Platinum Hits

Over the years I've created several digital products that I sell on DriveThruRPG and I was browsing those today and discovered that four of them are Platinum Best Sellers meaning I have sold over 1,000 units of each. 

Cross Planes Game Studio is very much the definition of vanity publishing and I'm extremely grateful to everyone who has purchased these products. I'm not sure what is next for me but I'm thinking about something for the Cepheus Engine or the Quantum Engine.

For those curious the Class Hack 1st Edition, the Race Hack 1st Edition, the Class Hack 2nd Edition, and the Race Hack 2nd edition are the products that are Platinum. I guess if I were a better businessperson I'd make more products for the Black Hack.

State of the Planes November 2025

Although I aimed for 31 posts last month, I actually finished 25, which is much better than any other month this year. At the beginning of the month, I was creating new material, but the last posts were reposts.

I'm currently playing DnD 2024 as a Thief Rogue in the Vecna campaign from a year or two ago. We are at 9th level. We've lost a couple of people, and schedules are becoming more challenging, so we'll see what we can achieve. 

I ran a Deadlands by Gaslight 3-paeter and demos of Pathfinder for Savage Worlds and Dragonbane in the last six weeks, and those went pretty well.

I have been running a Swords and Wizardry game for my DnD Campers (we've been playing together for over a year), and we did a special one-shot for Halloween where they made characters based on their costumes, and it was an absolute blast. It is amazing to watch these kids hang out together and build a community.

I've spent the last few months testing out Shadowdark, Savage Worlds, and Dragonbane, and I think Dragonbane is my preferred game going forward. I need a break from the d20 system, and while I love SW, Dragonbane is easier to teach IMO.

I'm working on a setting for it that is a total rip-off of Thundarr the Barbarian and Kamandi. 

I'll use the Bestiary's Ogres and the various Anthropomorphic races...maybe Dwarves too.

State of the Planes February 2025

Art by Andrea Ardinghi

I've worked very hard at limiting my Gaming ADD over the past 12 months and I'm finally finding success with it. I'd like to impart some secret to it but I've just been focused on story over rules and being very intentional with my focus.

The upside is that my DnD 5.5 game is cruising along. Since being honest with myself about disliking the resource management aspect of combat encounters most of our sessions are filled with roleplaying with a combat every 2-3 sessions.  The plot is player driven with a fairly light outline in place but player goals are prioritized.

The game is set on Greyhawk and the group has just recently visited the sprawling metropolis to lie low from several agents of Iuz the Old.

I have come to except, to some degree, that 5E and its derivatives are what my group is most comfortable playing and honestly, while I do have a strong interest in Savage Worlds, Shadow of the Demon Lord/Weird Wizard, and Basic Role Playing, I do like the current version of DnD quite a bit and the 2024 update is an excellent product.

There are three plot threads in play right now: Finding a ritual called the Ebon Maw that can break a pact made by one of their allies; Acquiring a spelljammer to tool around in; And a mission into the sewers of Greyhawk to locate an asset of the Violet Spiral Thieves' Guild.

We finished up last night with the group entering the Black Ziggurat looking for the Ebon Maw. They encountered some skeletons, bypassed some traps, and are on the verge of meeting its primary resident.

The Ebon Maw ritual was created by a lich named Ikabod Langstrüm and is believed to be hidden within the Ziggurat which he used as a sanctum for many decades. There has been a lot of negotiating in this game and that is fine by me. At one point the players were really skirting the line of villainy but they pulled themselves back from the edge by putting some distance between themselves and those agents. I'm really leaning into the high fantasy aspects of DnD with a Greyhawk lens. All of my past successful 5E campaigns have formed a setting I call the Polyverse which feature Ashardolon as the God of Chromatic Dragons and Saint Cuthbert being imprisoned within Ravenloft. My intention is to allow them to rub elbows with the big players and I am prepared for them to make permanent changes to the mythology of DnD. 

The Future Starts Today!

Or some such thing. 

Happy 2025.

My blog is 12 years old and I didn't manage to post once a month on here. I don't know what 2025 holds but I'm trying to get back into the habit of expressing myself creatively on here.

