Reddit mentions: The best science fiction & fantasy art books

Awesome! Zendikar is an amazing campaign setting if you ask me. My personal notes are kind of a big mess, mainly because this is my first homebrew. But I can definitely give you some good places to start and I would be more than happy to share with you what I've done and learned in my campaign so far. We are currently 12 sessions in and having a great time. (PM for a discord link if you would like to chat)

• For starters, I would absolutely get the Zendikar art book from MTG. This really functions as a like a campaign setting book and will give you tons of ideas about how the world of Zendikar works.
  
  
• Wizards made a Planeshift for Zendikar. This is great for PC race options and some other tid bits (monster reskin ideas).
  
  
• Maps. Oh boy. Zendikar is a bit of a mess when it comes to maps. The reason? Roil likes to change the landscape constantly and there are only vague locations of things, so there are no proper maps. You can do as you like with this. I probably fret way more than I should about the actual location of each continent relative to the others. After a ton of research, I liked this map the best.
  
  
• If you want to go down the rabbit hole of Zendikar lore, read the archive trap.
  
  That should give you a good starting point. Again, I am happy to chat on Disc if you have questions or would like suggestions.

Obviously, reading the entire series several times isn't a practical idea. And, there's far too much breadth and depth to the world to give you a useful crash course in a reddit comment or two. So, here are a few suggestions:

• Ask your friend about the characters they want to play, when relative to the main story, and what part(s) of the world they're most interested in exploring. This will give you some areas to focus on in more detail.
  
• Consider reading a couple of the books if you can make the time. The natural place to start would be The Eye of the World which is full of detail and world-building. However, the plot is very tightly focused and you might not get enough of the big picture to construct a good campaign experience.
  
  • Another option would be to jump ahead to books 3, 4, and 5 (The Dragon Reborn, Shadow Rising, and The Fires of Heaven). The scope is substantially wider and you'll see a lot more of the world, cultures, and different regions. Crucially, you'll get some time in the White Tower, which is the single most important political institution. These earlier books are more accessible, Jordan does more recapping in the narration, and there are fewer minor POV characters than later in the series. Plus, reading some of these will give you a much more nuanced feel for the world than reading synopses and Wiki entries.
    
  • I would also consider reading the New Spring novella. It's considerably shorter than any of the other works and gives you a unique view on the world outside of the context of the main story line. If any of the players is playing an Aes Sedai or a character connected to the White Tower (a warder, expelled novice, etc.) this book is a must read for you.
    
• The audiobooks are truly EXCELLENT. Getting all 15 (induing New Spring) could be somewhat costly, but if you can find some at local libraries and pick up others on audible, it would be a good way to immerse yourself in the world. If I were in your shoes, I would listen to them frequently as you run the campaign, dipping in and out of different books after you finish the series on the first go.
  
  Some other resources for you to consider:
  
  
• The Wiki is OK. It's somewhat mixed in its detail and seems to be more detailed on the individual characters, which is likely less useful for your needs.
  
• Leigh Butler's ReRead of the series on Tor.com is good. She does a brief chapter-by-chapter synopsis of each book, so you'll get all the main plot and character points, although you'll of course miss out on the details of the world building and texture. Plus, it's written for someone who's read the series. Nonetheless, it might be worth checking out for you.
  
• The two published reference books might also be worth getting your hands on.
  
  • I highly recommend reading The World of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time (aka the White Book or the big book of bad art). It's organized thematically and will cover a lot of background detail of the world: Nations, history, some politics, etc. Unfortunately, it's not comprehensive as it was written part way through the series.
    
  • The Wheel of Time Companion was published after the series was finished. It's organized alphabetically and draws from Jordan's notes as well as the published works. You might well find it a good reference for different places, ideas, and items, but for learning about the world overall, I think you'll be better served by starting with the white book.
    
    Hope this helps!
    

> You literally just calculated the cost of only the LP's.

Which is about 25% of the worth of the sets, yes. And, pretty much, the reason we have this thread in /r/vinyl right now.

> I'm not saying it's not a great value, but they are running much less in quantity than other runs of anything similar.

There's not a hard limit. They have said that there is a minimum, that they would only put things to the presses if they had at least 1,000 people who wanted to buy it. There could be 2,000, there could be 5,000. There's no cap or limit, just a minimum.

> This is the primary reason why Anime in Japan, Blu-Ray releases there, are significantly more expensive, because they run a LOT less DVD/Blu-Ray, they also recoup losses because they don't get as much on TV, and they have higher licensing costs.

This is a 20 year old series that has seen how many different runs on international cable and streaming, is critically acclaimed, and has paid for itself multiple times over. To act like Sunrise/Funimation/whoever else is somehow comign at this from a standpoint of loss is fucking laughable.

> You could expect to see about 1.5 hours of sound maximum on 2 LP's and they would likely be doing a sort of greatest hits style compilation.

Yeah, no. You, at most, can fit about 22-24 minutes of music per side of a 12" LP. If they were going to an hour and a half, you'd be look at at least 3xLP, depending on the specific layout of the tracklisting, which is still maybe another $7+/copy. They've specified a 2xLP, so it's definitely not that long.

