Sanguine Productions

Notes from the Aleph: Combat x3

Imperator — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 01:09:32 +0000

Notes from the Aleph will be our ongoing series of game-design notes from the Sanguine authors.

As role-playing games have evolved, they have become richer and more complex: more options in combat, more special abilities to use. What characters can and cannot do becomes more and more refined … and the books get bigger and bigger, with more and more rules. Since tabletop games are turn based — each player gets a chance to do something, and they get all the time they need to think about it — they will want to plan, they will want to know what options are available to them, they will want to read the rules. Is it any wonder that many table-top games will take three or four hours to play out a simple fight sequence that a movie, TV show, or video game could’ve handled in five minutes?

When we wrote the combat rules for IRONCLAW: Squaring the Circle, we had three primary goals:

Combat should be expedient.
Combat should be expressive.
Combat should be exciting.

Fast, Dramatic, Expedient

Many modern RPGs have very high numbers that can take a long time to play out. If you only have, say, a 1 in 3 chance of hitting a target … and if you only do 1/4 of the target’s hit points every hit … then, on average, it will take 12 exchanges until the target goes down.

If a player takes about one minute to make their tactical decision, roll their dice, and note the results… then a game with five players will take about five minutes to play out a round. Given the example we listed before, it will take about nine rounds until at least one fighter drops, so that’s about 60 minutes before there’s a single meaningful victory. Once there’s an imbalance and ganging up, it will be another round or two until the fight ends. That’s over an hour for a simple fight. And if the dice aren’t rolling well, it could take even longer than that.

And all of these numbers assume that everyone makes their decision in only one minute! Combat should be expedient. It should feel fast and furious, like an action movie. Every roll should mean something!

Compelling, Inventive, Expressive

Some games have responded to the increased complexity of fights … by downsizing anything that’s not a fight. Player-Characters become containers for equipment and combat skills; if anything else happens, that’s considered a garnish to the main dish of battle. The game becomes more of a war-game than a role-playing game, and the players feel unsatisfied that they can’t really do anything else other than swing a sword or blast a monster. Combat should be expressive. It should advance the story, not be the story.

Dire, Perilous, Exciting

Other games take a u-turn, where combat is kept simple to the point of being too simple. If fights are resolved with a single die roll, then players feel cheated that they contributed to the battle in any meaningful way. Fighting becomes something to be avoided, being too random to be fun. And that’s a shame if you’re trying to play a game with any action sequences at all, if you want to be the heroes of your favorite books, television, and movies.

The worst games don’t address this issue at all. Rules are heaped upon rules, and doing anything -– fighting, socializing, crafting -– takes hours of game time. Each play session is a grind as little progress is made. Combat should be exciting. It should be part of the fun, and not get in the way of the fun.

Three Times The Action

With IRONCLAW, our goal was to make the game like an action movie, TV show, or fiction thriller. Many stories set up with a small fight, have some investigation and problem-solving in the middle, then end with a climactic battle … and all are done in one helping. Assuming players only get together for three to five hours at a time, how could we set the game up so we can get everything done, and have it still be fun?

