We are very excited to announce the winner of our Mystery Map Adventure Design Competition. Congratulations to Jobe Bittman for his submission, “The One Who Watches From Below.” Look for it in stores later this year! Thanks to everyone who entered – the submissions were great and the competition was fierce. 

Goodman Games is looking for authors steeped in the lore of pre-D&D fantasy to help usher in the next generation of old-school adventure. We are asking that you put your Appendix N knowledge to good use in creating an adventure designed around finish the Mystery Map. A panel of experienced dungeon designers will judge all submissions. The best submission will be commissioned as a 5,000-word adventure to be published by Goodman Games, at a payment rate of $1,000. The adventure will be released as our Free RPG Day 2013 offering, to be enjoyed by thousands of other gamers. There is only one winner, but strong second-place submissions may also be commissioned for separate publication, at the discretion of the judges.

The basic idea: We would like you to finish the Mystery Map, then outline an adventure based on your completed map. Your completed map must use the rooms that are already designated, and should be continued by your own design into the open space. Your final map must be only one page in size. You should provide a digital copy of your final map. Finally, your adventure should make use of the weird creature in the lower corner of finish the Mystery Map (the thing with six legs and the eyes on its flank – whatever it is).

What are we looking for? We are looking for an exciting, playable, well-written fantasy adventure that embodies the voice of DCC RPG. DCC RPG is a game of pre-D&D fantasy, based on the pre-genre adventure literature of Appendix N and the cultural voice of the 1970’s. DCC RPG adheres to several basic principles whose goals are to conjure forth the sense of wonder we all experienced upon first playing D&D. First, all monsters and encounters are unique, never “from the book.” Second, magic feels magical and highly unpredictable. Third, there is a noticeable lack of the constraints of genre-based fiction. Fourth, adventures feature strong visual elements in every scene that give the players a constant sense of immersion. Finally, the scope of adventures crosses planes, dimensions, space, and time wherever appropriate. Read DCC RPG and its published adventure modules to get an even better sense of the game.

How to submit: E-mail your submission, adhering to the rules outlined below, to mysterymap@goodman-games.com.

Deadline: All submissions must be received electronically by October 31, 2012.

Submission rules: Please adhere to these rules in your submission:

• Send your submission in an email. The body of the email should outline your submission. The email should have only one attachment, which should be the completed Mystery Map.
• Your submission should be an outline of your adventure. Include a brief summary of the plot and the encounters. Provide more detailed information on the key encounters. Give the game stats for the weird creature with six legs and the eyes on its flanks. Tell us how your adventure embodies the voice of DCC RPG and Appendix N. Tell us how your adventure is memorable to the players. 
• Your submission should be no more than 1,000 words in length.
• You must include your e-mail address and phone number.
• Finally, you must include and agree to the following sentence in your submission (and it counts toward the 1,000 words): “I acknowledge that the ideas I have submitted may be identical or similar to the theme, plot, idea, format, or other element of material that Goodman Games has independently developed, or that has or may come to Goodman Games from other sources, and I shall not be entitled to any compensation by reason of the use by Goodman Games of such similar or identical material.”

• Michael Curtis, creator of The Dungeon Alphabet and Stonehell Dungeon
• Aldo Ghiozzi, game connoisseur and Free RPG Day organizer
• Joseph Goodman, creator of DCC RPG
• Doug Kovacs, DCC RPG cover artist and “visual voice”
• Erol Otus, legendary TSR artist
• Stefan Poag, fan favorite OSR artist
• Harley Stroh, adventure writer extraordinaire