror engage in their combat first.  As expected, the Black Knight and the Sorceror conspire to eliminate the eight Rogues, with the Sorceror frying four Rogues with her Fiery Blast before Melting into Mist, and the Black Knight eliminating the remaining four Rogues, suffering four wounds and a fatigue in the process.

Now its the Witch's Combat phase.  Time to prepare her Broomstick.

During Round 1, the Witch chooses to Cast a Spell.

From her list of spells, she chooses Broomstick.

In order to activate her spell, she needs the proper ritual, V, and black mana (which she had already prepared prior to the beginning of the game).

The Witch needs to select a target for her spell.

She will be the target of the spell.  And, voila!  If you check your chits, you will find the Witch now has a Fly L1 chit active and ready to be used.



In addition, the other magic chit she used as black mana has fatigued, and is in the fatigued column, needing a rest action to bring it back into play.

The Witch ends the Combat phase, and Day 1 ends.  We are now ready to use our new Fly ability in Day 2 of the Witch's adventures in the Magic Realm.

Day 1  Day 2  Day 3  Day 4  Day 5  Day 6  Day  7

Day 8  Day 9  Day10 Day11 Day12 Day13 Day14
Day15 Day16 Day17 Day18 Day19 Day20 Day21

Day22 Day23 Day24 Day25 Day26 Day27 Day28

Magic Realm Witch: Master Plan

Welcome to the Witch's adventures in the Magic Realm. We have already built the map, which you see above (click to embiggen), using Robin Warren's fantastic Realmspeak computer program, a program I highly recommend.

The Witch starts her day at the Inn, circled in yellow in the bottom left corner of the map. The Black Knight and the Sorceror are also at the Inn at the beginning of the game.

We are playing a multi-player game. In a single player game, the Witch has the luxury of adventuring at her own pace. Since this is a multi-player game, the Witch will need to employ a slightly more sophisticated strategy.

As you can see, all of the Valley tiles are on the left-hand side of the map. The Sorceror and Black Knight have conspired to place the Valleys close together to maximize their probable joint kill-loot-sell strategy, an excellent strategy for those characters, and for novice players. This setup works perfectly well for them.

It is a dangerous map for the Witch, because her strategy involves visiting the wild, and if that strategy is followed, it will require her to be quite distant from safe Valley tiles. Having safe valley tiles nearby would give the Witch places to rest and recuperate between wilderness forays.

I mentioned in a previous post that planning is essential in order to maximize your chance of success in Magic Realm. Before the Witch records her first turn, she will analyse the map and come up with an action plan. That plan may evolve, but she will be most successful if she has some plan before she begins.

Let's look at some of the Witch's choices.

The Witch has six adventuring choices at the beginning of the game.  Five are immediately obvious, and include travelling in the directions of the Woods & Ledges, the Caves, the High Pass, the Ledges, and the Borderland & Deep Woods.

Of the obvious choices, the two best are the Woods & Ledges and Borderland & Deep Woods.

The Woods & Ledges are an excellent route because the Witch travels through three woods tiles, which may contain the Large and Small Fires.  The Witch wants to know where those are so she can hire the Company or Bashkars later in the game, both of which frequent the Large Fire. 

The Witch cleverly placed the Crone and Shaman with the Bashkars and Company respectively, and those two travellers have spells she may want to buy (the Black Knight placed the Scholar with the Patrol, which was fine with the Witch, as the Patrol visits every permanent dwelling).  Both the Large and Small Fires are good places for the Witch to visit if she absorbs a monster and decides to engage in some native-bashing.

The Witch's other obvious choice is the Borderland & Deep Woods.  She will be relatively close to the Valley occupied by the Order, who while unfriendly to her, can be run away from, on her way to a safe Valley clearing.  The Borderland & Deep Woods are both good potential treasure sites.  The disadvantage to this plan is that the Black Knight and Sorceror are equally close to those, and may decide to follow the Witch there, thus mucking the Witch's plan to find a nice corner of the Magic Realm all to herself.

We've looked at five of the Witch's six choices.  Lets look at the sixth.

One of the three spells chosen by the Witch is Broomstick.  By casting Broomstick during the combat phase of Day 1, the Witch can fly to the far side of the Magic Realm on Day 2.  That will allow the Witch to get a jump on searching the Magic Realm without interference from the Black Knight and Sorceror.

But what about the Witch's Black Cat familiar? 

We can send the Witch's familiar off to explore the Woods and the Ledges, reporting back to the Witch on what she finds.