I really struggled with my interests in RPGs this year. I've been with my Friday group 9 years now and our goals weren't always aligned this year. As a game retailer I'm often angry at whatever antics Wizrds of the Coast is up to and when it comes to my own personal money I often don't want to give it to them. Which means I have resented our DnD Beyond sub and really wasn't sure I wanted to even play DnD.

However, while WotC is often spot on in how it targets its customers. My store's Magic players, good people who are essential to my business' success, are often very happy with what they are doing. Even within my group there are people who are heavily critical but give them their hard earned sheckles with every new release.

Lets be frank: I'm lucky to have spent 25 years selling comics and games to our customers. I love my job and my customers. Its not my job to tell them what to play. Its also not my job to tell my group they shouldn't support WotC. I am the only member of my group that wants to move from DnD though.

It led me to realize that I don't enjoy the power level of 5th Edition. I like many of the mechanics but I'm drawn to the OSR due to its DM and player empowerment but most of my players were introduced to DnD with 3rd, 4th, or even 5th edition and they don't share that preference and that is okay. I struggled with just stepping back and moving on.

I didn't move on and instead started a 5.5 game.

Yeah...

I expected 5.5 to be a dumpster fire and it is a really well laid out and organized core book. The 2014 PHB had a small team and DnD was very much in danger of possibly fading away if its launch hadn't gone well by Hasbro's standards. The 2024 PHB takes into account the millions of new players we now have and the 2024 DMG is a significant upgrade over its earlier counterpart.

And like it or not DnD Beyond is a really good resource for a lazy player like myself. In looking at games like Savage Worlds or Basic Role Playing or Shadow of the Weird Wizard and their biggest miss is not having a tool like DnD Beyond. I get why they don't but it sure makes things much, much easier on everyone.

My 5.5 game is set in a version of Greyhawk and I'm about to finish my first adventure. Combat has been minimal because I'm often disappointed with it. Maybe its because I came from ADnD 2E but I don't like that encounters as resources to be managed and I'm a lot happier as a GM with exploration and interaction so we will see how it goes.

With all of that being said about DnD I'm a member of Mike Mearls' Patreon where he is building a fusion of 5E and BX (who isn't amiright?) that I'm finding delightful. Each preview really, really hits a sweet spot for me and while I really dig Shadowdark I think I'm going to like this better.

He's previewed the Fighter, Magic-User, Cleric, Rogue, an Ape & Mountain Dwarf ancestry, and a Miner & soldier background. I urge you to join it.

State of the Planes: August 2024

Interesting times is the best way to describe the last year or so for me. When WotC pulled their OGL crap early last year I spent a lot of time looking at an alternative to DnD for my group and my customers and it was all kind of for nought.

My group is entrenched in 5E which has caused some issues for us...well me in the ensuing months. Most of the players are roughly 15 years younger and some of them either a) love 5E or b) have no interest in trying other games. 

Me? I love RPGs and own a T-O-N!

Things have gotten to the point I've spent a lot of time thinking if this group, that I've been with for at least 8 years, might not be the best fit any longer. At times its really been hard on my Anxiety and its also made me think about taking another sabbatical. What has been the most difficult is that we have always had one-shots on off-nights for the DM and two players don't have any interest in them any longer even though one of them used to play numerous systems with me 2-3 nights a week. It has reminded me of my first group and that wasn't a great association for me. It's easy to say "no gaming is better than bad gaming" but it can be real scary sometimes to contemplate that and it makes me a little sad that I feel that way.

However, in the midst of all of this, I find myself both impressed with how WotC has marketed 5.5 and even kind of excited to see it in action. Not real sure what that means but we'll see.

We had a pretty successful DnD Camp for tweens in July and we are trying to work out how to continue that for those younger players once school starts. I'm not sure that I fully agree 5E, in full, is a great RPG to teach new players but I'm downplaying skills and feats and using Ability Checks for most things. The kid's imagination is so refreshing and the experience, which includes my youngest in her first game, has been really rewarding.

That has led me to I contemplate if I should start a new group for players looking to try out 5.5 and so I find myself brainstorming DnD campaigns and contemplating what is best for me and my store. The jury is still out and I have a few weeks before 5.5's launch on September 3rd.