Sides of battle. Many games impose an “initiative” rule, where every combatant rolls a random number to determine when they act in the turn. Fair enough … but since rolling a unique number for every fighter might confuse a game host, the bad guys often use “group initiative”, rolling just a single number for the lot of them. The game effect is to have all the bad guys as one collective mind, organized and ruthless, against the heroes … while splitting the heroes up and preventing them from working together, as a team. IRONCLAW eliminates this arbitrary mechanic and has all the players working together … then the combat and damage rules are set up so that they will need to work together if they want to win!
Counter-Attacks. In most role-playing games, a slow grind sets up as warriors attack, and miss … then attack, and miss … then attack, and miss … in other words, many rounds where not much happens. With IRONCLAW, when someone attacks you, a common defense is to attack them right back! Simply put, almost twice as much action happens, which can reduce the time to resolve a fight in half.
Status Damage. In some games, each combatant is either “fine”, with positive hit points, or “dead”, and out of hit points. Getting hurt is just an abstract concept – a character might bounce a bullet off their skull, but when their turn rolls around, it was just damage, there’s no lasting effect. Players are encouraged to “role-play” these abstract numbers by describing the bad things that happen … but why not make that part of the fun? IRONCLAW doesn’t use numbers — Damage is expressed in the terms the characters themselves would use, like “Hurt”, “Injured”, or “Dying”.
Morale Loss as a Damage Mechanic. It wasn’t that long ago that role-playing games had a “Morale” rule, where bad guys would run away after suffering heavy losses. Today, that realism is largely gone, as so many people throw their lives away, fighting to the death. With IRONCLAW, characters beaten to within an inch of their lives become “Afraid”, losing their will to fight. Bad guys will flee … unless they have a major character to urge them on. Players may flee, starting an exciting chase sequence, a staple of movies and television. If they want to stay, they will have to work together, by giving each other covering fire, by rallying one another, and by falling back and re-grouping for another assault.
Small numbers. Too many games give all combatants dozens or hundreds of hit points. Gaming out any fight takes hours, and often every character, major and minor alike, have numbers way too high, and everyone’s a super-hero who shrugs off explosions and gunshots to the head. Some games try a compromise where they declare some characters to be “mooks” or “minions”, imposing a “quick kill” rule on them where they can be killed instantly. Not only do special quick-kill rules make the game more complex, they err too far in the other direction –- these foes who were supposed to be feared could be taken out by small children armed with slingshots, which makes our players feel less than heroic. IRONCLAW treats everyone the same – there’s only one damage mechanic for everyone –- and then gives major characters an upgrade to keep them from being taken out by a single lucky hit. And the emphasis is on single -– once the protection of a combat save is gone, our heroes clearly know they’re in over their heads, and it’s time to run.

As your character upgrades to better equipment, higher levels of skills, and more special abilities, we’ve kept the three Xs in mind: Expedient, Expressive, and Exciting. You’ll now be able to play out two or three fights and still have time for spying on the Bisclavret diplomat, for stealing the war-chest from the Indictateur spies, and for fencing the gold to off-shore merchants. Adventures can be like popular adventure stories, with moments of dire peril broken up by careful scheming, all done with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of fun!

IRONCLAW 2nd Edition Omnibus is now available from Studio 2

Imperator — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 02:27:04 +0000

Click here to order now.

Sanguine Productions is proud to announce the availability of IRONCLAW: SQUARING THE CIRCLE at the Studio 2 Publishing online store.

The book is available in both a digital PDF version as well as a case-bound full-color hardback.

Everything you need to play in one volume, this new and updated version of IRONCLAW includes all the rules for character creation, with hundreds of character options. Choose your species, or make up your own! Learn amazing powers such as gravity-defying parkour, bone-breaking strikes, last-minute dodges, and wondrous magics. Explore the lands of Calabria, with its unsavory thieves, scheming nobles, evil sorcerers, and bizarre monsters.

IRONCLAW’s unique rules allow quicker play with better results. Combats are fast and furious. The same encounter is different if you’re a noble, a priestess, a layman, or a scofflaw. Enjoy the pacing of a movie as you fight bad guys, solve problems, parley with the locals, and save the kingdom … all in one play-session!

Anthrocon sellout, Origins events

Imperator — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 22:25:20 +0000

Thanks to all the guests at Anthrocon who saw a special sneak-peek, and emptied out all our stock!

And a special shout-out to Rafferty, Shavastak, and Mr. Zodo for demonstrating our second-edition IRONCLAW at the Anthrocon and Origins conventions.

Time is coming! More updates to come soon.

Time is coming … to Anthrocon!

Imperator — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 01:20:35 +0000

Come check out the Sanguine Productions table — Island #2 — at Anthrocon, in Pittsburgh, this weekend!

Also, those of you going to the Origins Game Fair and Expo, be watching for the Ironclaw events there, numbers 6683, 6684, and 6685.

Time is Coming: IRONCLAW

Imperator — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 17:13:48 +0000

In the forgotten recesses of an old curiosity shop can be found a harbinger of great things to come …

The award winning, critically-acclaimed game is back! Ironclaw: Squaring the Circle is an exciting new edition of the classic role-playing game of anthropomorphic fantasy.

Experience Ironclaw’s rich and detailed world of Calabria, where dozens of species live together in sprawling cities and war-torn countryside. Kings broker for power with clergy, wizards, and merchants, each one struggling to conquer all they survey. Meanwhile, beneath the notice of the squabbling powers, lurk greedy robbers, cruel slavers, and dark necromancers who prey on the weak, the helpless, and the forgotten. It is a time for mighty warriors, for quick rogues, for clever wizards – a time for heroes!