Magic Realm: Casting Spells

Before attempting a Magic Realm game, featuring one of the magic-using characters, like the Witch, it is critical to review and understand how spell-casting works in Magic Realm.

In Magic Realm, all spell preparation and casting takes place in the Evening, during the combat stage. 

There is a specific order of play, for every game day, in the Magic Realm. 

That order of play is as follows:  (1) Birdsong, in which you write down your planned actions; (2) Sunrise, where the prowling monster roll is made; (3) Daylight, during which you complete your written actions, and monsters and natives move and appear; (4) Sunset, at which you decide the order in which combats will occur; (5) Evening, during which you engage in combat and cast spells; and (6) Midnight, where you advance the day marker to the next game day.

Characters complete their written actions during stage (3), the Daylight stage, and cast spells during stage (5), the Evening stage.  Spells cast in the Evening only affect the combat in which the Character is currently engaged, or take effect during the day(s) AFTER the spell is cast. 

For gamers who have exclusively played Dungeons and Dragons, and are used to declaring and casting spells at any time during the game with near-immediate effect, this is a hard to fathom.  Spell-casting in Magic Realm, because it cannot be initiated at any time or facilitated by an in-game Dungeon Master hand-wave, requires more planning than the equivalent actions in a traditional role-playing game. 

Hopefully our Witch example of play will help clarify the importance of planning your spell-casting in the Magic Realm.

Another critical piece of information necessary for spell-casting relates to the elements of a successfully cast spell.

There are three elements to casting a spell in the Magic Realm: one, ownership of the spell; two, the ritual to the spell; and three, mana to power the spell.  You must have all three, together, in order to cast the spell.

Every magic-using character in the Magic Realm begins with one or more magic chits, which represent spell rituals, and one or more spells.  Above, you can see a typical Witch spell combination, a Magic V4* chit, a Magic V5* chit with a black splotch (the chit has been converted to Black mana), and the Absorb Essence spell.  At the bottom of the spell, it tells you the spell ritual required (in this case a ritual V) and the color of mana required (Black).

Before the game begins (or during the game, by recording and performing a spell phase) magic chits with roman numerals I through V can be converted into a corresponding color of mana to power spells.  In the Witch's case, she has type II chits (can be converted to Grey mana) and type V chits (can be converted to Black mana) to power her spells.

As we play the Witch, we will need to be careful to manage our chits wisely, to ensure we have both the right rituals and color mana to perform her spells as necessary.

Magic Realm Example Of Play: The Witch

I posted a 28-day Magic Realm game "example of play" several months ago, using my favorite Magic Realm character, the Black Knight.

The Black Knight is an excellent choice when first learning Magic Realm, because he is an incredibly versatile martial character. 

You can dispense with his heavy armor and use his agility to amass a fortune in treasure and gold. 

Or, you can take advantage of his armor and mow through native groups and heavy monsters, in the process racking up significant fame and notoriety.

The Black Knight has no magic abilities whatsoever.  Therefore, spellbooks, scrolls and enchanted items are of little value to him, other than their gold price. 

Those items are quite valuable to Magic Realm's magic-using characters, of whom the Sorceror and Witch are my favorites.

I am going to post another Magic Realm "example of play" here, this time using the Witch character.

The Witch is very different from the Black Knight.  While the Black Knight starts the game with significant armor and arms and has a range of move and fight options, the Witch starts with no equipment and few move and fight options. 

However, the Witch does start with her black cat familiar, who acts a second set of eyes and can independently wander, search and instantly report back on the state of the Magic Realm to her mistress. 

The Witch also starts with three spells, from the black, grey, and malicious spell categories. 

For her starting spells, the Witch can choose any three of the 18 spells, below.

Of the first set of six Type II, Grey spells, none are overwhelmingly useful to the Witch.  Blend Into Background gives the Witch an extra Hide Phase, for a single day, but it costs at least three phases to cast (an Enchant Phase plus two Rest Phases) so it is only of limited value in narrow circumstances.  Fog is a nuisance spell, cast to interfere with other players' searches for a single day, but provides little direct benefit to the Witch.  Prophecy is a valuable spell, since it allows the Witch to choose what actions to take during the following day ONCE she knows what monsters are prowling, but the Witch does not have immediate access to Purple (Elemental) magic to power this spell.  Stones Fly is a VERY weak attack spell and not recommended.  Talk to Wise Bird is attractive, but again, the Witch does not have access to Gold (Fairie) magic to power it.  Finally, there is Witch's Brew, a spell that gives the Witch access to Gold and Purple magic, a handy spell but one that I don't recommend as a starting spell.

