Terrors lurk in the darkness, subvert the souls, and corrupt the mind. Secret detachments of psychics remotely view our every move. Powerful occultists perform secret rituals in hidden locations, manipulating our world to their ends. Mysterious forces invade our very souls, twisting and distorting the weak into strong and violent predators. Creatures flee from humanity’s encroachment on their territories, then strike out when prying eyes get too close. Spirits haunt the edges of our silent fears.

Talk Like A Pirate Day just passed by and it got us thinking a bit about Pirates and RPGs, which naturally lead to zombies…ok, I don’t know where I was going with that, but it made a lot more sense in my head (guess I don’t have to worry about zombies wanting my brains do I?) Anyway, our Design Essay series continues with Daniel Davis telling us about ARRGH! Thar Be Zombies, a supplement for the All Flesh Must Be Eaten RPG from Eden Studios!

Ahoy, me hearties, Arrgh!

Pull up a keg ‘n’ ‘ave a grog while I tell ye scalawags a tale o’ stormy seas an’ th’ walkin’ dead! Thar Be Zombies, ‘ere…

Ahem…yeah, anyway, I’m Daniel Davis, writer of the All Flesh Must Be Eaten supplement, Arrgh! Thar Be Zombies! from Eden Studios. Matt’s asked if I wanted to write up this little essay and talk about the process that brought ATBZ to the gaming table. ‘Twas a sea of shoals an’ flotsam, sun an’ fair wind, but I’ll recount th’ tale, arrgh.

Zombie Week continues here at Flames Rising with a new interview about zombies…and pirates!

In this interview, FlamesRising.com got the chance to sit down with Daniel Davis. Daniel is a hobby games designer who has worked with Eden Studios on the game line All Flesh Must Be Eaten. Today we talk to Daniel about his experiences with this zombie survival horror game and his work producing the Arrgh! Thar Be Zombies game supplement.

Be sure to check out the Arrgh! Thar Be Zombies! Preview we posted earlier this year.

Coming this November, Eden Studios is proud to announce Band of Zombies.

Band of Zombies is the new World War II sourcebook for All Flesh Must Be Eaten, and it is positively packed with new surprises. Inside you will find:

• New Qualities, Drawbacks, Inspired Miracles, and Zombie Aspects
• Detailed Rules for Dogfighting and Naval Combat
• Rules for Shell Shock, Combat Stress, and Madness
• New gear, from guns to aircraft to naval vessels to tanks
• Mass Combat rules
• Advice on running campaigns in World War II, from fire teams to commando squads, to SOE operatives behind enemy lines.
• And more!

So strap on your rucksack, hoist your SMG, keep your socks dry, and for cripes’ sake, Private, don’t forget the call sign! When they come shambling out of the dark, will you stand tall or join the armies of the dead?

Eden Studios announces today an agreement with Tim Seeley, creator of the HACK/SLASH™ horror comic book series, for the design, production, and distribution of the HACK/SLASH roleplaying and card games. Currently in development, the HACK/SLASH card game will be released late in 2010.

Eden Studios has a knack for making great games based on survival horror, and HACK/SLASH is a perfect fit for their line-up. Cassie Hack is the lone survivor of an attack by the vicious killer known as the Lunch Lady. HACK/SLASH chronicles the travels of Cassie and her monstrous partner Vlad as they crisscross the country, hunting down and destroying supernatural slashers before the uncanny butchers can claim more victims. The series features a perfect balance of horror and dark humor, and plots that put a fresh spin on the familiar themes and iconic characters of comics, gaming, and, of course, slasher flicks.

Avast! Thar be ghastly things that sail these waters!

Whether labeled privateers or buccaneers, everyone feared pirates during the Age of Sail. Now the pirates have something to be afraid of . . . the livin’ dead! From voodoo queens to ghost ships, swashbuckling with zombies is a whole different jug of grog.