Ironclaw’s unique system of dynamic combat allows players to work together to defeat enemies. Enjoy action sequences as fast-paced and exciting as any book or movie, where how the battle is fought is just as important as why it was fought in the first place. From the star chambers of political conspirators, who plot steal the kingdom… to dark and haunted places, where supernatural peril threatens the mortal world … or even to the humble streets, where an urchin picks the wrong pocket – adventure is everywhere, limited only by the player’s imaginations.

Ironclaw: Squaring the Circle is a complete game in one volume. Players may choose from dozens of species, careers, and special abilities. If you’ve never played a role-playing game before, you can make a few simple choices and play in minutes. Veteran gamers can delve deep into strange and powerful combinations, customizing every detail. You and your fellow players will create a party of adventurers, each with unique strengths to cover your friends’ weaknesses, as you sally forth into a glorious new world of bold adventure.

Ironclaw: Squaring the Circle will be available July 1, 2010. Listen for future updates from the brazen head about what the future has in store!

Examiner.Com interviews Jason Holmgren, Director of Sanguine

Imperator — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 01:24:58 +0000

Even though he’s frequently busy, both with his day job and with his rule as Imperator of the Sanguine Empire, Jason took some time to answer some questions for Examiner.com. Click here to read the full article…

Reference List

Imperator — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 13:40:18 +0000

Greetings to all the folks from Fan Expo 2009! Some folks had some very good questions, so here’s some links to the books I mentioned.

Art

How to Draw Anime & Game Characters: Basics for Beginners
and Beyond by Tadashi Ozawa

One of the better books on making anime characters. This book is particularly nifty in that it shows the “typical” types of anime characters, how to composite a cover, and (especially good) a comparison of a “fannish” picture to a finished one. Now available in English!

(no picture)	The Art of Final Fantasy IX by Dan Birlew, et al. Ssee those nifty watercolors by Y. Amano (famous for his work in Vampire Hunter D and Sandman, as well as many of the Final Fantasy titles), the character design by H. Manabi (Digimon), and stills of the CG-rendered sequences.

	Atlas of the Human Anatomy for the Artist by Stephen Rodgers Peck Some of the more popular “how to draw” books can be picked up in any old chapter, and this is one of the better ones. Included are some nice demonstrations on bones, muscle, balance, motion vs. still, body types, and differences between genders and ages. Recommended for those artists who are having trouble with a particular thing or two and are looking for pointers.

	Books by Jack Hamm: Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes Drawing the Head & Figure How to Draw Animals Together, these books are an excellent resource. Written with the beginner in mind, there’s also a few tricks that a professional can pick up. Jack Hamm concentrates mostly on pencils and pen & ink, though he does discuss how to use the media to bring out texture and depth to the subject matter.

(no picture)	Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth Burne Hogarth has written lots of books related to art. and all of them are highly recommended, but we suggest you start with this one.

	How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by Stan Lee, et al. In the 1960s, Marvel Comics stood out as a breath of fresh air in the moribund comics industry. This book explains some of the finer points. Most notable are its “good/bad” contrasts, showing how not to draw a page (using no perspective, stiff characterizations, etc.) and then how to draw the same scene with more dynamic action. Worth a look-see.

	Peachpit Press Wow! Books: Photoshop Wow! Book Illustrator Wow! Book If you’re looking to use computers, few books are better than the Wow! Series by Peachtree Press. In particular, the Photoshop Wow! Books include some invaluable advice on how to colorize by computer. If you want to know “how they do that”, these books will tell you.

	Understanding Comics: the Invisible Art by Scott McCloud Concise and clear, while never pretentious or dismissive, Understanding Comics is an excellent guide to what the modern form of comic, or “sequential illustration”, is all about. This book includes terminology, discussions of technique, real-world issues such as production technology and commerce, and even a short treatise on “what is art”. No comic illustrator’s library should be without this book.
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Business

The E Myth: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What to Do
About It by Michael Gerber

Learn from the mistakes of others! Before going into business for yourself, find out how others did it first. If only more self-publishers had read this book, maybe their ventures would have proved more successful. This book is mostly noteable for its discussions on the different hats a small business owner must wear, and how one has to keep at it despite setbacks.

The Mythical Man-Month : Essays on Software Engineering by Frederick P. Brooks Jr.