Of the second set of six Type V, Black Spells, there are several standouts: Absorb Essence and Broomstick.  Absorb Essence allows the Witch to absorb a monster she encounters, later transforming into that monster when she meets other monsters, natives and characters.  Think of Madam Mim and Merlin from The Sword In The Stone.  If the Witch absorbs a very powerful monster, like the Tremendous Flying Dragon, she becomes a formidable opponent.  Broomstick allows the Witch to quickly fly to far-flung corners of the Magic Realm,  beating the other characters to the choicest treasure sites.  Ask Demon is of questionable value; the Witch player asks another player a question about their in-game plans, which they must answer honestly with a yes or no.  Curse and Power of the Pit are nasty player versus player attack spells, but are not recommended, as they generate little reward and attract the enmity of the other characters and players.  Pentacle is a useful spell but only applies to three of eight treasure sites, none of which are particularly treasure-rich.  So, of this group of spells, Absorb Essence and Broomstick are highest on our list of suitable spells.

There are several handy spells in the third set of Type VIII, Malicious Spells.  Bad Luck can be cast on another character, making it more difficult for them to hide and search when in enchanted areas of the Magic Realm.  Not the best way to make friends at the table.  Deal with Goblins could be useful, since the Witch could hire the Goblins and use them to butcher the Magic Realm natives.  Guide Spider or Octopus is handy if the Witch stumbles on the related treasure sites, but those sites are not the richest ones, nor are those monsters the strongest ones for absorbing.  Poison is a good spell in a multi-player game, as the Witch can cast poison on her partners' weapons, making it easier for her partners to kill monsters.  For a solo Witch game, Remedy is the better choice, as it allows the Witch to rid herself of curses inflicted on her from acquiring spells.  Finally, there is Whistle for Monsters, used to attract or send monsters away.  It only works for sound chits, which represent half of the game's monster-generation, so it is not a fool-proof way of avoiding monsters.

For her starting spells, the Witch chooses Absorb Essence, Broomstick and Remedy.  This is a good choice of starting spells.  As you play the Witch, you can try other combinations, but this set of spells gives the Witch the ability to Absorb a monster for combat purposes, use her Broomstick to fly away from monsters or travel quickly across the Magic Realm, and a way to remove curses as she searches for new spells.

The Witch also chooses to start the game with two bits of grey magic (to power her Remedy spell twice) and two bits of black magic (to power her Absorb Essence and Broomstick spells).  Only chits I, II, III, IV and V can be changed into sources of color magic to power spells, so her type VIII remain as rituals, instead of color magic.

Tomorrow, we will have a look at the map of the Magic Realm, and see what the Witch has planned for her adventures.

More Magic In The Magic Realm

Just a little idea that came to me last night, as a way to visualize a potential expansion to Richard Hamblen's Magic Realm.  Click to embiggen.

The Yellow items are existing elements that have been re-arranged or added.  The Blue items are entirely new elements.  The Purple items are placeholders for future elements that I have not yet settled on.  The Green item is a combination of new and existing elements.

Magic Realm: The Valkyrie Part II

 

As mentioned in an earlier post, the Valkyrie is a variant character for Magic Realm, which I have based on the Captain character.  The Valkyrie is a harvester of brave warrior souls, often accompanied by wolves, crows and other battlefield scavengers.  She has the same chits as the Captain, but loses a Fight H5* and a Move M4* chit, replaced by Magic II3* and Magic VII4* chits, which can be re-purposed from one of the other Magic Realm characters.

 

The Valkyrie's starting chits are shown below.

 

She is a medium character, and begins the game with a helmet, breastplate and shield, along with a spear, 10 gold and one spell (type II or type VII).

 

The Valkyrie has two special advantages.  

 

Her first special advantage is that she can do an extra alert phase every day.  That extra phase comes in handy as the Valkyrie's spear needs to be alerted in order to inflict any damage. 

 

Her second special advantage is that she treats wolves and ogres as natives, neutral on the meeting, trade and hiring tables.  They do not automatically block her when she enters a clearing, instead rolling on the meeting table each time she enters or attempts an activity within their clearing.  If she ends her turn on their tile, they move to her clearing as per the normal rules, and the meeting table is consulted.  She can trade with and hire the ogres and wolves just like any other natives, buying and selling items with them, and paying one gold per monster to "buy drinks" for hiring purposes, with a hire price of one gold per notoriety point.  The pair of Ogres or pack of Wolves must be hired as a group.

 

She has the same relationships as the Druid.

 

As a result of the addition of the Valkyrie, a new Type II spell is added to the game.

