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The following is a list of some
projects on which I have worked. They include descriptions, hyperlinks,
memories, and
other such information. Enjoy!
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Projects
Player's
Handbook II
Design
I
guess WotC liked the work I
did on the Player's
Guide to Eberron (below), because they asked me
to work on another project. The Player's Handbook II is even more
awesome. One story about this project is that I
sent my completed writings to WotC with the message that I'd be more
than happy to take another look at anything. I
didn't hear back... and didn't hear back... and then I got an email
saying it was okay for me to send an invoice for the second portion of
my payment. Guess they liked it! Months later,
I met David Noonan, the book's lead designer, at Gen Con. "Your
stuff was excellent," he said. That felt good.
Player’s Guide to Eberron
Design
Back in August of 2004, Wizards of the Coast flew me out to Seattle to
interview for a Roleplaying Game Designer position. I didn’t get the
job (I believe it went to Matthew Sernett -- congratulations, Matt!), but it
was great to meet the people who make the world’s most popular
roleplaying game. The contacts I made during that interview allowed me
to work on my first official Dungeons & Dragons product since
Dungeon magazine. And unlike Dungeon
magazine, this is a full-on sourcebook. I was pretty excited (and still
am!).
I wrote the following sections: Demon
Wastes; Dwarves
and the Mror Holds; Everyday Magic, Magewrights, and Artificers;
Goblinoids and Darguun; Half-Elves and Urban Elves; Humans; Lhazaar
Principalities; Monastic Traditions; Mournland;
Q'Barra; Society and Status; Travel; Wayfinder Foundation; and the high
elemental binder prestige class.
One of my writing samples is
from the Player's Guide to Eberron.
World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game
Author, Developer
This is a beautiful, beautiful
book. If RPG writers are allowed to have masterpieces, even though the
product is the end result of lots of different people, then this is my
current masterpiece.
About halfway through this
project, Mike Johnstone, then the Warcraft RPG developer, stepped down
and elected me to take his place. That was a huge deal, because I
became the developer for the entire Warcraft RPG game line. That means
that I’m pretty much in charge of the line: I
hold the vision for the line’s future; I conceptualize the books; I
hire the authors; I design the books’ overall structure and follow them
through to completion; I look at proofs of the books to make sure
everything is cool; I write indexes and advertising copy; I liaise with
Blizzard Entertainment; I edit the authors’ text and make sure it jives
with what I’m looking for. I’m involved in all aspects of a Warcraft
book’s production, and usually we have several moving through various
stages of production simultaneously.
In addition to taking over
development for this book, I wrote a lot of it. I wrote the gazetteer,
cosmology, some races (human, gnome, goblin, jungle troll, and
Forsaken), some classes (barbarian, paladin, warrior, and multiclass
characters), the feats, the spells, and Chapter 9 (weapons and armor).
Etherscope
Developer
My work on The Volcano Caves led to this position: developer of the
Etherscope game line, which is awesome. It’s sort of like the Matrix,
set in 1800s Victorian England, then fast forwarded to the 1980s. It’s
got both steampunk and cyberpunk, as well as Victoriana, occultism,
horror, and all sorts of other coolness.
It’s a thrill to work on this game line.
“Bloodlines” in Dungeon Magazine #94
Author
This was my first professional publication: my first inroad into
professional writing and game design. The fact that Dungeon accepted my
adventure is a good part of the reason that I’m now a full-time writer.
The adventure takes place in a haunted basement. Jason Engle did some
fantastic artwork for it. Chris Thomasson was Dungeon’s editor-in-chief
at the time; I’ve had the opportunity to work with several excellent
editors and developers in my time as a writer. These are people who
make me a better writer. Chris was the first of these. Thanks, man.
One of my writing samples is from
“Bloodlines.”
Articles in No Quarter Magazine
Author
These were my first projects for Privateer Press, which is
exciting,
because Privateer does excellent work. I co-authored "Illicit Alchemy"
in issue #5 and "Gun Sorcery" and "Foundr, Forge, & Crucible: The
Magelock" in issue #6.
Developer
This is the first supplement for World of Warcraft: The
Roleplaying Game and the first book for
which I was the developer from beginning to end. It’s full of fun
magical and technological bedlam.