> This is a cheap crappy box compared to what you would be getting in the one included

They specified Digipak, who is notorious for shit quality packaging and done en masse, on the cheap. Most likely, it'll be a dressed up version similar to this blu-ray set, which is even cheaper than the DVD one you linked to, which is also gouged up by a secondary seller, independent of Amazon or Funimation.

> They probably have significantly higher profit margins as a goal on top of all this extra overhead, so that will be [over-represented] on a per sale basis especially as smaller scale.

Okay, so their being dicks. Got it. Pretty sure everyone agrees on that front.

> This is an example artbook.... [s]o you go from 36 dollars to reasonably 50 or maybe even more at this point. That's not far fetched.

As for your art book argument, there are much cheaper ones, still hardback, with more pages, for even less price, even by people who still had to license the materials (Dark Horse isn't owned by Nintendo, last I heard). A good window to offer would be from $25 to $45, depending on details in production and where it's made.

Also, sucks about the wait, but yeah, you pre-ordered an art book. Congrats. Did it have a release date? Because either it didn't, you preo-ordered, and then got a release date that's months out or it had a release date announced, you preordered, and the date still hasn't come yet. Either way, yeah, that's how pre-ordering works? I've waited over a year for things like The Protomen's Act II vinyl release, which hit all sorts of snags with the pressing of the album.

> The Lithographs, mass produced, could typically be sold under 10 dollars, but if they are only a limited run, again that's probably closer to 25-30 dollars because the machine time, labor, and overhead from indirect labor is being represented in the price 100 to 1000 times more than something typical like this if it's comparing a 1,000 run versus a 100,000 or 1,000,000 part run.

At least we can somewhat agree on this part. But, at the same point, the lithographs all look the same in the sets, the only difference being what colored paper they're printed on. So, since you can reuse the same plates, it's not as expensive if each set had exclusive prints.

> They should have made one boxset collectors edition to consolidate it (screw the bookends wtf)

Agreed on that front too. PVC and resin books ends retail for $30-$40 books too.

I already did pretty much a full price breakdown over on /r/anime, so thanks for reiterating what I said, at great length, but then just proving me right?

Also, thanks for linking to that terrible graph that has absolutely 0 context attached to it. Really made me understand business more than I already did.

Glad to be of service :-D. I actually had no idea Nemosine was from Pittsburgh - that is seriously cool to learn. It was the pen that Nick had out to try out inks.

I had $50 in my pocket from a swing band concert I played on Thursday up in Butler, and was going to blow it at the store on stuff (first time I'd been able to get down there since I learned about its existence a bunch of months ago). I was looking for a nice brown ink for my Mom, and so was trying stuff from their private label. This particular brown (Shadyside Walnut Street) is gorgeous. So had to get the ink. And I really liked the feel of the pen and the nib, and I've been wanting a demonstrator for a while. Also found a box of Lamy Turquoise/Pacific cartridges there (I loved it as a sample, but didn't want to get a whole bottle.)

There's also a really cool store between the Apple Store and The Coffee Tree Roasters (I forget the name, but it has t-shirts in the window). They have a huge selection of neat notebooks and cool cards. I found Penguin Science Fiction Postcards: 100 Book Covers in One Box, to send to my mom (she loves sci fi) one at a time. The cards are of remarkably good quality. They're quite fountain pen friendly.

It's in Shadyside, real easy walk from the shopping district on Walnut street (walk down Copeland, and it's a small storefront), open Saturday from noon until 5.

INVESTIGATING...

1. With newbies, I make it ultra obvious until they get used to looking around. First I make sure to be clear in my descriptions. I also really push passive perception. I will share that they notice things around them. Whatever makes sense in context that might give an indication they should look around more closely. If that doesn't get them biting them I simply ask "Do you want to look around more carefully?" Then if they say yes I ask them to roll an investigation check. Newbies frequently need to be given more obvious prompts until they get used to operating more independently.
   
2. If they are veteran players I usually don't have to do the above. I let them make their choices but I make sure I am really clearly describing the area.
   
   MAPS...
   
   
3. I do not rely heavily on actual maps unless there is a tactical reason they need one. I use Theater of the Mind. As long as I am describing things well, it can actually enhance play since everyone has a clear picture in their head of a 3 dimensional space instead of a flat map.
   
4. I rarely ever draw a map while in game. It takes too much time. When I do need a map, if the space is complicated enough that I actually feel the players need a map, then I need time to draw it accurately anyway. If the space is something like a 20x20 room with nothing in it but the PCs and the bad guys then I don't usually need a map.
   
5. I also hate spending hours and hours on maps when my players may never even go to the whatever I am mapping. Therefore I use a hybrid of things to provide a map when it is necessary, but almost always prepped ahead of time.I don't always draw the map, though. I sometimes rely on other resources. Examples below:
   
   

• I sometimes use these: https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Tactical-Reincarnated-Accessory/dp/0786966793/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=grids+dnd&qid=1571626033&sr=8-6
  
• and these https://www.amazon.com/DUNGEON-TILES-REINCARNATED-WILDERNESS/dp/0786966319/ref=sr_1_11?keywords=grids+dnd&qid=1571626069&sr=8-11 upon occasion.
  
• I also bought this and use this for larger maps. I create them then save them for reuse/retasking later. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07RGYL979/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I only buy it when it is on sale.
  
