Geek Native’s patrons voted Schwalb Entertainment into the spotlight for August, and we’ve been lucky enough to have time with Rob himself for an email Q&A.
This piece gives insight into the future and titles like Abaddon: The Angel of the Void. You’ll have had to be tracking Schwalb Entertainment closely to see that name before, and this article is the first time Rob has expanded on it.
There’s still plenty of content for fans of Shadow of the Demon Lord, Shadow of the Weird Wizard, and other titles.
Robert J Schwalb has a Wikipedia page, and it’s not that often Geek Native gets to talk to anyone who does. So, what does the wiki community have to say?
Robert J. Schwalb is a writer in the role-playing game industry, and has worked as a game designer and developer for such games as Dungeons & Dragons, A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Shadow Of The Demon Lord, and many other RPG supplements.
Getting to know Schwalb Entertainment
Asking the usual foundation questions to someone with a Wikipedia entry might feel a bit redundant, but it’s a chance to read what Rob has to say in his own words.
Besides, it’s August, and there are many conventions, big 50th birthdays and festival seasons. If there’s time for an unexpected response, it’s this month.
Who are Schwalb Entertainment?
Officially, me. I’d be a dick not to mention my invaluable contractors. Kara Hamilton handles layout, graphic design, and much of the website. Jay Spight handles proofing and prerelease prep. Dan Heinrich has stepped in to help out with layout as well since we’re releasing tons of content this year. Add to these fine folks the freelance editors who include Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, Sue Weinlein, and Tom Cadorette, numerous artists and the occasional hired gun who pumps out some words when I need them.
What do you think you’re most well known for, and what would you like to be known for?
I’m best known for being an embittered drunk, who sometimes makes games. More seriously, people probably know me for Shadow of the Demon Lord and D&D. What do I want to be known for? Oof. I don’t know. Not being a prick would be great.
Demons, wizards and what next?
I’ve been reading The Black Company recently, and some people consider it the first fantasy grimdark. That put me onto the rabbit hole of people debating grimdark and the birth of genres such as nobledark in which, maybe, the characters won’t die.
Could I miss the chance to talk a little about grimdark with Rob? Heck no.
Is Shadow of the Demon Lord a grimdark game? What’s the attraction?
Sure. I’ve always loved using demons, blood, guts, and upsetting imagery in my design and personal games, so Shadow of the Demon Lord scoops up all that stuff and delivers it in a tidy package that gives you a tight, concise play experience with loads of options and with a system that gets out of the way of telling a fun story about the apocalypse of a fantasy world. This all said, the horror and gross-out stuff can play as big a part of the game as you like. It can be front and center or not there at all.
How does Shadow of the Weird Wizard differ?
Shadow of the Demon Lord offers short, focused campaigns highlighting the most important parts of the characters’ careers, but does this in an ugly, hopeless world. Not everyone digs that kind of game, so many years ago, I started work on the family-friendly version. Shadow of the Weird Wizard keeps the broad customization and cool options, but rather than focus on a world sliding into oblivion, the game enables the players to participate in its salvation.
How did the game design challenges differ?
At first, I thought to just scrub out all the dick jokes and fecal matter, then push print. But it became clear that just a copy paste approach wouldn’t work for a game aimed at more heroic protagonists. The tone change meant re-examining the underlying math and adjusting so that each tier feels significantly more powerful than the one that came before.
On a personal note, I designed Demon Lord after Wizards let my contract expire, so I had a lot of anger to work through. Weird Wizard design saw other troubles. These last five years have been hard ones.
Things often come in threes. Are there any plans for a third take? Editions?
I have no plans to do 2nd Edition Shadow of the Demon Lord. It would be fun, but the current edition plays the way I want it to. Are there things I would change? Yes. But I’m not in the business of selling the same thing to my customers over and over again.
