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    5/12/2014 7:11 pm  #1

    Scalydemon
    Swordsman

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    From: The Emerald City
    Registered: 3/19/2014
    Posts: 432

    Pulp Zeb Cook

    Just thought this bit was interesting. I am a Cook fan, especially of the Conan box set from 1985

    http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2009/07/interview-david-zeb-cook-part-i.html

    While at TSR, you also worked on many classic D&D modules, two of which, The Isle of Dread[/url] and [url=http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2008/08/locale-and-plot.html]Dwellers of the Forbidden City, are among my personal favorites. Both show a clear pulp fantasy influence, the former reminding me of many "lost world" tales and the latter having a vaguely Howardian "Red Nails" vibe. Are you a fan of pulp fantasy and, if so, who are your favorite authors and stories?

    Well, I'm not surprised by the "Red Nails" reference since that was what I was clearly going for. It's my favorite Conan story and the city was based off of it. It was originally something I did for my own campaign and then used it as my resume when I applied to TSR.

    I love pulp stories and grew up reading a lot of the classic pulp stuff. As a kid I read Conan, Solomon Kane, most al the Tarzan novels, Doc Savage, the Shadow, Vance, Lovecraft, etc. The Fafhrd and Gray Mouser stories by Leiber were among my favorites -- he created this really interesting world and characters that made great stories. Laumer, deCamp, Farmer, Zelazny, Lin Carter, Bloch were a few more. Of course Tolkien, but also a lot of the golden and silver age writers shaped my imagination in junior high and high school.

    I filled my palace with deadly traps so trap admirers will come and visit me

    AFS magazine - pulp literature meets old school gaming http://hallsoftizunthane.blogspot.com/
     

    5/13/2014 6:53 pm  #2

    Ghul
    Dread Necromancer

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    From: Isle of Ghul
    Registered: 3/01/2014
    Posts: 2,643

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Zeb wrote some fantastic adventures, I think.

    HYPERBOREA- A Role-Playing Game of Swords, Sorcery, and Weird Science-Fantasy
     

    5/14/2014 10:11 am  #3

    joseph
    Sorcerer-King of Lemuria

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    From: Poland, OH
    Registered: 3/04/2014
    Posts: 326

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Isle of Dread is a classic that is close to my heart, it was one of the first published modules that I used.

    Dwellers.. I don't believe I've read...I know that The Lost City is also inspired by Red Nails. If you guys have read both, how do they compare?

    ravengodgames.blogspot.com ~ cartography, writing, game design
    Author, Forgotten Fane of the Coiled Goddess
     

    5/14/2014 12:08 pm  #4

    Blackadder23
    The Thousand and First Eye

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    Registered: 3/04/2014
    Posts: 1,554

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    joseph wrote:

    Dwellers.. I don't believe I've read...I know that The Lost City is also inspired by Red Nails. If you guys have read both, how do they compare?

    I have both of them.  Soi-disant sword and sorcery "purists" would probably like The Lost City better because it has fewer "D&D" monsters, at least in the first few levels.  It's also more literally similar to "Red Nails".  Dwellers of the Forbidden City has bugbears and bullywugs, the dreaded "humanoids" that always send sword and sorcery "purists" in seach of the fainting couch.  I really don't see any material difference between bugbears and ape-men myself (or for that matter, between bugbears and the race of actual monstrous humanoids in "The Pool of the Black One"), but what do I know?

    Anyway, one of the cooler features of DOTFC is that there are about seven different ways for PCs to enter the area of the Forbidden City - all cool and all dangerous.

    Michael Sipe 1979-2018
    Rest in peace, brother.
     

    5/14/2014 6:04 pm  #5

    joseph
    Sorcerer-King of Lemuria

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    From: Poland, OH
    Registered: 3/04/2014
    Posts: 326

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Thanks BA23, I will have to grab a copy of Dwellers at some point it sounds like something I would enjoy thoroughly.

    ravengodgames.blogspot.com ~ cartography, writing, game design
    Author, Forgotten Fane of the Coiled Goddess
     

    5/14/2014 8:26 pm  #6

    Handy Haversack
    The Monster of the Prophecy

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    From: beyond the nighted gulfs
    Registered: 3/07/2014
    Posts: 1,799

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    I mainly want to know whether this is the first time "soi-disant" has been used on the board and, if so, why!

     

    5/14/2014 10:05 pm  #7

    Blackadder23
    The Thousand and First Eye

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    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    I use "soi-disant" all the time.  I took three years of French.

    Michael Sipe 1979-2018
    Rest in peace, brother.
     

    5/14/2014 10:15 pm  #8

    Handy Haversack
    The Monster of the Prophecy

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    From: beyond the nighted gulfs
    Registered: 3/07/2014
    Posts: 1,799

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Blackadder23 wrote:

    I use "soi-disant" all the time.  I took three years of French.

    Le mot juste!

     

    5/15/2014 7:05 pm  #9

    Scalydemon
    Swordsman

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    From: The Emerald City
    Registered: 3/19/2014
    Posts: 432

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Ma foi!

    I love that line/term. One of my favorite books is 'The White Company' by SACD and they use it a lot in there

    I filled my palace with deadly traps so trap admirers will come and visit me

    AFS magazine - pulp literature meets old school gaming http://hallsoftizunthane.blogspot.com/
       •Thread Starter
     

    5/15/2014 7:16 pm  #10

    Ghul
    Dread Necromancer

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    From: Isle of Ghul
    Registered: 3/01/2014
    Posts: 2,643

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    Scalydemon wrote:

    Ma foi!

    I love that line/term. One of my favorite books is 'The White Company' by SACD and they use it a lot in there

    I love that book, too. And Sir Nigel. Those historical fiction books were SACD's main passion; Sherlock Holmes paid the bills.
     

    HYPERBOREA- A Role-Playing Game of Swords, Sorcery, and Weird Science-Fantasy
     

    5/22/2014 12:18 am  #11

    Scalydemon
    Swordsman

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    From: The Emerald City
    Registered: 3/19/2014
    Posts: 432

    Re: Pulp Zeb Cook

    ZeFRS is a cool system that is free as a download that has added to the Conan RPG by Cook
    http://www.midcoast.com/~ricekrwc/zefrs/

     

    I filled my palace with deadly traps so trap admirers will come and visit me

    AFS magazine - pulp literature meets old school gaming http://hallsoftizunthane.blogspot.com/
       •Thread Starter
     

     

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