• I do have erasable battle grids but I ended up rarely using them. If I am putting in the effort to create the map I would like it to be in a format for reuse/retasking later on. And what if the players come back through the area? Having to draw the thing again seems a waste of energy. That's just my preference.
  
• There are also generic maps available for all kinds of settings for very little cost on the Dungeon Master's Guild website. Tons of options. Many look quite professional. Sometimes I use those if they fit with my needs. Example selected at random: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/190205/A-Dozen-Maps
  
• Along with the above, frequently there are really nice looking maps available for specific official modules. I don't believe there are any for Dragon of Ice Spire peak but I know there are many offerings for other modules. Some are really, really good.

Congrats on finishing! WoT really is a wild ride, no other series has left me with a feeling even close to what I felt when I put down AMOL for the last time...

As for your reread, I just want to let you know there are some other books and stories that can help expand your reread. New Spring is an awesome prequel book to the series, I would recommend starting the reread with that first!

Also, if you want to get alllll the info you can on Randland, the WoT Companion book is an awesome encyclopedia of it all while The world of RJ's WoT is almost like a mini textbook describing much of the land and nations. Lastly, there is a very very short story about Bao the Wyld, it's basically a deleted scene. I'm not sure of the ways to access it besides getting the Unfettered anthology though that one is pretty cheap and has a lot of other very good stories from varying authors.

Either way, enjoy the reread! I'm doing my first reread now and I'm having a blast catching all the foreshadowing and hidden gems :)

Sadly from what I'm personally aware of, there's a very limited amount of pure, coffee table-like art books out there.

There's this one, that's been around since 2006

https://www.amazon.com/Art-H-P-Lovecrafts-Cthulhu-Mythos/dp/1589943074/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1494041674&sr=1-1&keywords=lovecraft+art

I haven't gotten it yet but I hear it's pretty good.

And there's this one that...isn't really purely an art book, but does feature fantastic pieces of art for each Lovecraftian creature(as well as some info about them)

https://www.amazon.com/Petersens-Field-Guide-Lovecraftian-Horrors/dp/1568820836/ref=pd_sim_14_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1568820836&pd_rd_r=D7TH7P13RG5ZKPJ8KY7G&pd_rd_w=1hb6t&pd_rd_wg=YY4p0&psc=1&refRID=D7TH7P13RG5ZKPJ8KY7G

There's also a handful of very well designed adult coloring books out there, if you're so inclined. The newest one from Chaosium looks pretty great.

I'll provide some links that you can purchase from the site in a bit, for both EN Amazon and JP Amazon

EN Color Walk 1 || EN Color Walk 2, the only one I know that has both an English and Japanese version || EN Color Walk 3 || EN Color Walk 4 || EN Color Walk 5 || EN Color Walk 6 || EN Color Walk 7 || EN Color Walk 8 |||

EN Compendium (don't remember exactly but it covers Color Walk 1-3) || EN Compendium 2 (should be Color Walks 4-5)

while the Compendium are a cheaper deal for the English Amazon site and has English translations, the pages tend to be more banged-up than the individual Japanese ones; My current copy of Compendium 1 when I first got it was already close to having the pages fall out from the hardcover. But if I had to be honest, I didn't even bother reading any of the words there lol, I was more focused on looking at all the pictures/artwork. If you're in Japan, you should be able to pick up these color walks pretty easily

---

JP Color Walk 1 - 5 - Pre-TS

Color Walk 6 - Post-TS 1

Color Walk 7 - Post-TS 2

Color Walk 8 - Post-TS 3, the most recent one

Great work. It's a really wonderful, beautiful map.

Can I use this to vent for a moment and maybe I am looking in the wrong spots and maybe a fine person in this subreddit can help but the biggest trouble I find is finding generic ass battle maps for use in roll20. I google for maps and, just google battlemaps yourself and they are all pretty bad. But then I find one I like... and it costs like $5. I can't shell out $5 every time I need a map for roll20. That's going to add up. I've used tools to build my own maps but it can take upwards of 2-3 hours for me to build out a pretty shitty looking map. I mean, you know how long it takes I am sure since you built this quality map that I will never use.

These maps are great for people who have the time to build an encounter around the map but I do the opposite since I run modules. I can find nice digital versions of the maps used in the modules but they never provide, for example, "A forest map." for combat in a forest. Or "Bridge Map." Or "mountain pass map." I am basically looking for the digital equivalent to something like these.

Spending a little money on a nice collection of digital maps is perfectly reasonable to me but all the maps I see on this subreddit or online are way, way, way to specific and I just want a nice collection of nice looking generic battle mats.

If you wanted to opt for something extra to go with the lightning deck, I'd suggest the Ultimania Archive books (English translated Volume 2 releases in December). They have tons of behind the scenes info about the games in each volume (Vol. 1 covers games I-VI, Vol. 2 will cover VII-IX, and when Vol. 3 releases next year... X-XIV) a lot of the artwork done by Yoshitaka Amano, concept sketches, maps of the world. For under $20, it's a really great coffee table book to flip through and take a look at all the work that goes into each game.

Or maybe a Lightning plush to go with the deck. lol

If your friend is a little more into Final Fantasy than just XIII though, definitely either one of the Ultimania Archive books or one of Amano's artbooks like "The Sky" or "Illustrations". Best of luck to you!