As far as finding a suitable replacement for DnD to sell in stores Savage Worlds...specifically Deadlands was the most successful option. We mostly just saw reduced DnD sales over the same time frame and I probably should've have pushed myself to learn and teach Pathfinder 2E but I really don't want that much crunch in the RPGs I run these days.

Lots to think about as a fan and merchant of RPGs at the moment and I'm kicking the can down the road since I can. 

It's weird thinking about leaving a group and forming a new one, but I've done it before and will probably do it again. The time playing these games is supposed to be fun for me and them or why are we doing it, right?

I have played around with Matt Collville's RPG and it's intriguing with its lack of To Hit rolls. That mechanic is growing on me. I've also backed Nimble 5E which removes the attack roll as well, but I need to see more of that game. I'm pretty disappointed in Kobold's Tales of the Valiant though, I'd hoped it would have been a bit more divergent but it is what it is.

Nostalgia has me looking at Champions/HERO System too. I have a second Wednesday group but we mostly just chat and laugh. I think that might be what bothers me about the Friday group, we used to be like that and now we aren't.

It will work out. I think I'm more mature now and can walk away if it's for the best instead of burning bridges, which I've done more times than I care to mention.

Hopefully, I'll get back to posting...well more than just here and there. This blog was born out of the OSR and the timing of the DnD Next playtest so maybe 5.5 will help me get it back on track?

Be well.

State of the Planes April 2024

It's been awhile. I've been good and hope all of you have as well. I've spend a lot of time thinking about what this hobby and its industry mean to me. I think I'm at a point in life where finding time for my buddies is more important to me than the games.

Further, I'm not sure I like running games anymore. I know I prefer the games I run to have less and less combat and that they resource management of DnD and its many, many clones just don't do it for me. Honestly, the OSR showed me the resource management aspects and I think it's why I don't have much to say about running any of those games. I've really come to realize I prefer games about big damn heroes fighting the good fight and if there isn't any real danger for the characters I don't know what the point of combat is. I'd rather run games where the conflicts have different stakes these days and I know with 100% certainty that I don't want any part of a combat that lasts over an hour and if the tide of battle looks like an assured victory for the players I'd rather just end it and move on.

I also find myself wanting less rules. I don't want a 300 page rulebook or a 300 page adventure. I'm lucky that right now I play with two fantastic groups who prioritize fun over rules and I trust them to let the story drive the sessions.

Additionally, I've found that I am really tired of rolling a d20 and seem to favor d100 and 3d6s as resolution systems these days. I've been looking at GURPS, The Fantasy Trip, and the HERO System a lot. HERO was my first RPG and maybes its simply nostalgia? Along those lines I've been reading Green Ronin's Adventure Game Engine offerings like Dragon Age, Modern Age, and Fantasy Age. However, I've found myself finding more satisfaction from systems where you roll equal to or below your TN as opposed to  equal to or above. That is a major sea change for me but I think it has to do with wanting to think less about rules while at the table and putting the mechanics into the hands of the players.

The only drawbacks I have with HERO and GURPS is that I don't want a full blown point-based system so after reading through GURPS Lite for 3rd Edition I've been looking at merging B/X DnD or Gamma World with the bones of the HERO system replacing the skill system and combat system and GURPS standing in for armor and weapons.

Hopefully, I'll get back to posting again to showcase my ideas.

State of the Planes: October 2023

This year just seems to have flown by and All Hallow's Eve is nearly upon us. I've been playing a Fighter named Bluehawk using the Unearthed Arcana playtest version and am enjoying it. I'm a bit tired of 5E though and if the group wants to continue with it after this campaign wraps I might excuse myself for a bit. I love seeing all of my friends but they still seem very enthused about 5E and I am just not.

I'm still taking a break from Deadlands on Tuesdays and we are beginning an Icons game set in the DC...uh...Multiverse...I guess? The PCs are working for Power Co. in Opal City and are dealing with a new version of HIVE led by Cheshire.