 

Type II Spells

 

Flying Steed

Color:  Grey

Target: Horse Counter

Duration:  Day

 

This spell allows the target horse to fly, with the same weight and speed as is printed on the counter.  This can be cast on any horse, including horses owned by other Characters and Magic Realm natives.

Appendix N: What The Heck?

Periodically, I post a list of books, which I title Appendix N something-or-other. Some of my newer readers may not know what it is, or what it is for.

Let me provide those explanations.

This list represents my "personal Appendix N", a list of the books in my (mostly pre-1980) fantasy fiction library.  I call that list Appendix N after the famous appendix of the same name found in the original 1979 Dungeon Masters Guide.  That famous appendix was Gary Gygax's list of inspirational fantasy authors and titles.

As for my Appendix N, I own the titles in black.  The red titles are books i'm looking for.  When I have time, I haunt used bookstores, referencing my online Appendix N from a portable device to determine which books i'm still looking for.  I have read some, but not all of the books in my library, and I display the ones i'm currently reading on the left-hand side of my blog.

At some point I will cull the books on this list, as I have found some, although diverting, to be less appropriate on a true Appendix N.


Abbey, Lynn: Daughter of the Bright Moon; The Black Flame

Adams, Richard: Watership Down; Shardik

Alexander, Lloyd: The Book of Three 1; The Black Cauldron 2; The Castle of Llyr 3; Taran Wanderer 4; The High King 5

Anderson, Poul: Ensign Flandry; Flandry Of Terra; Agent of the Terran Empire; The Long Night; Three Hearts and Three Lions; The Broken Sword; The High Crusade; A Knight Of Ghosts And Shadows; The Last Viking 1; Hrolf Kraki's Saga

Anthony, Piers: A Spell for Chameleon; Split Infinity; On A Pale Horse; Ogre, Ogre

Ariosto, Ludovico: Orlando Furioso

Asimov, Isaac:  I, Robot; Foundation

Asprin, Robert A.: Thieves World I; Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn II; Shadows of Sanctuary III; Storm Season IV; The Face of Chaos V; Another Fine Myth

Barker, M.A.R.: The Man Of Gold; Flamesong

Baum, L. Frank: The Wizard Of Oz, Emerald City Of Oz, Land of Oz

Beagle, Peter S.: The Last Unicorn; A Fine And Private Place

Beckford, William:  Vathek

Bellairs, John: The Face In The Frost

Bellamy, Francis R : Atta

Bester, Alfred:  The Stars My Destination

Blackwood, Algernon: 

Bloodstone, John: Thundar Man Of Two Worlds

Bloch, Robert: Strange Eons

Bok, Hannes: The Sorcerers Ship; Beyond the Golden Stair

Brackett, Leigh: Eric John Stark, Outlaw Of Mars; The Best Of Leigh Brackett; The Sword Of Rhiannon; The Ginger Star 1; The Hounds Of Skaith 2; Reavers of Skaith 3

Bradbury, Ray:  The Martian Chronicles

Bradley, Marion Z: Warrior Women; Sword and Sorceress Anthology; Sword And Sorceress II; Sword And Sorceress III, Sword And Sorceress VII; The Planet Savers 1958; The Sword Of Aldones 1962; The Bloody Sun 1964; Star Of Danger 1965; The Winds Of Darkover 1970; The Forbidden Tower 1977; Stormqueen! 1978; Seven From The Stars;

Bramah, Ernest:  Kai Lung's Golden Hours; Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat

Brooks, Terry: The Sword of Shannara

Brown, Fredric: The Best Of Fredric Brown; What Mad Universe

Brunner, John: Secret Agent Of Terra; Stand On Zanzibar

Budrys, Algis: Rogue Moon

Bulmer, Kenneth:

Burroughs, Edgar R.: Pellucidar; Tanar of Pellucidar; A Princess Of Mars 1; The Gods Of Mars 2; Warlord Of Mars 3; Thuvia, Maid Of Mars 4; Chessmen of Mars 5; The Mastermind of Mars 6; A Fighting Man of Mars 7; The Moon Maid; Out of Time’s Abyss; Jungle Girl, Land of Hidden Men; Pirates Of Venus; Lost On Venus; Carson Of Venus; Escape On Venus;  Tarzan Of The Apes 1; The Return Of Tarzan 2; The Beasts of Tarzan 3; The Son Of Tarzan 4; Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar 5; Tarzan and the Lost Empire 10; At The Earth's Core

Cabell, James Branch: Figures Of Earth; Domnei; Cream Of The Jest; The Silver Stallion; Jurgen, A Comedy Of Justice; Something About Eve; The High Place