Though their selection of characters is pretty limited, I'm a big fan of World Works' stuff: http://www.worldworksgames.com/store/index.php?view=catalog&cat_id=2

Their terrain is just fantastic though.

In addition, Wizards has a pretty nice selection of tiles and tokens that tend to be cheaper and more reusable than maps and miniatures. Here's a few of my favorite sets:

-Dungeon tiles

-Forest tiles

-Massive set of monster and character tokens

-The Red Box contains a decent mix of everything for a pretty affordable price

Hope this helps.

It really depends. Here is a ten minute map. Charcoal and conte crayon on graph paper. Thrown together last minute because due to absences, we couldn't play the current campaign.

I don't have a picture of it, but one of my other last minute maps was just a trail with some squares to symbolize buildings, forests, landmarks, on a piece of notebook paper. For actual gameplay, I set up game tiles.

For Ravenloft, I spent weeks working on maps that had a decent amount of detail. Admittedly, the color pencil work was not what took so long, it was figuring out the floor plan based on the 3/4 view of the castle that came with the PDF.

I find that the players really spaz out (in a good way) when I make really nice maps. Also, it leads to less questions about their environment, because they can see it on the paper.

Think out the essentials. If a town only has a population of 45, it's probably not on the map, but might have a sign walking into town. A large populous is definitely going to be on the map, especially if it's old. Mountain ranges, forests, bodies of water all need to go on your map. They can be really simple or very elaborate. It's all up to you.

As for gameplay maps, same thing: think of essentials. If there is rough terrain, make sure you put those objects or terrain on the ground! Doors should be clearly marked. Secret doors and traps should be on your reference map, not the players map.

Right now I'm working on a really detailed map of our world, but that's because I like drawing and I'll probably hang it up in my art room when we're done.

[Offer / Exchange]

Duration: Ongoing/depends on my stamp supply tbh (I'll edit this or let you know)

From Canada to Canada (always have stamps), US (pretty regularly have stamps), Worldwide (less often have stamps, see Postage Paid cards for WW).

For non-Canada users, comment if you're interested in something and I'll let you know if I can fulfill it right now, if not I will keep you on a list for when I get US/WW stamps (Sorry, I don't always have the $$ for them).

What I can send:

Postage paid (i.e. Worldwide! Would love to save these for non-Canada/US ppl especially, bc I don't buy int'l stamps often, so if you want one let me know!):

• 2 Superman postcards
  
  
• 6 Canadian photography postcards
  
  Postcards:
  
  
• Penguin Science Fiction set
  
  
• Postcards from Puffin set (Penguin's publisher for children's books)
  
  
• Urban Sketching set
  
  
• "Live The Life You Love" set (each card has a random saying/text)
  
  
• Adrian Tomine illustrations of New York
  
  
• Frida Kahlo postcards (from a booklet, perforated on one edge)
  
  
• The Art of Classic Comics: 100 Postcards from the Fabulous 1950s set
  
  Other:
  
  
• Blank note cards with various different covers (flowers, art, Monet paintings, a bicycle, some with "Hello" or "Thank You")
  
  
• Nice blank paper/envelopes if you just want a letter
  
  
• These Korean Molang stickers (cute fat rabbit)
  
  
• Hello Kitty small lenticular printed Valentine's, I can throw one of these in an envelope or with a card/letter if you want
  
  What I like sending:
  
  
• Any of the above you want to request
  
  
• I can write as little or as much as you want
  
  
• For any occasion, if you're sick, need cheering up, birthday, etc or just want some mail
  
  
• One-time thing or ongoing/surprise/random mail
  
  You're under no obligation, but if you want to make it an exchange I'm happy with any random card/mail, just ask for my address if you don't have it.

The Strike at Shayol Ghul details Lews Therins attempt to shut the bore.

Speaking of the Strike at Shayol Ghul, there is The World of Robert Jordan's a Wheel of Time also known affectionetly as the Big White Book (BWB) or Big Book of Bad Art (BBBA). It delves into a lot about cultures, features write ups of each forsaken, pokes fun at the covers and includes the entire text of Strike.

There was a short story called New Spring included in Robert Silverberg's Legends, this was later expanded into the novella New Spring

The short story about Bao is not considered connanical and is included in the short story collection Unfettered

Eye of the world was re-released for a YA market in two parts with a new prologue Ravens

The Interview Database, just click a topic that looks intresting and prepare to lose a day or two

The Wheel of Time FAQ back in the mists of time (late 90's early aughts) this was the best resource for all things WoT related. It hasn't been significantly updated since about book 10 (i mean, yes there were updates, but nothing on the scale and detail that it used to get). Gives great insight into what the fandom was pulling its hair out about during the two years+ between books. Also, some of the info is evergreen like historical references etc.

There was a terrible video game that has almost zero to do with the series.

There was a d20 based D&D rule set released and a adventure that explained how Taim got to Rand in time to rescue himat Dumai's Wells. RJ later came out and said that this was completely made up by the authors of the module and had nothing to do with the series, which was a BIG clue about Taim's allegiance.