I've spent the last few months looking at games I want to run such as Shadowdark, Dragonbane, Basic Role Playing, Hero's Journey, Castle Falkenstein, Fantasy AGE, Hero System 6E, and even Pathfinder 2E. I think whatever I run it won't have a d20 in it. I love the OSR and still love 5E, even though I despise Wizards of the Coast, but I just need some time away from both of them. I think I'm going to focus on Savage Worlds since my biggest grip against it was the Wound system which is no longer the case and I really like a bunch of its settings: Deadlands, Battlelords of the 23rd Century, Rippers Resurrected, 50 Fathoms, Saga of Solomon Kane, Flash Gordon, Pathfinder, and Lankhmar. I'm contemplating a setting like Rifts Earth (though I don't want to run SW Rifts yet), Deadland's Hunting Grounds...something where people from all over find themselves in the same place or the setting just makes room for all of them like Numenera's 9th World a billion years in the future but without the Cyphers.. Basically, I'd just lay out all of the Seasoned Archetypes for SWADE and let people pick their characters. I love what Pinnacle is doing with the Archetype, Powers, Chase, Status, and Ally/Adversary cards. I also have a Rippers Resurrected mixed with Ravenloft's Masque of the Red Death game in mind but when don't I have a million ideas? So little time. Sigh.

I'd like to do some "OSR stuff" for Savage Worlds like I started with Death's Head Keep earlier this year but I'm going to be realistic and see what happens. I don't think I just want to make antagonists and might focus on setting material and even side quests.

I guess we will see what November and December hold.

Be well.

State of the Planes: Pushing Myself

One of the things I enjoy most is making Monsters for RPGs. If you've read this blog you probably know that. I like adapting outside properties and creating things whole-cloth, but I struggle with two things: One, Monsters don't get a ton of views these days and I get it, as much as I love making them there are already a lot of antagonists for most RPGs, especially for DnD and the OSR; Two, I think I've retreated to making Monsters so I don't have to actually write down my ideas, be they new mechanics, response to stuff I've read elsewhere, sessions reports, etc.. Its become a kind of crutch a way to keep the blog going but with the barest minimum effort.

I've decided I'm going to push myself to write more, to convey my creations beyond the Monsters you find here, things I've realized I've actively been avoiding. It's weird to realize that I've been hiding behind Monsters to some degree for awhile and that I need to attempt to stop doing that. 

I want to challenge myself and this post is mainly about calling myself out and pushing myself creatively in ways I used to do on this blog.  I've been playing it safe and I want to do more than that. 

State of the Planes March 2021

I'm sure like many of you the past year has been...challenging....at best. Last fall I dove headfirst into action figures and DnD, the OSR, and RPGs took a back seat to that new hobby which is where my passion has been directed since then.

I don't want Cross Planes to go away but I don't know if I can go back to anything close to a post every day. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I just am not sure that I have the time to do it.

I have worked at Comic Book World since November 1999 and it has always been the plan that my wife and I would purchase the store from her parents one day. Her parents retired in November and a busy job got busier and since there aren't any in-person Pop Culture Conventions, those people lucky enough to have jobs are spending it locally, so we are busier than ever (and I'm not complaining). On top of that Collectibles have EXPLODED, I was hired during the firs Pokemon boom and at one point my job involved going to Wizard of the Coast's website and ordering Pokemon TCG boosters directly from them for 8 hours a day on a dial up and these days about 1/4 of my day involves finding Pokemon TCG boosters again. I don't know how long it will last but I'm going to enjoy the ride.

The blog isn't going away but it's obvious that what I've had to say on here is different now and I'm trying to figure that out.

I'll be seeing you.

State of the Planes: July 2018

What a long, strange trip it's been?

Sometime last summer, I found out my Dad had terminal cancer and that trip ended in late February this year. Obviously, it affected the blog. And me. It's still affecting me.

But even before that I was having trouble finding direction with the site. I was more focused more on monetizing it than just enjoying it. I think I'm past that now.

You may have noticed quite a bit of Labyrinth Lord, here's the reasons: 1) I like LL. 2) It's easy to work up quick ideas, the way Cypher System was. I like making or converting monsters. It gets my mind working creatively. Hopefully you guys like it too.

But if you don't or you have any feedback, please post. And I take requests. I really do.

Try to stay cool out there.