The Inside Scoop on Gaming

This is the latest issue that I have received. I know that issue #29 is at the printers and could be soon on the way to my local gaming shop but so far it has not made it there yet. So on to the magazine review. The main piece is a GURPS: Black Ops piece titled A Minor emergency. The cover for this issue is based on that adventure showing two of the three main NPCs fighting off a large tentacled monster. Guns a blazing it gives you a nice feel to the Black Ops setting. Inside we find 3 main items in the contents. The before mentioned Black Ops adventure A Minor Emergency, next is a near-future science fiction setting usable with GURPS or any other system titled The Unity War and written by Stephen Kenson and lastly there is Call of Computer, a Paranoia adventure using a Call of Cthulhu Mythos basis and background. Those along with the regular features comprise the 80 packed pages.

In a bit more detail A Minor Emergency concerns the PCs efforts to retrieve some missing personnel from their base. Set in the GURPS: Black Ops setting it has fully fleshed out NPCs, as we all expect from Steve Jackson Games, campaign inclusion ideas and some history and back story to allow the GM more leeway and flexibility to include the ops detailed out here. Set mostly in New Orleans the articles one main failing is no information at all on the city. While it is simple enough to garner your own maps and information something would still have been nice.

Next is The Unity War. A futuristic setting devised by Stephen Kenson. It details out a interstellar civilization called The Unity. Comprised of all psionic races they have a strong and peaceful culture that has found and is watching the planet called Earth. Along with the Unity observing humanity there is The Hive. A race of microscopic organisms that are also telepathic they have discovered Earth and have begun to infect the creatures found there such as people. These then are the basis of The Unity War. Mankind has started to manifest psionic powers and both The Unity and The Hive want to observe mankind for their own purposes. In the meantime people all over the globe are suddenly reading minds and other strange unexplainable phenomenon.
This is a wonderful setting that Stephen Kenson has detailed out. With some suggestions for the different races of the Unity along with snapshot descriptions of the political and technological makeup of the Earth there is little more to do than create characters and start playing. The only criticism that I have is that so close to the advent of Aeon: Trinity from White Wolf Games the idea of psionic civilizations is a little lessened in my eyes. Overall an excellent job from one of the rising talents in the Gaming Field.

The last feature piece is the Paranoia adventure, Call of Computer. Now I have never played Paranoia. My tastes do not run to the humorous when it comes to gaming. Still it was quite fun to read all the puns in this adventure that are Call of Cthulhu inspired. But I cannot say much good or bad about this adventure as I have no interest in the game or the setting that it is in. Still it looks like it might be fun if that is your cup of tea.

The rest of the magazine is taken up with the regular features, product releases, editorial, convention schedules as well as several reviews of new and recent products released. This as every issue of Pyramid Magazine is strong and solid. With wonderful illustrations by one of my favorite artists in gaming Dan 'Smif' Smith and the seeming lowest amount of advertising Pyramid is my favorite gaming magazine. Unfortunately the paper version is going away after issue #31 and instead it will be completely online at Steve Jackon's Website. So if you like GURPS or you like Smif's artwork by this issue and check out the back issues.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Pyramid Magazine Issue # 28
Author: Steve Jackson Games Category: supplement Company/Publisher: Steve Jackson Games Cost: 4.96 Capsule Review by Tad Kelson on 06/15/98. Genre tags: none	This is the latest issue that I have received. I know that issue #29 is at the printers and could be soon on the way to my local gaming shop but so far it has not made it there yet. So on to the magazine review. The main piece is a GURPS: Black Ops piece titled A Minor emergency. The cover for this issue is based on that adventure showing two of the three main NPCs fighting off a large tentacled monster. Guns a blazing it gives you a nice feel to the Black Ops setting. Inside we find 3 main items in the contents. The before mentioned Black Ops adventure A Minor Emergency, next is a near-future science fiction setting usable with GURPS or any other system titled The Unity War and written by Stephen Kenson and lastly there is Call of Computer, a Paranoia adventure using a Call of Cthulhu Mythos basis and background. Those along with the regular features comprise the 80 packed pages. In a bit more detail A Minor Emergency concerns the PCs efforts to retrieve some missing personnel from their base. Set in the GURPS: Black Ops setting it has fully fleshed out NPCs, as we all expect from Steve Jackson Games, campaign inclusion ideas and some history and back story to allow the GM more leeway and flexibility to include the ops detailed out here. Set mostly in New Orleans the articles one main failing is no information at all on the city. While it is simple enough to garner your own maps and information something would still have been nice. Next is The Unity War. A futuristic setting devised by Stephen Kenson. It details out a interstellar civilization called The Unity. Comprised of all psionic races they have a strong and peaceful culture that has found and is watching the planet called Earth. Along with the Unity observing humanity there is The Hive. A race of microscopic organisms that are also telepathic they have discovered Earth and have begun to infect the creatures found there such as people. These then are the basis of The Unity War. Mankind has started to manifest psionic powers and both The Unity and The Hive want to observe mankind for their own purposes. In the meantime people all over the globe are suddenly reading minds and other strange unexplainable phenomenon. This is a wonderful setting that Stephen Kenson has detailed out. With some suggestions for the different races of the Unity along with snapshot descriptions of the political and technological makeup of the Earth there is little more to do than create characters and start playing. The only criticism that I have is that so close to the advent of Aeon: Trinity from White Wolf Games the idea of psionic civilizations is a little lessened in my eyes. Overall an excellent job from one of the rising talents in the Gaming Field. The last feature piece is the Paranoia adventure, Call of Computer. Now I have never played Paranoia. My tastes do not run to the humorous when it comes to gaming. Still it was quite fun to read all the puns in this adventure that are Call of Cthulhu inspired. But I cannot say much good or bad about this adventure as I have no interest in the game or the setting that it is in. Still it looks like it might be fun if that is your cup of tea. The rest of the magazine is taken up with the regular features, product releases, editorial, convention schedules as well as several reviews of new and recent products released. This as every issue of Pyramid Magazine is strong and solid. With wonderful illustrations by one of my favorite artists in gaming Dan 'Smif' Smith and the seeming lowest amount of advertising Pyramid is my favorite gaming magazine. Unfortunately the paper version is going away after issue #31 and instead it will be completely online at Steve Jackon's Website. So if you like GURPS or you like Smif's artwork by this issue and check out the back issues. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Pyramid Magazine Issue # 28