Lands
of Mystery
Author, Developer
This Warcraft RPG book explores Kalimdor, the South
Seas, and Northrend. It's the first Warcraft book for which I was both
author and developer, which has become standard practice.
I wrote the following sections: the introduction (of course), Chapter
5: The South Seas, the adventure "Ghost Ship," and the text on the
Bloodsail Buccaneers. It was a good time.
Monster
Guide
Author, Developer
This is the latest and greatest monster book for the World of Warcraft
RPG. I suggested that our monster could use their own book, and Stewart
Wieck agreed, so I contend that it's my
doing that this book will exist in March 2006.
w00t!
Alliance Player's
Guide
Author, Developer
Here's another Warcraft book! I'm especially proud of this one because
it's the first original Warcraft book I developed -- it isn't based on
previous books like More Magic &
Mayhem and Lands of Mystery,
so it's more my brainchild than the others. I
also wrote a big portion of it. It's currently in post-production.
Horde
Player's
Guide
Author, Developer
Friend to the Alliance Player's
Guide! It's currently in post-production.
The Great
Metropolis
Developer
The first supplement for the Etherscope game line, this book focuses on
a major area for setting you campaign: an enormous city called the
Great Metropolis. The cover art is cool. So is the text inside.
Upload: Etherpunk
Developer
This is the second
supplement (aside from Just a Delivery, below) for Etherscope. It's
full of etherpunk. What's etherpunk, you ask? Well, this book has the
answer!
Just a Delivery
Developer
Technically, this is the
first supplement for Etherscope: It's an introductory adventure. You
can get it for free from
Goodman Games as a pdf download. Now that's
service.
Dave Arneson’s
Blackmoor
Editing, Development
From January 2004 to
May 2005 I
taught game design at a college called Full Sail in Orlando, Florida.
(I quit to write full time.) Dave Arneson, one of the co-creators of
Dungeons & Dragons, and Dustin Clingman were (and still are)
instructors down there. When I arrived, they had this company,
Zeitgeist Games, and were putting the finishing touches on Dave
Arneson’s Blackmoor. I took a look at the manuscript.
“Hey guys, do you want me to
edit this?” I asked.
“Sure,” Dustin responded.
So, over the next several
weeks, I edited the entirety of Dave Arneson’s Blackmoor. I ended up
doing some development as well.
Dustin and Dave are great guys.
Blackmoor was the first Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting to
exist, ever (predating the game itself by a year or two, I believe),
and this book brings it back.
Fireborn Player’s Handbook
Author
Working on a non-d20
roleplaying game was a fun change of pace. The fact that Fireborn is a
super-cool setting helped, as did the fact that Fantasy Flight is a
great company to work with.
I wrote Chapter 3: Dragon
Creation and Chapter 4: Powers and Legacies.
Fireborn Game Master’s Handbook
Author (uncredited)
They forgot to put me (and
several other writers) in the credits, but trust me, I wrote some of
this book. I am responsible for most of the dragons in Chapter 6:
Characters and Creatures: The Broken Oracle, Daelrivoth, Mevistuss,
Nemestes, Shavaral, and Vrintha Klahn.
Fireborn: The Fire Within
Author
This book is the first (and, so
far, only) adventure for Fireborn. I wrote Act One: Caught in the
Middle as well as just about all of the non-player characters and
monsters involved in the adventure.
Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game
Author
This product was the
first book in
the Warcraft RPG line and the first edition of that line’s core rules
(the new World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game book replaces it). I
was lucky enough to be involved in this book’s creation. Specifically,
I wrote the sections on affiliation (Chapters 3 and 6) and magic
(Chapter 4).
People occasionally
ask me how I
got into the Warcraft RPG line. The answer is rather unlikely.
Several years ago,
after Dungeon accepted “Bloodlines,” I sent
cover letters, resumes, and
writing samples to every roleplaying game company I could find. I
discovered the website for the EverQuest Roleplaying Game, but the site
did not have any contact information. Not one to let that deter me, I
sent my resume and such to “admin@everquestrpg.com.” To my surprise,
someone actually responded. “Your stuff looks good, Luke. Do you play
the Everquest computer game?”
“Ummmmm… if I said yes, I would
be lying.”
“Well, then I can’t really use
you. But I’ll send your information on up the pipe; if I like you, they
probably will, too.”