I feel like im missing something, but I can't put my finger on it, so I will leave you with a random fact that you should know

Tar Valon is a vagina

Something like this that they did for LoZ BotW would be sweet to have along the way, more like you were saying with concert art, interviews with the creators, storyboards, side stories, behind the scenes, world building, lore, history, mythology, and the like. Then after the show is done, a thick compilation of those books together would be amazing! Kinda like the Goddess Collection for LoZ, lore and history and plot and making of, art and artifacts, everything else you could’ve ever dreamed of

You’re most welcome. 😀 Like you, I have an interest in writing science fiction and, years and years ago, I discovered that book, which is part of a series of books for writers. There’s one on time travel as well, written by Paul Nahin, that’s also very good:

Time Travel: A Writer's Guide to the Real Science of Plausible Time Travel

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Travel-Writers-Science-Plausible/dp/1421400820/

Edit: oh, and one on alien civilisations. Let me find a reference.

Here:

Aliens and Alien Societies

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00B2B8FOO/

This one focuses on biology and how to create believable aliens from a physiological point of view.

I bet you are more interested in people than animals but this book was extremely helpful in teaching me how to make the kinds of sculptures you are talking about. It goes into everything you need including how to make armatures, materials, the 'sculpting' part, textures, how to paint a sculpture, etc. The look inside section gives you a good idea of what it's like, and note that there are tons of pictures of all of the techniques it talks about. It's designed to generalize to lots of different creatures - more about giving you the guidance to make your own things than telling you how to make a specific sculpture.
It does not talk about molding, so you'll have to find a different reference for that.

Does he enjoy Zelda? Then I highly recommend these two books (unless he already bought them):

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Art-Artifacts/dp/1506703356/

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Hyrule-Historia/dp/1616550414/

Both hardcovers, one gives a detailed history/timeline of most of the Zelda games. The other covers rare artwork of the Zelda series. Any Nintendo or Zelda fan would love these!! The ultimate gift!

• Planeswalker's Guide to Kaladesh
  
• The Art of Magic: the Gathering - Zendikar
  
• The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Kaladesh (Releases January 3, 2017)
  
  There are other nuggets of worldbuilding in the Kaladesh block stories (KLD, AER) and Battle for Zendikar block stories (BFZ, OGW), as well as flavor texts from the blocks and small stuff like the Consulate ARG account but not exactly necessary for D&D if you want to have more creative freedom. Enjoy!

There's two:

An actual "inspired by" art book. Not really what you are looking for....

And also the large, tabletop, The Art of Mad Max Fury Road, here. The first review pretty much sums up what you get. I actually own a copy and went and pulled it out so I could look it over again before replying. Though it has some character stuff we already know, it also goes into set design and writing and directing. I found out things I didn't know (for instance all Night Bog shots were done during the day, the director of photography, John Seale, was instructed to overexpose the shoot to create greater amounts of shadow, then they graded the shots down to blue in post. The Night Bog shots did not take place in the desert, but at a salt factory close by). This is just a taste of what it is like. This book gave me more info then I knew, and I'm a pretty staunch Max fan. It's...detailed enough to be intelligently written, but Fury Road wasn't a cerebral film, so it doesn't go deep, deep into things. The cars are also talked about quite a bit, and we get a bit more character backstory, the actor for Immortan talks (in character) about his mindset for the people, also final closing thoughts on why Max walked away but Furiousa stayed, that sort of thing. Worth it, imo, if you loved the movie.

Edit: In summary, you get everything you are talking about with this book, including concept art and details about the world!

There is one coming out of corners, travelling through dimensions called Hounds of Tindalos, maybe that's the one.

That said, i recently bought a book of lovecraftian creatures on amazon made for the 7th edition of call of chtulu (kind of ?). It was printed for that but there is no stat sheet whatsoever. What it has though is some really neat art, size comparison, trivia on the monster, description, life habits and even some things you don't usually see like a symbol people could draw in lore books or legends. It is one of the greatest thing i bought recently for around 30$ so for a monster of the week thing, you reaaaaaaaaally have a lot to work with, I highly recommend it

https://www.amazon.ca/Petersens-Field-Guide-Lovecraftian-Horrors/dp/1568820836/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504493699&sr=8-1&keywords=lovecraftian+horrors

look for pictures of the book, and see for yourself ;)

After the free book of covers, they announced a Vol. 1 hardcover that comes out in October. Pretty sure there will be a Vol. 2 hardcover as well, but I'm not counting on a second free book of covers since Marvel is now doing all they can to squeeze every dime they can out of hip-hop fans.

OH! I absolutely adore art books ( specially fantasy/concept art ). That does seem like the perfect place to start!
Link for the curious - http://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Zendikar/dp/142158249X

I like my Chessex wet erase, but I am old school that way.

This set provides a nice set of printed maps you can use in a variety of situations https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Tactical-Reincarnated-Accessory/dp/0786966793/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2K4MRCP2E6OJX&keywords=tactical+maps+reincarnated&qid=1562638140&s=gateway&sprefix=tactical+maps+re%2Cprime-instant-video%2C149&sr=8-1

For cheap mini's, there are several companies making flat printable mini's you can stick in bases. The other option would be to head to a LFGS that sells pre-painted singles or buy them online. The more common ones can be pretty cheap. Just be sure that you get some with large (2') bases. Many of the baddies are large sized.

I just finished A Red Sun Also Rises by Mark Hodder, and I used it for the Disabled Character square.

It's a 2012 volume, and doesn't seem to be currently in print. But amazon is selling a paperback version for really low prices. Probably remainders.