Instead, I’m moving ahead with Abaddon: The Angel of the Void. It’s a science-fantasy game where the players assume the roles of survivors living on a ring station adrift in the Void. A few years before the game opens, demons breached the station’s defenses and overran the place until the only place left intact was Sanctuary Spire. The demons have gone quiet after besieging the Spire, so the time is at hand to retake the station. The characters explore the ruins of the place, see all kinds of terrible things, rediscover lost technology, and so on. Should be ultra-nasty fun.
Dungeons, dragons and dangerous topics
As we’ve just read, Rob didn’t leave Wizards of the Coast in a way that left him feeling good about it. It is D&D’s 50th, and some debate as to whether D&D 2024 really is a new edition.
So, once again, I open-ended the question…
Speaking of editions… if you’ve had the opportunity, do you have any musings on D&D 2024?
I’m interested to see how the game has changed since I worked on it. I’m also grateful that the current team acknowledged the efforts of the folks who built 5e.
How has the tabletop RPG community changed over the years?
As someone who grew up in the thick of the Satanic Panic and having to keep secret my love for stomping through dungeons, killing monsters, and taking their stuff, the last decade of acceptance still surprises me. A normal person might be delighted by all this new love for the hobby, but I’m a bitter, suspicious old man. It’s good for the hobby though. It wasn’t long ago when people were all doom and gloom about roleplaying games.
Do you have any predictions on what the next few years might see for tabletop RPG fans?
Well, D&D will continue to hold 95% of the market by the throat. I’d like to say that as D&D fans grow weary with the game they play, they will explore other games, but I doubt this will happen.
The future of Schwalb Entertainment?
Those are some honest and brutal thoughts about life as an RPG designer and publisher who isn’t Hasbro.
I agree with Rob. I think a good chunk of tabletop gamers won’t go from D&D to another game and if they leave D&D they’ll leave the hobby. What do you think?
However, Schwalb Entertainment has a future. It’s a company with loyal fans and evidently good games. Rob’s to-do list is intimidating.
What next for Schwalb Entertainment?
Lots. I have so much in production, I start to hyperventilate just thinking about it. Let’s talk about the future by the various lines.PunkApocalyptic: The RPG
I’m waiting on two pieces of art to wrap up this line. My partners in Brazil are launching a crowdsource campaign to bring to life a Portuguese edition and they’ll be making new content for the game too.When the Wolf Comes
We’ve had a great run so far. I am sure Ian has stuff in the works.Shadow of the Demon Lord
I am still working on the Return of the Witch-King campaign along with Dungeon of the Damned. We have one more ancestry booklet covering the insectile Yerath in the works. And I’m getting ready to dive into the Patchwork Lands.BlackStar
I took over this line earlier this year and have been releasing product to fulfill stretch goal obligations from the Death & Decay campaign. I have several sublines for Blackstar, which include Blightscars—evil places, Wicked Cults, Evil Relics, the Book of Salvation (options for real heroes), and the Orc Wars campaign.Shadow of the Weird Wizard
I think we have 22 more quests to release plus a great big pile of longer-form supplements. Weird Ancestries drops in a week or so and it includes rules for 30 different ancestries. After that, we have Glory of the High One, which details a major religion in the setting. I’m currently toiling on With a Faerie, Hand in Hand, a player-focused supplement that provides guidance and supporting rules for playing faerie characters. After that, I’ll be tackling the Rage of the Goblin King campaign.Godless
With Punk just about done, I intend to return to Godless by revealing a new setting and a ton of new options.Shadow of the Red Moon
I’ve been planning to detail Tarterus for a long time and the time has come to kick off this series. It’s a rules and setting plug-in for Demon Lord that takes the campaign to the sister planet/moon. It’s going to be full-on weird.
Thanks Rob!
Schwalb Entertainment
- Schwalb Entertainment’s website.
- Schwalb Entertainment on Facebook.
- Schwalb Entertainment on Reddit.
- Schwalb Enterterinment on YouTube.
- Schwalb Entertainment on DriveThruRPG.
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