Well, it turned out that the
same company that published EQ (White Wolf) was also planning on
publishing the Warcraft RPG. A few months after my contact with the
EverQuest representative, I got an email inviting me to the Warcraft
RPG team, and so began a long and fruitful relationship between me,
White Wolf and Blizzard Entertainment.
Alliance & Horde Compendium
Author
The first supplement for the
Warcraft RPG, this book includes a lot of rules and information that we
didn’t have room to include in the Warcraft RPG book. As the fans on
the WoW RPG message boards are fond of pointing out, this book is now
out of print and is hard to find, so if you want a copy it’ll probably
have to be digital.
I wrote the races and the
feats. (This began my Warcraft feat-writing -- until I became the
developer, I designed the feats for every book in the line.)
Magic & Mayhem
Author
This book is loaded
with magic and
technological crunch for the Warcraft RPG. I designed/wrote the spells
and feats. I also wrote the fiction vignettes before the introduction
and before Chapters 1 and 3.
Lands of Conflict
Author
This book explores the eastern
countries of the Warcraft world. I wrote an enormous chunk of this book
-- almost half of it. I am responsible for Chapter 3: Khaz Modan and
Chapter 4: Lordaeron. I also wrote the adventures “Dark Iron Chains”
and “Dead Men’s Tales” in Chapter 5 as well as various miscellany in
Appendix 2.
Shadows & Light
Author
This book explores Warcraft’s
planes and some of the setting’s most powerful denizens. Designing the
stat blocks for epic level characters takes a long time. I
designed/wrote Chapter 1: Epic Warcraft (including the epic feats) many
legendary characters (and their equipment) in Chapter 2 (Grom
Hellscream, Maiev Shadowsong, Muradin Bronzebeard, Sir Anduin Lothar,
and Uther the Lightbringer), most of the titans (and their artifacts)
in Chapter 3 (Aman’Thul, Eonar, Aggramar, Golgonneth, Khaz’goroth, and Norgannon), and the descriptions of Outland
and the Twisting Nether in Chapter 5.
One of my writing samples is from Shadows & Light.
Dungeon
Crawl Classics #19: The Volcano Caves
Author
Goodman Games publishes Dave
Arneson’s Blackmoor, which is how I became associated with Joseph
Goodman, who publishes this adventure as well.
The Volcano Caves began life as
an adventure I wrote years ago for my (second edition) home campaign.
It revolved around a stolen magic sword, bandits, and a seaside cavern
complex. Over the course of design and development, the adventure
changed drastically, and now bears little
resemblance to the original.
D6 Vade Mecum of Magic
Author
I played West End
Games’ Star Wars
roleplaying game (utilizing the D6 system) back in High School, so when
I saw that the company was still around (or had resurrected), I thought
it might be fun to write a little something for them. Fortunately, I
got the chance to do so. I wrote the somniomancy spells in D6 Vade
Mecum of Magic.
Arms & Armor v3.5
Additional Design
A while back, Bastion Press
held an open call for magic weapons and armor. At the time I was in
between projects (and not yet full time), so I scrounged up some
appropriate material from the shadowed corners of my hard drive and
sent it in. They accepted about 5% of the items I submitted. I think I
got $16.20 for this job. But my friend Frosty once got a check from his
insurance company for 20 cents. This check arrived in an envelope with
a 32-cent stamp. So I win.
The Book
of Familiars
Author
For about a year, The Book of
Familiars was the earliest project I worked on but the last to be
published. This book was my first project after Dungeon magazine, but
the book took a looooooong time to hit shelves. It's here now, though!
I wrote the paladin section.
Dave Arneson’s Blackmoor: The Redwood Scar
Editing, Writing and Design
My pal Dustin Clingman,
president of Zeitgeist Games, saw me in the lunch room at Full Sail and
said, “Hey Luke, can you edit a manuscript and have it done yesterday?”
“No,” I said, “but maybe in a
week or two.”
I edited the entirety of The
Redwood Scar, an adventure for Dave Arneson’s Blackmoor. I ended up
cutting so much out of the text that I had to write 9,000 words to make up for it (hence the writing and design
credit). The “Horror Beneath the Dove” section is all mine. I was
reading H.P. Lovecraft at the time, and I think his influence comes
through strongly in the “Dove” mini-adventure.