Campbell, J Ramsey: Demons by Daylight

Card, Orson Scott:  Ender's Game

Carter, Lin: Thongor and the Dragon City; Thongor and the Wizards of Lemuria; Thongor Fights the Pirates of Tarakus; Thongor and the End of Time; Zanathon; Tower at the Edge of Time; The Black Star; Beyond The Gates Of Dream; Down To A Sunless Sea; Journey to the Underground World; Warrior of World’s End; Flashing Swords 1; Flashing Swords 2; Flashing Swords 3; Flashing Swords 4; Flashing Swords 5; Dragons, Elves and Heroes; Golden Cities, Far; The Spawn of Cthuhlu; Discoveries In Fantasy; Great Short Novels Of Adult Fantasy; New Worlds For Old; The Young Magicians; Lost Worlds;

Cervantes, Miguel: Don Quixote

Chalker, Jack L.: Midnight at the Well of Souls 1; Exiles at the Well of Souls 2; Quest For the Well Of Souls 3; The Return of Nathan Brazil 4, Twilight at the Well of Souls 5

Chandler, A. Bertram: The Road To The Rim; The Hard Way; The Wild Ones; The Inheritors; The Gateway To Never; Star Courier; To Keep The Ship; Matilda's Stepchildren; The Rim Of Space;

Chant, Joy: Red Moon And Black Mountain

Cherryh, C.J.:  Ealdwood; Downbelow Station

Chesterton, G.K.:  The Man Who Was Thursday

Clarke, Arthur:  Rendezvous With Rama

Cook, Glen: The Black Company

Cooper, Edmund:  Double Phoenix

Crawford, F Marion:  Khaled

Daley, Brian: Han Solo At Star’s End; Han Solo’s Revenge; Han Solo And The Lost Legacy

Davidson, Avram: The Phoenix And The Mirror; The Island Under the Earth; Masters of the Maze

deCamp, L. Sprague:  The Virgin & The Wheels; The Tritonian Ring; The Complete Compleat Enchanter; The Compleat Enchanter; Lovecraft, A Biography; Swords And Sorcery; Spell of Seven; The Fantastic Swordsmen;  Warlocks and Warriors; The Fallible Fiend; Conan The Barbarian; Conan And The Spider God; Lest Darkness Fall; The Carnelian Cube; The Emperors Fan; The Reluctant King; The Unbeheaded King; The Goblin Tower; The Clocks Of Iraz; The Queen Of Zamba; The Hand Of Zei

Derleth, August: The Trail of Cthuhlu

Dick, Phillip K: Eye In The Sky, Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?

Dickson, Gordon R.: Dorsai!; The Dragon and the George

Donaldson, Stephen: Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever

Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan: The Lost World

Drake, David:  Hammer's Slammers

Dumas, Alexandre: The Three Musketeers

Dunsany, Lord: The King Of Elfland’s Daughter; Over the Hills and Far Away; The Charwoman's Shadow; Don Rodriguez; At The Edge Of The World; Beyond The Fields We Know; 51 Tales

Eco, Umberto: The Name Of The Rose

Eddings, David: Pawn of Prophecy, Queen Of Sorcery, Magician’s Gambit, Castle of Wizardry, Enchanter’s Endgame

Eddison, E. R.: The Worm Ouroboros; Mistress of Mistresses; A Fish Dinner In Memison; The Mezentian Gate

Ende, Michael: The Neverending Story

Farmer, Philip Jose: The Maker Of Universes 1; The Gates Of Creation 2; A Private Cosmos 3; Behind The Walls Of Terra; The Lavalite World; Hadon Of Ancient Opar

Fiest, Raymond: Magician

Finney, Charles: The Unholy City; The Circus of Dr. Lao

Foster, Alan Dean: Nor Crystal Tears, Splinter of the Minds Eye; The End of the Matter; The Tar-Aiym Krang; Bloodhype; Orphan Star; For Love Of Mother-Not; The Time Of The Transference

Fox, Gardner: Kothar Barbarian Swordsman; Kothar and the Conjurer's Curse; Kothar and the Wizard Slayer; Kothar and the Magic Sword; Kothar And The Demon Queen; Kyrik Warlock Warrior; Kyrik Fights The Demon World; Kyrik and the Lost Queen; Kyrik and the Wizards Sword; Warrior Of Llarn; Thief Of Llarn

