''Shadis'' is an independent

gaming Gaming may refer to: Games and sports The act of playing games, as in: * Legalized gambling, playing games of chance for money, often referred to in law as "gaming" * Playing a role-playing game, in which players assume fictional roles * Playing ...

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

that was published in 1990–1998 by

Alderac Entertainment Group Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG) is a publisher of family board game products. AEG was formed by Jolly Blackburn in 1993. Blackburn left the company in 1995 and the majority of the company is now owned by President & CEO John Zinser. The comp ...

(AEG). It initially focused on

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out ...

Publication history

Shadis was conceived and started by Jolly Blackburn as an independent gaming

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleas ...

in 1990. In 1993, Blackburn formed AEG to publish Shadis as a quality small-press magazine, and brought on John Zinser and David Seay as partners. Printing of the first three issues was paid for by Frank Van Hoose, a friend of Jolly's, who also wrote for the magazine. A year later, in late 1994, the magazine received its biggest success by including a random '' Magic: The Gathering'' card in each issue at a time when booster packs of the new card game were scarce; many players bought multiple copies of each issue hoping to find a rare or out-of-print card. Many readers were also drawn to a small comic strip, ''

Knights of the Dinner Table ''Knights of the Dinner Table'' (''KoDT'') is a comic book/strip created by Jolly R. Blackburn and published by Kenzer & Company. It primarily focuses on a group of role playing gamers and their actions at the gaming table, which often result ...

'', which was initially a filler, intended to fill a blank spot in the magazine, but later took on a life of its own. In 1995, Blackburn left AEG because he felt that Zinser and Seay were too focused on the new

collectible card game A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of card game that mixes strategy game, strategic deck building elements with features of trading cards. The genre was introduced with ''Magic: The G ...

(CCG) industry while he wanted to keep the company fun and small and focus on ''Knights of the Dinner Table''. Blackburn departed with the rights to ''Knights of the Dinner Table'' and a few other properties. In a 2000 interview on the ''Gaming Outpost'' website, Zinser explained that he had wanted the in-debt company to grow at a faster pace than Blackburn was comfortable with, hence Blackburn's departure. In 1998, ''Shadis'' went "on hiatus" and publication ceased. In drawing lessons from this magazine's demise,

Wolfgang Baur Wolfgang Baur (born 1968) is an American game designer, best known for his work with ''Dragon'' magazine. He designs role-playing games and is known for his work at Wizards of the Coast. Baur is also the founder of Open Design LLC, later known ...

, the editor-in-chief of '' Kobold Quarterly'', thought it was a mistake for ''Shadis'' to rely too heavily on content that was not focused on fantasy in general and ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) originally created and designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical ...

'' in particular.

Each issue contained a variety of articles covering many different aspects of

role-playing game system A tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG or TRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a kind of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants d ...

s and

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

s. The series included game reviews, adventures, fiction, maps, gaming advice, and cartoons. In addition to ''Knights of the Dinner Table'', comic strips '' Fineous Fingers'' and ''Bright Future'' also proved to be very popular.

Reception

In the August 1994 edition of ''

Dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

'' (Issue 208), Lester Smith wrote a favourable review, saying "A truly independent publication, it covers a wide range of topics in the gaming hobby, and always entertains." In a retrospective review of ''Shadis'' #15 in '' Black Gate'', John O'Neill said "it is no longer being published, and the industry is poorer for it. It was an incredible magazine, with the joy and wonder of role playing spilling off of every page. I'm glad we had it for as long as we did, and back issues are still available at various online outlets, including eBay."

Reviews

*''

'' #212 (December 1994) p94

Awards

During its five-year existence, ''Shadis'' was the winner of the 1994, 1995, and 1996

Origins Award The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the gaming industry. They are presented by the Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA) at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for games released in the preceding year. For example, t ...

s for ''Best Professional Gaming Magazine''

References

External links