It's a steampunk novel with some fun urban features. First person narration, stand-alone, a little romance (but nothing excessive). One villain has a desire for interplanetary conquest, but they don't really think it through that well. It's also shorter; the version I read was only 271 pages.

It's a really fun, unabashedly weird novel that didn't get enough love when it first came out.

Sweet action, thanks OP!

For anyone interested, here's my usual Nintendo Book recommendations ;).

• Zelda BOTW Collectors
  
  
• Zelda BOTW Regular
  
  
• Art & Artifacts
  
  
• Hyrule Historia
  
  
• Art of Splatoon
  
  
• Art of Fire Emblem Awakening
  
  
• Playing with Power
  
  
• Super Mario Adventures
  
  
• The World of Professor Layton
  
  Would be REAL nice if the Deluxe BOTW guide or the Mario Bros. Encyclopedia would go up right about now as well ;)

I haven't had a chance to look at it myself, but The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time was released a number of years ago. It sounds like it might be the sort of thing you are looking for.

I agree though that it would be nice to have more books to build on the lore.

The art book has a lot of information that you might find useful.

The Planeswalker's Guide to Innistrad also has a bunch of information. Be sure to also check out the Uncharted Realms / Magic Story. Innistrad is my favorite plane but I am no lore master. I would be happy to help answer questions you might have (or at least try to).

Look at this one. Has some customer images in the comments as a first impression.

Huge MtG art fan and thought about getting my fingers on one of these as well. :)

Quick info:

The deluxe edition costs $77 and will include:

• It's (sic) own unique matte cover art.
  
  
• A Ribbon bookmark.
  
  
• Your book will fit effortlessly into glossy, die-cut slipcase designed to resemble your favorite arcade game.
  
  
• A high quality folded sleeve will contain:
  
• 3 Street Fighter Art Prints (details to follow)
  
  
• 1 Papercraft folded model (details to follow)
  
  A non-deluxe edition will cost $37.35 and is due on the 7th of November. Its description says:
  
  "Undisputed Street Fighter™ features in-depth interviews and exclusive, behind-the-scenes looks into the making of the Street Fighter games, and the iconic art, design, and imagery from across the Street Fighter universe."
  
  edit: stuff.

There is a lot of lore and worldbuilding in The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Zendikar. There is also a corresponding book coming out for kaladesh soon, as shown by this thread. If you are looking for something Pre-Eldrazi, there is also A Planeswalker's Guide to Zendikar.

I hope this helps and good luck!

Congratulations! Check out The Wheel of Time Companion, The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time, and the canonical (and non-canonical) short stories! And if you haven't already, peruse http://www.encyclopaedia-wot.org/ - it has good chapter synopses and links between parts of the story.

if youre doing a setting you might also enjoy the innistrad art book. i picked one up a few years ago and its great
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Innistrad/dp/1421587807

The fat pack is fine, just be careful not to overpay for them (the recent ones should be around 35 to 40 us dollars). If you like the art consider the Zendikar art book.

There is a FAQ for New/Returning Players in the sidebar of this reddit which is a good starting point for info on the game.

Can I reccomend this? https://www.amazon.com/Undisputed-Street-Fighter-Anniversary-Retrospective/dp/1524104663/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535760729&sr=8-1&keywords=street+fighter+book

it's really great, goes into the history of Street Fighter and covers SFV a bit also

If you like the art, consider the official [Kaladesh Art Book] (https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Kaladesh/dp/1421590506). Also encourages Wizards to continue making them if they sell well.

If you're into the art of magic, another thing you might want to get is the art books, such as this one. These feature full page spreads of art art as well as great descriptions of the lore of the world.

You don't always get more fun out of illustrations. Sometimes you wish the illustrations never existed at all.

I completely agree.

Also, the BOTW concept art from the upcoming Art & Artifacts book looks like it was based on WW. With those eyes, Link almost looks almost like a grown up WW Link…

The Wilderness Dungeon Tile Set is a great product to use for improvising a battle location. You can pretty much throw the tiles down at random and it will make a good enough wilderness scene for a combat encounter. https://www.amazon.com/Dungeon-Tiles-Master-Set-Wilderness/dp/0786956127

I... Amazon says 20 bucks.
https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Hip-Hop-Covers-Vol-1/dp/1302902334

I should have checked, had it at my store a while but keep forgetting to check the price. Anyway, it's really neat if you're into the covers!

these are pretty cool. https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Tactical-Reincarnated-Accessory/dp/0786966793/ref=pd_sim_14_3/133-6169401-0140663?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0786966793&pd_rd_r=613aa1fe-6124-11e9-bd66-f3c4fc150285&pd_rd_w=De8gs&pd_rd_wg=iVqXd&pf_rd_p=90485860-83e9-4fd9-b838-b28a9b7fda30&pf_rd_r=H6TDT5RM9X9Q37TT87HA&psc=1&refRID=H6TDT5RM9X9Q37TT87HA

also Paizo has a lot of flip maps. and chessex battle mats are good.

Dope post! This made me interested in picking up the Marvel Hip Hop Covers, Vol. 1 book, too.

Here's the Amazon link for it.

