Shipslam #1: Hobbit Hole #24

Shipslam? What is a "Shipslam"?

Cover art by Jeff Freels

Well as many of you in the Tunnels & Trolls fraternity will know, one of the biggest problems that your average troll faces isn't a maddened Dwarf with a bright orange mohawk, it's a mad hobbit. James Shipman (hence Shipslam) to put a name to the shame.

Not content with pirating the work of hard-working creatives, he also pillages the web for anything he can find of a Trollish nature to fill the pages of his now widely defunct magazine, The Hobbit Hole. No self respecting Troll would ever buy it but, respect has never really been a consideration of the party in question, so he pointlessly persists. Personally, we think it's just because he likes seeing his name in print.

So what is a Shipslam already!?

Shipslam is a new feature that is going to show you just where he has lifted "his" new material from. He wants you to pay for it, we want you to have it for free, just as the original author had intended. We also want all of his Internet traffic too, but one thing at a time. ;0). So without further ado, here it is, his original advert for The Hobbit Hole #24, with hyper-links directing you to all the original content, gratis. Enjoy!

T&T NEWS -- (NOW IN STOCK) The Hobbit Hole #24 (T&T Magazine). This huge 120+ page, 8-by-11 sized magazine is packed full of T&T goodies we know you will love. How could you not? This is the only full-sized T&T paper magazine being published today! REGULAR FEATURES: Of Hairy Feet and Taters... Editorial. T&T ARTICLES: The Creating Wizard – By Ken St. Andre, Writing T&T GM Adventures, Magic Items and Enchantments, A Monkey Throwing Stones at Monsters, Novels that remind you of T&T, New T&T Character Types:Barbarian / Marksman / Huntmaster / Starwatcher / Storyteller &Minstrel, New T&T Spells To Rule Them All – By Ken St. Andre, Dragon Parts, I Live In Geekdom, Solo Gaming Record Sheet, The Trollish Tribune – By Ken St. Andre, Shippy's Interview, Writing Solo Adventures – By Ken St. Andre, Miscellaneous House Rules. SOLO / GAMING: Shipy's Cheap Ass Old School ASCII Solo, The Great Forest [A T&T GM Adventure], Zombie Apocalypse [A T&T Solo], Rock Monster Mayhem and Roll [GM/Solo]. FICTION: Reborn From Ashes [A T&T Short Story]. COMICS / OTHER: Trollwood, Sprite Chaos, Misunderstanding, Lonely Walk, Limericks, C&C Ash the Rogue, New T&T Character Sheets. This new brand new magazine is now selling for-- PRICE: $13.00

Week Of The Troll: TrollsZine

The week of the troll may be drawing to a close but I couldn't call an end to the event without taking the opportunity to give a mention to TrollsZine, Elder Tunnels and, Pocket Troll.

Whilst there is another zine out there *cough* Hobbit Hole *cough*, these three are the only ones worth their salt and your buck, with TrollsZine being free free free... Did I mention it was free?

Stating the same fact four times within one sentence may seem a bit like overkill but given that certain unscrupulous parties have in the past tried to sell TrollsZine as their own for as much as $13, being clear on the fact that it is free seems important. So if you see someone out there trying to sell you a dead tree version of any of the issues or, worse yet, charge you for the PDF, feel free to report them to your local law enforcement. It is a scam, they are scam artists and, as a contributor to the first two issues I don't see why you should have to pay for something that has been given to be shared freely.

The scummy dealings of Jim Shipman aren't news however and, I don't want to get too tied up in them in this post. Instead I want to focus more on the great work and tireless contributions of the Tunnels and Trolls community to furthering the hobby.

TrollsZine is a prime example of this, being the product of material and time freely donated by people who really care about the game and, really enjoy sharing their passion. So why not download a copy... It's free after all. ;0).

A Grenade Down The Hobbit Hole

Following on from my earlier post regarding the myriad of stolen articles to be found within Hobbit Hole#22 I decided to dig a little deeper.

Just how many more less than legit articles could i find? Let's take a look shall we?

All of these listings are presented as they are displayed on his web-page, with hyperlinks added by myself to where the articles and items have been lifted from.