What’s this book doing in a list of role-playing game references? RPG Design and Software Engineering have a lot in common: they’re both “systems” that let folks get stuff done. Written in the 1970s (with such neat comments such as the price of renting memory at “$40 per megabyte, although this is expected to go down”), it is still very timely today with its frank discussions of time management and how some things simplywon’t be done right the first time.

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Fiction

	Tales of the Dying Earth, by Jack Vance The Lyonesse Trilogy, by Jack Vance: Suldrun’s Garden The Green Pearl Madouc Jack Vance is nonpareil among fantasy authors; his worlds are richly detailed and his characters stay true to form. All of his stories are filled with opportunists and scoundrels of the highest order, larger-than-life heroes who never surrender in adversity, and diabolic plots and atrocities that other books about “evil” fail to broach. The “Lyonesse” Trilogy stands apart as a series that moves from fairy-tale fantasy to political intrigue to historical drama and then back to another theme, all seamlessly. All titles by Jack Vance are highly recommended.

	The Black Company by Glen Cook When it comes to books about “the lesser of two evils”, few can match Glen Cook for fantasy where the main characters are just deep in it and snorkeling. “The Black Company” follows the exploits of a mercenary company employed by the 2nd Most Evil Being in the World, known only as “The Lady”, as she fights the 1st Most Evil Being in the World, “the Dominator.” (Later in the series, the Company solicits the help from a being that may or may not be involved with something even MORE evil, but .. well, read the books. ^.^ )
	The Tower of Fear by Glen Cook “The Tower of Fear” is about a faux-Roman Empire that has dominated a faux-Muslim country that is fighting to find out what really happened to their most powerful wizard… who probably isn’t dead after all. Very “gamer-oriented” and a good read for those who want to see how to run a political intrigue campaign.

	Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock Michael Moorcock has written more than one book about a decadent empire of effete sybarites in decline, but this book stands out with most readers, especially the goth set. The title character, Elric, is a sickly albino at the end of thousands of generations of a noble house, the product of forbidden worship and centuries of inbreeding. His stories are about greed, madness, betrayal, and other unsavoriness. Most power-gamers prefer to focus on Elric’s phenomenal spell-casting abilities and his soul-sucking, god-slaying sword “Stormbringer”. Most gothophiles prefer to focus on how, despite all of Elric’s power, he is still depressed and lonely. I recommend this series because there’s a bit more to it than these two things.

	The Urth of the New Sun series by Gene Wolfe: Shadow & Claw: The First Half of the Book of the New Sun — The Shadow of the Torturer/the Claw of the Conciliator Sword & Citadel: The Second Half of the Book of the New Sun — The Sword of the Lictor and the Citadel of the Autarch The Urth of the New Sun Admittedly not for everyone, Gene Wolfe’s “Book of the New Sun” series stands apart as an inventive fantasy that’s very strange yet very real at the same time. I’m not sure why they call the first two books “halves”, since the the last book, “Urth of the New Sun”, wraps up a lot of the threads sown in earlier books, but then again I’m an RPG designer, not a book publisher. Read these to see why we include “Torturer” as one of our Ironclaw Careers.

	The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas This is one of those books that more people should’ve read, but haven’t. Alexander Dumas tells a wonderful tale of the proud and overconfident who win the day through clever improvisation and derring-do. This is an excellent book to show folks that there’s more an action-adventure fantasy than just dwarves, elves, and prophecy. Of particular importance is the political schism between the King’s Musketeers and the Cardinal’s Guard — folks who hate each other but can’t act in open defiance of the law. A major inspiration of Ironclaw authors.

(no picture)	The Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster: Spellsinger Spellsinger Book 2: The Hour at the Gate Spellsinger Book 4: The Moment of the Magician One of the more popular “furry novels”, Spellsinger stands out as a fantasy capitalizing on what anthropomorphism has to offer, as well as a few other nice touches. This series went on and on, with books varying in quality (including a strange artifact featuring M.C. Hammer’s rap music), yet a few stand out. I’ve selected the first two books here, which follows our hero Jon-Tom as he explores a strange world filled with humans, anthropormorphs, dragons, and supernatural creatures, as well as my personal favorite, The Moment of the Magician, which features some nifty bits and (in my opinion, under-developed but still cool) political intrigue around what happens when an otherworldly wizard shows up who doesn’t have to go on a world-saving quest.