If you are looking for D&D books, I think that "Volo's Guide to Monsters" is your next best bet. It has alot of additional creatures not in the MM, and more indepth art on specific races. But it's not as thick as the MM though.

If however, you are purely just looking for artwork, I would probably suggest you check out the "Art of Magic the Gathering". Unlike the D&D books, this seems to be specifically for art. And while it isn't D&D, Magic is of similar fantasy-vein, and it is done by the same company (WotC), and I have heard that they "share" artists (most artists are freelancers, and some have been known to work on both properties iirc).

You could purchase the art book they produced for some inspiration as well. Amazon Link

I bought a set of three Amano art books for my girlfriend two Christmases ago and she loves them. Book 1 has I-III. Book 2 has IV-VI. Book 3 has VII-X. Each is about US $25 on Amazon. Here's the link to book 1.

The Sky: The Art of Final Fantasy Book 1 https://www.amazon.com/dp/161655018X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_qjBPAb1CHE8YX

Did you know Amazon will donate a portion of every purchase if you shop by going to smile.amazon.com instead? Over $50,000,000 has been raised for charity - all you need to do is change the URL!

Here are your smile-ified links:

Zendikar art book from MTG.

---

^^i'm ^^a ^^friendly bot

Your best bet would be to pick up The Art of Magic: Zendikar book when it's released next month: http://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/arcana/announcing-art-magic-gathering-zendikar-2015-08-31 and http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Magic-Gathering-Zendikar/dp/142158249X

To be fair, Twixt is correct on Hawkwing. The information about Hawkwing's history, the Consolidation (capital C because it is an event in WoT history), his treatment of commoners, and his interaction with Aes Sedai exists in The Big White Book.

In this case, the speculation is fueled by facts and it is not that difficult to extrapolate what Hawkwing might have said to Tuon. The Seanchan have run the empire near the direct opposite direction a younger Hawkwing and also the bound Hero did/would. Some if not all of the harshness with which the older Hawkwing ran the empire and thus the empire that would have sent the colonizers who would become Seanchan, like the hatred of Aes Sedai, is attributed too Ishamael/Ba'alzamon's manipulation posing as Jalwin Moerad. An action Ishamael takes credit for the first time Rand is summoned to Tel'aran'rhiod.

Nice! I went with this book to get into Zelda prior to playing the new game...

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Art-Artifacts/dp/1506703356

I hope you picked up the art book! (Available in physical or digital on Amazon, ComiXology and iBooks.)

https://www.mtgpics.com/sets

look for the Ravnica Sets.

-Ravnica

-Guildpact

-Dissension

-Return to Ravnica

-Gatecrash

-Dragon's Maze

-Guilds of Ravnica

-Ravnica Allegiance

-War of the Spark

​

If you like analog resources

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Ravnica/dp/1974705528

[The World of Wheel of Time] (https://www.amazon.com/World-Robert-Jordans-Wheel-Time-ebook/dp/B06Y5LK6B7). It's like the companion but written by someone in that world, so it's not always accurate.

EDIT
No wait, there it is. It's in a differen't form than mine. :)

Good news, you don't even need to wait

Magic art books looks nice, im temped to buy this one.
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Innistrad/dp/1421587807

Amazon. It's where I got my hat, among other LoZ items.

I guess you can say I'm a bit of a fan. If I had more money, I would buy from Gametee as well.

There are also new art books that might be something you're interested in too: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Innistrad/dp/1421587807/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1466891518&sr=8-2&keywords=art+of+magic+the+gathering

If you still wanna support your shop you can pick up a copy of this when it drops. That's what I'm gonna do.

Yes https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Ravnica/dp/1974705528

But the artwork will most likely focus on the current ravnica set and maybe some art from first return.
Dominaria artbook focus mostly on art from the last set.

It’s part of the series with hyrule hystoria and arts and artifacts, by dark horse, and it’s releasing next month, also has a special edition themed around the Zelda 1 NES cartridge. [Normal] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legend-Zelda-Encyclopedia-Nintendo/dp/150670638X) | [Limited] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legend-Zelda-Encyclopedia-Limited-Nintendo/dp/1506707408)

There is another one (about artworks and illustrations) coming in February

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Art-Artifacts/dp/1506703356/

And a third one has been announced for Japan

http://nintendoeverything.com/hyrule-encyclopedia-revealed-as-second-zelda-30th-anniversary-book/

In case you needed ideas for next Christmas ;-)

Pre order the book here. Will probably worth it.

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Kaladesh/dp/1421590506/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473867877&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+kaladesh

Keep in mind that the regular hardcover is currently $25 on Amazon US.

The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts https://www.amazon.com/dp/1506703356/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fpuIyb7S947NK

To anyone who can't justify the price, there's the regular edition for Pre-Order too. (link for Amazon US)

Amazon has them.

http://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Zendikar/dp/142158249X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1453452403&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+zendikar

• Mad Max: Fury Road
  
  
• Mad Max: Fury Road: Inspired Artists
  
  They're both fucking great.

Yea they're on Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Art-Artifacts/dp/1506703356/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485030292&sr=8-1&keywords=arts+and+artifacts

That's the Art Book which is the first. The second book will be an encyclopedia of sorts and isn't up for preorder yet. And we don't know what the third book will be, but should be out this year.

Ravnica has a number of novels, starting with "Ravnica: City of Guilds," then Guildpact, then Dissension, and then "The Secretist" ebook.