Funke, Cornelia: Inkheart

Gardner, Craig Shaw: A Malady Of Magicks

Garner, Alan: The Moon Of Gomrath; The Weirdstone of Brisingamen; Elidor

Gemmell, David: Legend

Goldman, William: The Princess Bride

Glut, Donald F: The Empire Strikes Back

Gygax, Gary: City Of Hawks; The Samarkand Solution; The Anubis Murders; Death In Delhi; City Of Hawks

Haggard, H. Rider: King Solomon's Mines; The People Of The Mist; The World's Desire; When The World Shook; She And Allan;  She; The Return Of She Ayesha

Haldeman, Joe:  The Forever War

Hambly, Barbara: The Time of the Dark; The Walls Of Air, The Armies of Daylight; The Ladies of Mandrigyn, Dragonsbane

Harrison, Harry: The Adventures Of The Stainless Street Rat; The Stainless Steel Rat

Harrison, M. John:  The Pastel City; A Storm Of Wings; In Viriconium; The Centauri Device; The Machine In Shaft 10

Heinlein, Robert: Glory Road; The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress; Starship Troopers

Herbert, Frank:  Dune

Hickman, Tracy:

Hodgson, W.H.: The House On The Borderland; The Night Land; Boats Of Glen Carrig; Carnacki The Ghost Finder; The Ghost Pirates

Holdstock, Robert:  Mythago Wood

Holmes, John Eric: Mahars of Pellucidar

Horwood, William:  Duncton Wood

Howard, Robert E.: Cthulhu; Sword Woman; Almuric; The People Of The Black Circle; Red Nails; Shadow Kingdoms; People Of The Dark; Beyond The Black River; The Hour Of The Dragon; Black Hounds Of Death; Conan 1; Conan Of Cimmeria 2; Conan the Freebooter 3; Conan the Wanderer 4; Conan the Adventurer 5; Conan the Buccaneer 6; Conan The Warrior 7; Conan The Usurper 8; Conan The Conqueror 9; Conan The Avenger 10; Conan Of Aquilonia 11; Conan of The Isles 12; Solomon Kane, The Hills Of The Dead; Skull-Face; Black Canaan; Swords Of Shahrazar; Marchers Of Valhalla, The Book Of Robert E. Howard; The Second Book Of Robert E. Howard; Tigers Of The Sea; Bran Mak Morn; Son Of The White Wolf; The Last Ride; The Lost Valley Of Iskander; Black Vulmea's Vengeance; The Vultures Of Whapeton; Pigeons From Hell; The Sowers Of The Thunder

Hughart, Barry:  Bridge of Birds

Hyne, C J Cutliffe: The Lost Continent

Jackson, Steve: Fighting Fantasy; The Warlock of Firetop Mountain 1; The Citadel of Chaos 2; The Forest Of Doom 3; Deathtrap Dungeon 6; Curse Of The Mummy 27; Armies Of Death 36

Jakes, John: The Last Magicians; Brak The Barbarian; Mark of Demons; The Sorceress; The Fortunes Of Brak; When Idols Walked; Mention My Name In Atlantis

James, M.R.:

Kay, Guy Gavriel: The Summer Tree; Tigana

Kline, Otis Adelbert: Swordsman Of Mars;  Outlaw Of Mars; Planet of Peril; Port of Peril, Prince of Peril

Kuttner, Henry: Fury; The Mask Of Circe; Elak Of Atlantis, The Dark World, Robots Have No Tails

Kurtz, Katherine: Deryni Rising; Deryni Checkmate; High Deryni

Lanier, Sterling: Hiero’s Journey; The Unforsaken Hiero

Laumer, Keith:  Envoy To New Worlds; A Plague Of Demons

L’Engle, Madeleine: A Wrinkle In Time

Le Guin, Ursula: A Wizard Of Earthsea; The Left Hand Of Darkness; Tehanu; The Farthest Shore

Lee, Tanith: The Book Of The Damned I; The Book Of The Beast II; The Birthgrave; The Dragon Hoard; The Storm Lord,  Night’s Master, Death’s Master

Leiber, Fritz: Swords and Deviltry 1; Swords Against Death 2; Swords In The Mist 3; Swords And Wizardry 4; The Swords of Lankhmar 5; Swords and Ice Magic 6; The Knight and Knave of Swords; Heroes And Horrors

Lem, Stanislaw:  Solaris

Lewis, C.S.: The Voyage Of The Dawntreader; The Silver Chair

Lindsay, David: A Voyage To Arcturus

Livingston, Ian: The Forest Of Doom3, Deathtrap Dungeon 3; Armies Of Death 36; Curse Of The Mummy 27;