	The Redwall series by Brian Jacques Redwall Martin the Warrior Salamandastron Brian Jacques’ all-ages fantasy about anthropomorphic warriors has been around for quite a while now, spawning over a dozen books. Dependent mostly on warfare and less on other traditional fantasy fare, the early books are self-contained and describe a world filled with slavers, overlords, bandits, and a few heroes. Completists may want to get all the books, but the ones here are the ones I recommend — Martin the Warrior earning the highest accolades.

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General

(no picture)	Systemantics: The Underground Text of Systems Lore by John Gall I read this book many years ago, before I even started role-playing. A “system” is a method of doing things or employing things, and the author cites what happens when a system becomes popular. People try to “optimize” it; folks show up with a vested interest in perpetuating the system. This book not only applies to business in general, and role-playing game systems in particular, but it also has application for other “systems” such as law, and politics. Our Ironclaw game, after all, concerns a society in a state of change from good ol’ medievalism to a modern Renaissance — and there are lords and ladies with a vested interest in keeping the “system” that has already served them well for hundreds of years…

	General System Theory: Foundations, Development, Applications by Ludwig von Bertalanfy By Ludwig von Bertalanfy, this book is the seminal work on systems theory. It essentially details the first ideas about systems and how they are autopoietic. (That’s a 3-dollar word for “self-regulating.”) Things out of balance do not long stay that way for very good reasons. Originally written as a work on biology, it has many applications to the realm of history, sociology and economics.

(no picture)	Power and Powerlessness: Quiescence and Rebellion in an Appalachian Valley by John Gaventa How does A get B to do what A wants? Mr. Gaventa details political structure from a very realpolitik view and leaves no one unbruised. He covers the basics of power relationships and their structures.

	The Art of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri Characterization is fully explored in this magnificent book on how to show the reader what you mean rather than tell them. Mr. Egri firmly believes that if you understand your characters motivation, they will write your play for you.

	Books by Robert Axelrod: The Evolution of Cooperation The Complexity of Cooperation Dr. Axelrod is a game theorist at University of Michigan. He specialized in decision-modeling and how people and groups come to consensus. He was one of the first to use computers in modeling interactions. From office relations to cold-war politics — if you want to understand them, get this book.

	The Writer’s Digest Character Naming Sourcebook by Sherrilyn Kenyon, et al. One of the best “naming books” out on the market for historical and medieval settings in particular. The names are grouped by origin first, with an alphabetical index in the back. Also included is a brief essay on character-naming theory.

	Books by Bill Whitcomb: The Magician’s Companion: A Practical and Encyclopedic Guide to Magical and Religious Symbolism The Magician’s Reflection: A Complete Guide to Creating Magical Symbols & Systems These two books by Bill Whitcomb are highly recommended for their discourse on “magic” and folklore. The Companion presents several “magical models” from history, from the more commonly known ones of “elementalism” and Tarot to increasingly obscure ones such as Enochian, Kaballah, and chakras, plus essays on what makes magic “tick”. (Of particular note to some gamers is that the most relevant parts from Isaac Bonewits’ Authentic Thaumaturgy are within this volume, sans the obtuse and dated 1979 gaming references.). The Reflection is more of an encyclopedia of meanings and items common throughout magic, such as the meanings commonly applied to plants, clothes, color, people, etc., with guidelines on how to make a “magic system” that you have a personal affinity for. Both books are highly recommended for those who want to make magic seem more “real” through a greater understanding of what makes “magic” in people’s minds. These two volumes are indispensible for magic fans.

	A History of Architechture: Settings and Rituals by Spiro Kostof, et al. No mere survey of famous buildings, History examines a surprisingly wide variety of manmade structures: prehistoric huts and the TVA, the pyramids at Giza and the 19th century railway station, the ziggurat and the department store. Some nice color photos and some very well-rendered maps.

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Time is coming!

Imperator — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:36:51 +0000

If you can read this, our technology is working!

A belated thanks to folks who came by our table at Anthrocon. As always, it was a good meet, a good greet.

Ground Zero

Chien Petit Méchant — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:31:28 +0000

Hello! This is our introductory post on the brand new Sanguine Productions Blog.

It’s been about two months in production now, but well worth the time. In fact all of you out there on the internet can now post comments on our posts, and tell us to stop being so lazy! And those of you following us on Livejournal don’t you worry you’ll still get updates too, although we are most fiendish and have limited you to only an excerpt of the full post.

In other news we’re now on Twitter too, you can find us at SanguineNews. Although I wouldn’t expect too much more than the automated blog updates out of it.