Corporate
Dossier
Author
This book details four
megacorporations for use in any cyberpunk setting. The default setting
is Ink.of.Gods’ Razor’s Edge, but the megacorps can be integrated into
any setting that uses, well, megacorps. I wrote the whole thing.
Foul Deeds Rise
Author
This was an early
project, coming
shortly after “Bloodlines” and The Book of Familiars. A friend of mine
had secured a business card from someone looking for d20 fantasy
adventures, of all things. It turned out the guy was Ross Richey, and
my friend had his business card because he lived in my home base of
Salt Lake City. Ross was starting a company called DireKobold.com and
needed some adventures. I was happy to lend him my talents. Foul Deeds
Rise was the first.
She
Loves Me Not
Author
DireKobold.com
published this adventure a few months after Foul Deeds Rise. Like all
DireKobold’s adventures, through the magic of technology you can check
a few boxes and customize the adventure to suit a party of any size and
level.
Parry & Riposte
Author
This is a sourcebook for
fencing and rapier fighting in a fantasy setting. I did a lot of
research while writing this book. It’s not out yet, but hopefully it
will be soon.
Shadow Games
Author
This adventure is on Silverthorne
Games’ release schedule.
Tombs!
Author
This was an early project. It
was also labor intensive. The subtitle is “The Definitive D20 Tomb
Adventure Design Guide,” and I did a prodigious amount of research on
ancient cultures and their burial practices. The book also includes an
enormous array of tables to randomly generate mundane (non-magical)
treasures. I spent months flipping through jewelry catalogues to create
those tables.
This project taught me an
important lesson: PDFs don’t pay. (That may be untrue
for about two or three people in the entire world, but generally it’s a
fact.) Perhaps Dreaming Merchant Press
agreed, because the company
exited the publishing field a while ago. So, Tombs! is no longer
available. However, if you want a copy, you can email Jim, Dreaming
Merchant’s owner. I certainly wouldn’t have a problem if he gave these
guys away.
This project is also noteworthy
because I contracted mononucleosis while working on it. Blech!
Gary
Gygax’s World Builder
Contributing Author
I wrote a glossary. Do not
confuse this with writing the glossary; the book includes many. Troll
Lord asked if anyone was available for glossary duty, and I raised
my
hand.
With this book and Blackmoor,
I’ve written for a “Dave Arneson’s” and a “Gary Gygax’s,” thereby
allowing me to claim that I’ve worked with both of D&D’s original
creators.
Redemption
Author
This as-yet unpublished
adventure belongs to DireKobold.com. It concerns a fallen angel, and I
think it’s my best adventure to date.
"Introducing Luke Johnson" in Sword & Sorcery Studios Insider
Winter 2006
Author
Well, this is an article about me. I like writing about myself! It
starts on pg. 30.
"Dig
Into the Alliance" in Sword & Sorcery Studios Insider Winter 2006
Author
This is a preview of the Alliance Player's Guide for Warcraft. I wrote
the intro paragraphs as well as the Wildhammer dwarf excerpt. It starts
on pg. 34.
“More Magic, More Mayhem in Azeroth” in Sword &
Sorcery Studios Insider Fall 2005
Author
This is another article for the
Sword & Sorcery Studio Insider. This one provides a preview of More Magic & Mayhem. Writing
it was a bit weird, because it occured so early in the production cycle
that I had no material to offer -- only glimpses of the project
outline. It starts on pg. 38.
“New Gears” in Sword & Sorcery Studios Insider
Summer 2005
Author
As developer of the Warcraft
RPG line, I perform a variety of miscellaneous functions, one of which
is to write articles for Sword & Sorcery’s quarterly
magazine/catalogue. This article previews the World of Warcraft RPG
book and includes a look at a new technological device: goblin jumper
cables (which I designed). You can download the Quarterly for free.
This article starts on pg. 43.
World of Warcraft RPG Conversion Document
Designer
After the World of Warcraft RPG
book came out, White Wolf released a free conversion document. This
document includes all the information you need to use your old Warcraft
RPG books with the game’s new iteration. And who better to create said
document than the line’s developer?
World of Warcraft RPG Preview Introduction
Author
This is a free preview for the
World of Warcraft RPG book. It details the arcanist class. I wrote the
little introduction at the beginning.
“What
is the Warcraft RPG?”
Author
This is an article on the
Warcraft RPG website.
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