Lovecraft, H.P.: The Doom That Came To Sarnath; The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath; The Shadow Over Innsmouth; At The Mountains Of Madness; The Lurker At The Threshold; The Tomb; The Watchers Out Of Time; At the Mountains of Madness Omnibus 1; Waking Up Screaming; The Dunwich Horror

Lumley, Brian: The Burrowers Beneath; The Transition Of Titus Crow; Spawn of the Winds; The Clock of Dreams; In The Moons Of Borea; Khai of Ancient Khem; Hero Of Dreams

MacDonald, George:  Lilith; Phantastes; The Princess And The Goblin; The Princess And The Curdie; Evanor

Machen, Arthur:  The Three Imposters; The Great God Pan

MacLiesh, Roderick:  Prince Ombra

Martin, George R.R.: Dying Of The Light; A Song Of Ice And Fire

Matheson, Richard: I Am Legend

McCaffery, Anne: The Ship Who Sang; Dinosaur Planet; Dragonflight 1

McKillip, Patricia:  Riddle-master of Hed

McKinley, Robin:  Hero And The Crown; The Blue Sword

Meredith, George:  The Shaving Of Shagpat

Merritt, A.: The Ship Of Ishtar; The Seven Footprints Of Satan; The Moon Pool; The Metal Monsters; The Face In The Abyss; Dwellers In the Mirage; Creep Shadow Creep

Miller, Walter: A Canticle For Leibowitz

Mirrlees, Hope:  Lud-in-the Mist

Moorcock, Michael: Legends From The End Of Time; The Jewel In The Skull; The Mad God’s Amulet; The Sleeping Sorceress; The Runestaff; The Lord of the Spiders; The Masters of the Pit; The City of the Beast; The Warlord of the Air; Stealer Of Souls; Stormbringer; Elric of Melnibone; Elric At The End Of Time; The Vanishing Tower; The King Of Swords 3; Sword of the Dawn; The Sailor On The Seas Of Fate; The Sword Of The Dawn

Moore, C.L.: Northwest Smith; Jirel Of Joiry

Morris, Janet: High Couch of Silistra; The Golden Sword

Morris, William: The Well At Worlds End I; The Well At Worlds End II; The Wood Beyond the World; The Water of the Wondrous Isles; The Sundering Flood; The Glittering Plain; The House Of The Wolfings; The Roots Of The Mountains

Mundy, Talbot: Tros Of Samothrace; Avenging Liafail 2; Liafail3; The Praetor's Dungeon 3; The Purple Pirate 6

Niven, Larry: The Man-Kzin Wars; A World Out Of Time; A Gift From Earth; Tales of Known Space; Neutron Star; The Magic May Return; The Magic Goes Away; The Flight of the Horse; Ringworld; World Of Ptavvs

Norman, John: Tarnsman Of Gor 1; Outlaw Of Gor 2; Priest-Kings Of Gor 3; Nomads Of Gor 4; Assassin Of Gor 5; Raiders Of Gor 6; Captive Of Gor 7; Hunters Of Gor 8; Marauders Of Gor 9, Tribesmen Of Gor 10, Slave Girl of Gor 11; Time Slave

Norton, Andre: Quag Keep; Exiles of the Stars; Warlock of Witch World; High Sorcery; Witch World; Sargasso Of Space; Lord Of Thunder

Nowlan, Philip F.: Armageddon 2419 A.D.

Offutt, Andrew J.: Demon In The Mirror 1; Eyes Of Sarsis 2; Web Of The Spider 3; Conan, The Sword of Skelos; Conan The Mercenary; Swords Against Darkness I; Swords Against Darkness II; Swords Against Darkness III; Swords Against Darkness IV; Swords Against Darkness V; The Iron Lords 1; Shadows Out Of Hell 2; The Lady Of The Snowmist 3; Sword of the Gael 1; The Undying Wizard 2; The Sign of the Moonbow 3; The Mists Of Doom 4;

Peake, Mervyn:  Ghormenghast; Titus Groan; Titus Alone

Piper, H. Beam: Space Viking; Little Fuzzy; Fuzzy Sapiens; Fuzzies And Other People; Lord Kalvan Of Otherwhen

Poe, Edgar Allan:  Collected Stories

Powers, Tim:  On Stranger Tides; The Anubis Gates

Pratchett, Terry: The Colour Of Magic; The Light Fantastic, Equal Rites, Mort

Pratt, Fletcher: Land Of Unreason; The Blue Star; The Well of the Unicorn; The Carnelian Cube

Saberhagen, Fred: The First Book Of Swords; Second Book Of Swords; Third Book Of Swords; Empire Of The East

Salmonson, Jessica: Amazons!