Innistrad has an art book that's full of lore.

The first volume is coming out in book form https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Hip-Hop-Covers-Vol-1/dp/1302902334/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Zendikar https://www.amazon.com/dp/142158249X/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_-ssKxb3VABSP3

From what I remember, the World of WoT was not spoiler-full. It's the book that was everything pre-WH or something and contains what you're looking for, imo.

This one

> The continent we refer to as Randland is called "Westland" by RJ

"The Westlands," actually. It says so explicitly in the encyclopedia.

The second book has been released and is called The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts.

https://www.amazon.com/Petersens-Field-Guide-Lovecraftian-Horrors/dp/1568820836

Marvel: The Hip-Hop Covers Vol. 1

is there a gallery of ALL of these? i remember seeing galleries of these through the first initial batch, then through the subsequent few months. is there a trade collecting them all? i'd buy that.


asked and answered.

https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Hip-Hop-Covers-Vol-1/dp/1302902334

cheaper here: https://www.dcbservice.com/product/mar160927/marvel-hip-hop-covers-hc-vol-01

though there have been still more since.

Release date of July 5 according to Amazon.

Didn't Nintendo just release that book?...

The Magic Art books seem to have lore interspersed but I think my wife would hit me if I brought them home. If only they were available via PDF.

https://www.amazon.com/Aliens-Alien-Societies-Extraterrestrial-Life-Forms-ebook/dp/B00B2B8FOO?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-ffsb-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00B2B8FOO

http://www.scifiideas.com/writing-2/writing-advice/how-to-create-an-alien-species-in-3-stages/

The one that came with the release with Oath and part of the new series of lore/art books they're doing.

https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Hip-Hop-Covers-Vol-1/dp/1302902334

Found them.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1302902334/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_ZuG9AbHQMBWSN

https://www.amazon.com/dp/130290843X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_xvG9Ab0C13HN9

Here is the mobile version of your link

They stopped doing the novels awhile ago I believe. Now they post a story of the newest set every week which can be found on the official website (and will be posted here and on the frontpage generally). Though there's still the booklet in the fatpacks and they've brought out and starting with something new, a sort of Art-book/Lore-book for the new sets :

• (Info) http://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/arcana/announcing-art-magic-gathering-zendikar-2015-08-31
  
  
• (Amazon) http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Magic-Gathering-Zendikar/dp/142158249X

> The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time

Sorry, should have linked it for you. The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time . Published in 1997, has a lot of nice background material on the age of legends, Seanchan, etc. Also known as The Big White Book of Bad Art.

Hmm. It was never in a Magic Story chapter, and we've got nothing on the MTG Wiki. Unless there's a mention in the Innistrad art book, I doubt there's anything at all.

https://mtg.gamepedia.com/The_Art_of_Magic:_The_Gathering_-_Innistrad

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Magic-Gathering-Innistrad/dp/1421587807

You are missing This and This

I don't think that exact product exists, but there are some Magic art books available, as well as this book by Rob Alexander (who painted some of the most iconic land cards in the game) that features a bunch of art from Magic lands among other pieces.

Might be dumb but... is this what you all are on about? https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Zelda-Art-Artifacts/dp/1506703356/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1506703356&pd_rd_r=FAN8888WT0D1TJBHZ8CD&pd_rd_w=WFiMG&pd_rd_wg=Lzi8Q&psc=1&refRID=FAN8888WT0D1TJBHZ8CD

Miniatures, PHB (Playershandbook), DMG (Dungeon Masters Guide), MM (Monster Manual), and VGM (Volo's Guide to Monsters). SCA if you want Forgotten Realms setting things.

You want to print out character sheets and there should be 'cheat sheets' in the subreddit here for character information meanings so the new players aren't left behind.

As far as mats/grids go (you may want this to help the new players picture combat and to explain how areas/sets interact) there are tile sets like this in Wilderness, City, and Dungeon settings.

https://www.amazon.com/World-Robert-Jordans-Wheel-Time/dp/0312869363

Dubbed the "Big White Book of Bad Art" because, well, it's a big white book with a lot of bad art in it.

so...start with this to build the lore and the feel

and combine with this to sell the visual

Wizards came out with several of these for the different worlds. nothing super crazy but a hell of a starting point for you

>I just want illustrations

Petersen's Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1568820836

It's more or less a coffee table book but you're going to need to get over your weird 'no names' restriction.

3 Main Sources.

1. There's a weekly column called "Magic Story" (Formerly known as Uncharted Realms). It comes out on Wednesdays.
   
   
2. The cards themselves often tell the story. There are cards known as Pivotal Events which represent particularly important story moments.
   
   
3. Since Battle for Zendikar, each new block has had an Art/Worldbuilding Book come out that summarizes the storyline in the last section.
   
   Also, just to clarify, Chandra did not kill Emrakul. She did use Zendikar's life force to kill Ulamog and Kozilek. Emrakul was trapped in Innistrad's silver moon by Nissa and Tamiyo. Nahiri was in the Helvault in the past, but she was released by Liliana when Liliana destroyed the Helvault as part of her plans to kill Griselbrand in Avacyn Restored. After being released, Nahiri worked to lure Emrakul to Innistrad to take revenge on Sorin.