[HoE] Ground Zero Results

[PEGShane@aol.com]

Okay,

I'm NOT going to announce much about GZ yet because I'll just put my foot in 
my mouth again and suffer for it later. Here's what I can tell you now:

First (this was not really a GZ thing--we've known about it for a while), Hal 
Mangold will be leaving us as of January 1st. Hal's first love is production, 
and now that we're in the mode where the Brand Manager actually writes the 
books, it's just not his cup of tea. He'll be moving to northern Virginia to 
be with his girlfriend and get a much better paying job in the hectic DC 
area. Hal *will* still be doing some freelancing for us, may very likely be 
at some of the summer shows, and will likely lurk about here on the list for 
a while. We love Hal to death, and we're going to miss him!

Second, losing Hal is bad, but we're very fortunate to have one of the best 
writers in the game industry waiting in the wings. The new Deadlands: Weird 
West Brand Manager is. . .(drum roll please). . .

John "Night Train" Goff!

Yup. John will be taking over for Hal after January. He's got some *great* 
ideas for making the Weird West even weirder (and as you can guess if you're 
one of his many fans, a little tougher!), and we're ecstatic to have him on 
board our own little night train.

Third, there will be no "Grim Crusade" game. That doesn't necessarily mean 
that there won't be minis, or even a minis game. As I am wont to do, I will 
leave this cryptic quote alone for now. Don't even bother trying to 
speculate, 'cause it'll get you nowhere (grin). But the ship now has one 
captain, the captain has a firm grip on the wheel, and our destination is 
*exactly* where most of you want to go. (The rest will be shanghaied and 
dragged kicking and screaming along.)

Fourth, the schedule has changed a bit. This does not have as much to do with 
Ground Zero as it does with some printing problems we're having as we 
relocate our warehouse, find a new printer nearby, and so on. Our plan is to 
wing the release of Monsters, Muties, and Misfits (looks like mid-Nov), South 
o' the Border (early Dec.?), and the two Dime Novels (Killer Clowns and 
Worms) through the end of the year. Starting in Jan. 2000, we've got a system 
in place to  produce a book every other month for each line, several key 
adventures written by our "standards" (like Hal or our own staff), and the 
new products I'll be announcing when things are a little more stable around 
here. This way you'll have the whole year lined up for you.

Finally, the web site will be undergoing a massive overhaul from a "Pinnacle" 
site to a Deadlands site. Don't be surprised if it goes down for a few weeks 
in Nov. or so. When it does, you can expect something *very* special to 
reappear in its place.

One last thing. I *sincerely* appreciate the many kind comments you guys and 
gals gave me since the announcement about the split. Your show of support and 
genuine friendship is *much* appreciated. As I mentioned in an earlier post, 
don't think I'm too upset this split, however. That's not to say I harbor any 
ill-will against my previous partners--they're still some of my best friends 
on the planet. It just means that I *finally* get to captain the ship myself, 
and while that may sound egotistical, I think it is best for *any* company to 
be run with a single, clear vision of where it is headed. If we fail, it will 
be no one's fault but my own, but it won't be for lack of trying!

Shane