Schmitz, James: The Witches of Karres; The Demon Breed

Shackleford, Jack D.: Tanith

Shea, Michael: Color Out Of Time; A Quest For Simbilis; Nifft The Lean; The Incompleat Nifft; The Mines of Behemoth; The A`Rak

Sims, John:

Sirota, Mike: Master Of Boranga

Smith, Clark Ashton: Lost Worlds Volume 1; Lost Worlds Volume 2; Out Of Space And Time 1; Out Of Space And Time 2; The Abominations of Yondo; Genius Loci; Poseidonis; Zothique; Hyperborea; Xiccarph; Tales Of Science And Sorcery; Other Dimensions 1; Other Dimensions 2

Smith, David: Red Sonja 1; Red Sonya 2, Demon Knight; Red Sonja 3, When Hell Laughs; Black Vulmea, The Witch of the Indes

Smith, L. Neil: Lando Calrissian and the Midharp of Sharu; Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of Thonboka; Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Osean

Smith, E.E. ‘Doc’: Triplanetary

Spenser, Edmund:  The Faerie Queene

Springer, Nancy: The White Hart; The Silver Sun

St. Clair, Margaret: The Shadow People; Sign of the Labrys

Stapledon, Olaf:  Last And First Men; Starmaker

Stasheff, Christopher: The Warlock Wandering; The Warlock Rock; A Warlock's Blade; Warlock And Son; The Warlock Is Missing; Her Majesty's Wizard; King Kobold

Stewart, Mary: The Crystal Cave; The Hollow Hills; The Last Enchantment

Swann, Thomas: Green Phoenix; The Goat Without Horns; The Forest Of Forever; Day Of The Minotaur; Cry Silver Bells; Moondust; The Gods Abide

Tierney, Richard: Red Sonja 1; Red Sonya 2, Demon Knight; Red Sonja 3, When Hell Laughs; The Drums Of Chaos

Tolkien, J.R.R.: The Hobbit; The Lord Of The Rings

Twain, Mark:  A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Tubb, E.C.: The Winds Of Gath 1; Derai 2; Toyman 3; Kalin 4; Jester Of Scar 5; Lallia 6; Technos 7; Veruchia 8; Mayenne 9; Jondelle 10; Zenya 11; Eloise 12; Eye Of The Zodiac 13; Jack Of Swords 14; Spectrum Of A Forgotten Sun 15; Haven Of Darkness 16; Prison Of Night 17; Incident of Ath 18; The Quillian Sector 19; Web Of Sand 20;

Van Arnam, Dave: Star Barbarian

Van Vogt, A.E.: The Voyage Of The Space Beagle; Quest For The Future

Vance, Jack: The Languages Of The Pao; The Dragon Masters; The Best of Jack Vance; The Dying Earth; The Eyes of the Overworld; Cugel’s Saga; Rhialto The Marvelous; Trullion, Alastor 2262; Wyst, Alastor 1716; Marune, Alastor 933; The Faceless Man 1; The Brave Free Men 2; The Astura 3; Lyonesse 1; The Green Pearl 2; Madouc 3; The Face 4; The Blue World; Galactic Effectuator; Big Planet; City Of The Chasch 1; Servants of the Wankh 2; The Dirdir 3; The Pnume 4; The Last Castle; The Palace of Love; The Book of Dreams

Verne, Jules: The Mysterious Island; A Journey To The Centre Of The Earth;

Voltaire:  Candide

Walton, Evangeline:  The Island of the Mighty; The Children Of Llyr; The Song Of Rhiannon; Prince of Annwyn

Wagner, Karl E: Bloodstone, Death Angel’s Shadow, Dark Crusade

Weinbaum, Stanley; The Black Flame; A Martian Odyssey

Wellman, Manly Wade: The Old Gods Waken; The Hanging Stones; The Lost And The Lurking; After Dark; Silver John; Who Fears The Devil?

White, Theodore: The Once and Future King

Williams, Robert M.: Return of Jongor

Williamson, Jack: The Trial Of Terra; The Legion Of Space

Wolfe, Gene: The Shadow of the Torturer 1; The Citadel Of The Autarch 4

Zelazny, Roger: Nine Princes In Amber; The Guns of Avalon; Sign of the Unicorn; The Hand of Oberon; The Courts of Chaos; Jack Of Shadows; Dilvish, The Damned; The Changing Land; Isle of the Dead; Trumps of Doom; Blood Of Amber; Sign Of Chaos; Knight Of Shadows; Prince of Chaos, The Chronicles Of Amber 1