Finally… well actually I’d better leave things for the Illustrious Imperator to say, seeing as I’m stealing the limelight with the first official post.

As such. Adieu.

Sanguine Productions

Notes from the Aleph: Combat x3

IRONCLAW 2nd Edition Omnibus is now available from Studio 2

Anthrocon sellout, Origins events

Time is coming … to Anthrocon!

Time is Coming: IRONCLAW

Examiner.Com interviews Jason Holmgren, Director of Sanguine

Reference List

Art

How to Draw Anime & Game Characters: Basics for Beginners and Beyond by Tadashi Ozawa

The Art of Final Fantasy IX by Dan Birlew, et al.

Atlas of the Human Anatomy for the Artist by Stephen Rodgers Peck

Books by Jack Hamm: Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes Drawing the Head & Figure How to Draw Animals

Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth

How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by Stan Lee, et al.

Peachpit Press Wow! Books: Photoshop Wow! Book Illustrator Wow! Book

Understanding Comics: the Invisible Art by Scott McCloud

Business

The E Myth: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael Gerber

The Mythical Man-Month : Essays on Software Engineering by Frederick P. Brooks Jr.

Fiction

Tales of the Dying Earth, by Jack Vance

The Lyonesse Trilogy, by Jack Vance: Suldrun’s Garden The Green Pearl Madouc

The Black Company by Glen Cook

The Tower of Fear by Glen Cook

Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock

The Urth of the New Sun series by Gene Wolfe:

Shadow & Claw: The First Half of the Book of the New Sun — The Shadow of the Torturer/the Claw of the Conciliator Sword & Citadel: The Second Half of the Book of the New Sun — The Sword of the Lictor and the Citadel of the Autarch The Urth of the New Sun

The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas

The Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster: Spellsinger Spellsinger Book 2: The Hour at the Gate Spellsinger Book 4: The Moment of the Magician

The Redwall series by Brian Jacques Redwall Martin the Warrior Salamandastron

General

Systemantics: The Underground Text of Systems Lore by John Gall

General System Theory: Foundations, Development, Applications by Ludwig von Bertalanfy

Power and Powerlessness: Quiescence and Rebellion in an Appalachian Valley by John Gaventa

The Art of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri

Books by Robert Axelrod: The Evolution of Cooperation The Complexity of Cooperation

The Writer’s Digest Character Naming Sourcebook by Sherrilyn Kenyon, et al.

Books by Bill Whitcomb: The Magician’s Companion: A Practical and Encyclopedic Guide to Magical and Religious Symbolism The Magician’s Reflection: A Complete Guide to Creating Magical Symbols & Systems

A History of Architechture: Settings and Rituals by Spiro Kostof, et al.

Time is coming!

Ground Zero

How to Draw Anime & Game Characters: Basics for Beginners
and Beyond by Tadashi Ozawa

Atlas of the Human Anatomy for the Artist by Stephen
Rodgers Peck

Books by Jack Hamm:

Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes
Drawing the Head & Figure

How to Draw Animals

Peachpit Press Wow! Books:

Photoshop Wow! Book

Illustrator Wow! Book

The E Myth: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What to Do
About It by Michael Gerber

The Lyonesse Trilogy, by Jack Vance:
Suldrun’s Garden
The Green Pearl
Madouc

Shadow & Claw: The First Half of the Book
of the New Sun — The Shadow of the Torturer/the Claw
of the Conciliator
Sword & Citadel: The Second Half of the
Book of the New Sun — The Sword of the Lictor and
the Citadel of the Autarch

The Urth of the New Sun

The Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster:

Spellsinger

Spellsinger Book 2: The Hour at the Gate

Spellsinger Book 4: The Moment of the
Magician

The Redwall series
by Brian Jacques

Redwall

Martin the Warrior

Salamandastron

Power and Powerlessness: Quiescence and Rebellion in an
Appalachian Valley by John Gaventa

The
Art of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri

Books by Robert Axelrod:

The Evolution of Cooperation
The Complexity of Cooperation

The Writer’s Digest Character Naming Sourcebook by Sherrilyn
Kenyon, et al.

Books by Bill Whitcomb:
The Magician’s Companion: A Practical and Encyclopedic Guide to Magical and Religious Symbolism

The Magician’s Reflection: A Complete Guide to Creating Magical Symbols & Systems

A
History of Architechture: Settings and Rituals by
Spiro Kostof, et al.