A Fundraiser for Deb Mensinger's Liver Transplant

Offered: This lot consists of two versions of Superhero '44/2044, the first superhero roleplaying game to be published.

The game was designed by Donald Saxman, but as he says in the foreword:

Superhero '44 traces its origins to a concept developed by Mike Ford, one of Bloomington, Indiana's more imaginative personalities.
[much elided in the interest of space]
As time went on, Mike adapted other sets of rules to fit comic superheroes and they became a standard feature of his various campaigns. The culmination of this was the infamous Multipolarity II battle, in which he refereed armies of magicians, starship troopers, Nazis, Klingons, Martians, apes and elements of the Legion of Superheroes. It was a complete success, and spurred me on to begin developing a set of superhero rules which could be played on their own.

Of course, JMF also playtested the game, and in addition he contributed artwork to it - as far as I know these are his only published art credits, not counting maps. (The art consists of little sketches, to be sure.)

I have two copies of this, both graciously signed by Donald Saxman. One, titled Superhero '44, was self-published by Saxman. The other, titled Superhero 2044, is a slightly later reprint by Gamescience. The contents are very similar but it has a color cover, printing on both sides of the paper, etc. The first version has specific page numbers for the art credits. Both copies also include a copy of the only official supplement for the game, Hazard: IPSP/ISIS Official Map, from Judges Guild.

Neither book is in perfect shape, but both are decent. Superhero '44 has minor cover stains. The copy of the map that goes with Superhero '44 is in the original shrinkwrap, the other is not and is a bit tattered around the edges.

I will cover shipping in the US and Canada. I will ship elsewhere but may need to charge a few bucks for it - please ask if you want to know how much.

Contact: tool at panix dot com

Delivery: I will have these mailed out with 3 days of payment being made.

Minimum bid: $20 for Superhero '44, $10 for Superhero 2044

Buy It Now: none

Offered: This lot consists of two John M. Ford roleplaying game modules published by West End Games.

The first is The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues, for Paranoia. This is a classic module - it won the H. G. Wells Award for Best Roleplaying Adventure of 1985 - and is also a lot of fun to read even if you have no intention of playing Paranoia (it was called by someone at Dragon "possibly the best written roleplaying adventure in the history of the field"). It's full of subtle jokes (and some not so subtle) in the inimitable Ford style. It's in excellent condition, having just now been removed from the original shrinkwrap (which was coming apart). It does have tiny corner dings.

The second is Scared Stiffs for the Ghostbusters RPG, in which the Ghostbusters attend QuasCon 1: The Annual East Coast Paranormology Convention and Ski Party. You can imagine the fun JMF would have with that scenario. (JMF apparently co-wrote this with Bill Slavicsek, although the credits are a bit confusing.) It's got a few minor dings and creases, but has never been used.

I will cover shipping in the US and Canada. I will ship elsewhere but may need to charge a few bucks for it - please ask if you want to know how much.

Contact: tool at panix dot com

Delivery: I will have these mailed out with 3 days of payment being made.

Minimum bid: $10

Buy It Now: none

Offered: Another John M. Ford item. This is the first edition of The Klingons boxed set for FASA's Star Trek roleplaying game. JMF wrote this along with the main game's designers. It was published back in 1983, when JMF was also working on The Final Reflection, and a lot of background material in the novel is in the book in this set. (Other Star Trek RPGs have Klingons, of course, but not ones that match The Final Reflection.)

The set contains a 64-page book, a sheet of counters, a set of ship consoles for D-7A and D-7M cruisers, and two adventures (a 3-page one and a 15-page one). The counters and consoles aren't much use if you aren't playing FASA's game, but the book and adventures are fun to read. All the contents are in excellent condition. The box has a little wear and indentation.

I'm also throwing in FASA's Struggle For the Throne boardgame. This is not designed by JMF, but it's the only Star Trek boardgame with his version of Klingons in it. The game involves 3-6 Thought Admirals maneuvering for advantage while the Emperor lives and then competing openly once he dies. This copy has unpunched components (though some have fallen out), and a terrible box, which is typical. I will likely fold the box flat for shipping.

I will cover shipping in the US and Canada. I will ship elsewhere but may need to charge a few bucks for it - please ask if you want to know how much.

Contact: tool at panix dot com

Delivery: I will mail the games within 3 days of payment being made.

Minimum bid: $25

Buy It Now: none

Offer: Since there are clearly some John M. Ford fans here, I thought I'd offer some of the extra gaming items I have that he designed or was connected to.

In this lot, I offer two copies of the Star Trek III boardgame set from West End Games. This is a set of three solitaire games: The Kobayashi Maru, which is the scenario from the beginning of the movie Star Trek II, except it's now possible to win, The Sherwood Syndrome, in which the crew encounter another of those alien cultures suspiciously like an old Earth culture, and Free Enterpri$e, in which the Federation and Klingons have to compete in trade in order to win over a newly-discovered system.

JMF contributed to the design of all three of these games (his only boardgame design credits, as far as I am aware). Furthermore, he wrote the half-page opening story for Free Enterpri$e and the full-page opening story for The Sherwood Syndrome, so the set contains uncollected John M. Ford fiction. Minor fiction, admittedly, but your collection is incomplete without it!

I have two copies available. One is unpunched and includes an old West End catalog. The other has had the counters for one of the games punched, but all are present. The first copy has a little box wear, the second has somewhat more. All the components are in excellent condition. Neither copy includes the original d10, but if you need one I can scare one up.

I will cover shipping in the US and Canada. I will ship elsewhere but may need to charge a few bucks for it - please ask if you want to know how much.

Contact: tool at panix dot com

Delivery: I will mail each game within three days after payment is made.

Minimum bid: $15 for the first copy, $10 for the second

Buy It Now: none