Dark Tower in the Vineyard

[Michael Bogue]

Greetings all!

I've been looking for a roleplaying system that would accurately reflect Stephen King's "Dark Tower" series - would DitV be an appropriate book to pick up?

I was going to order it - but after reading that the http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=14289">spine of my book might crack I was someone hesitant. I'd hate to drop $35 (after exchange)  on a hundred page book that will fall apart on me when I use it! Has anyone else had this problem?

[TonyLB]

Nope.  I've perused my copy quite a bit, and it's holding up fine.

[Christopher Weeks]

I have one of the copies Vincent sold at GenCon.  I don't know if they've all been printed at the same place, but I've beaten the hell out of my book and it's standing up fine.

What part of the Dark Tower books do you want to explore?  I think you could manage to play a Dogs in the Callas (or whatever) game, but I'm not really sure that this game is the right match for a DT game.  On the other hand, this game is so good that you should buy it just for itself.

[lumpley]

Tony, Christopher, I'm so relieved to hear that. I'm here having nightmares about all those books falling to pieces.

This seems like a very good opportunity anyway for me to mention that I do full-credit upgrades from PDF to print. Michael, if you like, you can buy the PDF now, play play play, and then if you decide to buy the book later (like after I've switched printers), I'll apply the full $14 you paid for the PDF to your purchase of the book.

-Vincent

[Christopher Weeks]

Actually, this also seems like a good opportunity to ask about the fully illustrated version.  Is that still coming?

[Valamir]

I'm in the middle of that series right now.

DitV would be absolutely 100% perfect for gunslinger adventures set in the time before "the world moved on" i.e. pre series.  If you go back to the glory days of Gilead, or even the early days of the slide and model your party on the idea of Gunslingers traveling around like medieval/wild west jedis setting problems at local towns to rights the game would work like a charm.

You would need to develop the notions of faith more heavily to fully capture the depth of the game system, however.  The role of the Gunslinger is more secular than the role of Dogs, but there is a depth of myth surrounding them (and their lineage back to time of King Arthur Eld) that can make this work.  I would look to Clinton's Paladin game for inspiration on establishing the Gunslinger Code.

...For a "follow Roland along the Beam to the Dark Tower" game...no...not so much.

[Leningrad]

My copy of Dogs is in fine shape, I got it in October and have been beating it to death.  

It's excellent.

[Clinton R. Nixon]

Me too, on the Dogs holding up thing. Mine lives in my backpack - it hasn't been out for three months, easily, (EXCEPT TO USE CONSTANTLY) and it's beaten badly. The spine holds up fine. Actually, besides the cover looking like I rode it to work, the whole thing is holding up.

[Judd]

I told Vince that the game reminded me of the gunslinger books at last year's Gen Con where it was my first buy of the con.  

Since that time I have run the game a bunch and its still holding up just fine and dandy.  The game's a good piece of work all around.

[Joshua A.C. Newman]

All the books have been printed in the same place, so the GenCon edition is a good look into the future for the current edition.

[lumpley]

Fully illustrated: still coming, GenCon '05, I'm touching wood so no jinx.

Naturally there'll be an "upgrade" plan for it too.

-Vincent

[Michael Bogue]

I'm in the middle of that series right now.

DitV would be absolutely 100% perfect for gunslinger adventures set in the time before "the world moved on" i.e. pre series.  If you go back to the glory days of Gilead, or even the early days of the slide and model your party on the idea of Gunslingers traveling around like medieval/wild west jedis setting problems at local towns to rights the game would work like a charm.

You would need to develop the notions of faith more heavily to fully capture the depth of the game system, however.  The role of the Gunslinger is more secular than the role of Dogs, but there is a depth of myth surrounding them (and their lineage back to time of King Arthur Eld) that can make this work.  I would look to Clinton's Paladin game for inspiration on establishing the Gunslinger Code.

...For a "follow Roland along the Beam to the Dark Tower" game...no...not so much.

That was my thought - a kind of pre-apoclypse setting. The story from "Wizard and Glass" seems appropriate.  Tho the characters are "secular", they do represent what is called "The White", which seems to me something that is God, and the dice represent ka.

I'm glad to see that everyone's book held up just dandy-doodle. I will be sending off the money order sometime this month!