The Hobbit Hole No. 21: This 112+ page 8-by-11 sized issue is a huge issue packed full of T&T gaming we know you will enjoy. It features front and back covers by Jeff Freels. REGULAR FEATURES: Of Hairy Feet and Taters... Editorial. T&T ARTICLES: Psionics in Tunnels and Trolls, A Monkey Throwing Stones at Monsters, Unusual Gunnes and Advanced Misfires, Sal Kadarshe (Ready Made PC), T&T Fifth Edition Character Record Sheet v1.5, Wizards in Close Combat, The Art and Craft of Spell Casting, Dragon Rodeo Event (Greasy Hobbit Roundup), Horses & Riding in T&T, Making T&T Monsters Interesting, Shipy's Ol Ma-ma's Crooked Beer Drinking Game, The Unlucky Unicorn. SOLO / GAMING: The Crystal Cup (A Tunnels & Trolls GM Adventure for levels 1st to 3rd, with 3-6 party members), Caravel (A GM Riverboat Setting), The Dungeon of Maergarde (A Tunnels & Trolls 5th Edition GM Adventure for a group of 3-6 low-level heroes), Granny's Garden (A T&T Solo Adventure). FICTION: The Adventure of Sal Kadarshe, Yorrrdamma Vrash. OTHER: Many Comics, Comic: Drag the Slayer #2.

 Well, this just gets better and better doesn't it?

Of Hairy Feet And Shady Dealings

Those following my blog, particularly the Tunnels and Trolls fans among you may have noticed the small note that I slipped in with the posting of my first solo endeavor, instructing James Shipman to go to, hell. Stylized in the gamebook fashion of Choose Your Own Adventure books and the like.

But why?

Well, the solo in question that I posted was first published in TrollsZine#1, a free e-zine produced Tunnels and Trolls community. For the fans, by the fans and, most importantly FREE!! This didn't stop this vindictive crook trying to sell it on though.

He tried the same deal with issue 2 as well, at that point even claiming that the editor had given him the go ahead to do so. Which makes him now both a liar and a crook. Not that this was in anyway a surprise to the Tunnels and Trolls community or, would it be to anyone who runs a quick Google search of either his name or his business, Outlaw Press.

This is all old ground though. There's nothing new I can really say on the matter that hasn't already been posted a hundred times over on various blogs, forums and, websites (but please PLEASE keep posting and spreading the word). I do however need the context as the focus of this post is his latest release, Hobbit Hole#22 and, exactly what content he has actually STOLEN and where you can find it for free.

Hobbit Hole#22 is advertised as follows (I have inserted hyperlinks to where you can find the STOLEN material freely online):

The Hobbit Hole No. 22: This issue is 8-by-11 in size and 124 pages. Within this paper tome you will find-- REGULAR FEATURES: Of Hairy Feet and Taters... Editorial. T&T ARTICLES: The Role of Magic in T&T, A Monkey Throwing Stones at Monsters, A Citizen Type in T&T, Combat Ideas for T&T, My Tunnels & Trolls, Conversion: D&D to T&T, Roguery in Tunnels & Trolls, Conversion: Over The Edge to T&T, Combat Maneuvers, The History of Trollworld: A Review, All My Wonderful Dice, Spells Vs. T&T Kindred's, House Rules in T&T Deluxe Edition. SOLO/GAMING: Shady Day Delving (A GM Adventure), Wild Fun (A Fudge/T&T Cross-platform Solo), The Dark Tomb of Despair (A GM Adventure), Kamikaze Pilot (A World War II T&T Solo. Don't judge it without first reading it, as it will surprise you), Plus a T&T Plane Character Sheet. FICTION: The Adventure of Sal Kadarshe (Part 2), Monsters! Monsters!: (Slabby Shoo-Hutt). OTHER: Comics: Merkin, Bear, Map, Trollwood, Sil & Vok – In Dungeoneering #1. You will have to buy it to see just how good it is! 

In addition to the links above I also strongly suspect that the Citizen type article will be an amalgamation of a number of posts currently out there on various blogs and also Trollhalla's Outer Sanctum (undoubtedly poorly edited with all the original authors names removed).

So there you have it, four stolen articles (at the very least) and, proof that a hobbit never changes it's spots.