So tighten them sails! Hoist the Jolly Roger an’ go on the account with the brethren o’ the sea! But ‘ware the shout from the crows’ nest, “Argh! Thar Be Zombies!” They’ll be after more than ye gold!

So trim the sails and hoist the Jolly Roger. Arrgh! Thar Be Zombies!

ARRGH! Thar Be Zombies is a supplement for the All Flesh Must Be Eaten roleplaying game, published by Eden Studios. Flames Rising is pleased to present an exclusive preview of this new book.

Back by popular demand, Eden Studios presents all lovers of PDFs with an incredible sale on all of their amazing products!

All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Conspiracy X, Buffy: the Vampire Slayer, C.J. Carella’s Witchcraft, Army of Darkness and more!

Enjoy 50% to 75% Off Savings on all Eden Studios Electronic Games for a limited time!

The sale ends Thursday, September 3rd so take advantage of this awesome sale! Price has been automatically discounted off the original (or sale) price so you’ll enjoy huge discounts. If you’ve ever been interesting in conspiracies, paranormal threats, zombies, ghosts, witchcraft or the other things that lurk in the dark — now’s the perfect time to check out these great games.

Eden Studios RPGs are available at the Flames Rising RPGNow Shop.

The third installment of “Eden Studios Presents” (ESP) attempts to bring a little magic into readers’ lives. I was excited to review this anthology because it was first mentioned in 2004.

Each component of the seventy-four page PDF delivers something mystical that can be introduced into many of Eden’s various lines. Buffy and Witchcraft gain the most material, although the other titles aren’t ignored. Since this is an anthology, I’ll forsake my usual format and approach each segment of the book as a separate entity.

Carlos Samuel Araya’s cover art to “ESP3″ is a moody piece featuring a magical device called the Shadefont, which is later described in “Cover Shots” by Charlie Von Eschen.

Review by Todd Cash

Recently we’ve had Greg Stolze tell us about creating his new game A Dirty World and Jason Morningstar fills us in on the development of The Shab Al-Hiri Roach. The design project continues today with Tim Brannan telling us about the work he did on the Ghosts of Albion RPG for Eden Studios.

Set in London at the dawn of the Victorian age, players join in the fight to keep the ever-present forces of evil at bay. Whether fighting a demon prince or even a band of infant stealing faeries, the battle wages on. Characters can join the fight as normal humans, ghosts, mysterious faeries or even wield the magic of the Protectors themselves. All against a backdrop of Victorian England with a dark supernatural undercurrent.

The previous Ghosts of Albion preview introduced readers to the mysterious world of Albion and touched on the cosmology of the setting.

Today’s preview will dig into some of the Cinematic Unisystem mechanics that make the game work. Specifically we are going to take a look at the Qualities and Drawbacks for supernatural characters.

Visit the Ghosts of Albion page at Eden Studios for free downloads and news. You can also get the Ghosts of Albion eBook now from the Flames Rising RPGNow shop.

Earlier, I announced that the Ghosts of Albion eBook was now available from Eden Studios (the print version comes out next month). Today we’re bringing you a small preview of this new game.

Some may not be familiar with the Ghosts of Albion setting, so we’re going to start with a basic introduction to the world of Albion and introduce a bit of the cosmology. Further previews and teasers will explore more of the setting and the Unisystem elements of the game…

Ages ago, when the Ghosts of Albion RPG was first announced by the folks at Eden Studios we were pretty fired up about the idea of some new Cinematic Unisystem elements. We managed to land interviews with both Amber Benson and Christopher Golden, asking them about the game and other related products. The energetic Timothy S. Brannan wrote a review of Accursed (a Ghosts of Albion fiction novel) that helped explore the setting just a bit more.

Well, Eden Studios hit a few delays and it took them a bit to get their house in order. However, the wait was certainly worth it. Ghosts of Albion is now available and it is a pretty awesome looking game.

The Flash Fire Mini-Reviews are back with a mix of fiction, games and comics this week. Mages, Wizards, Witches and other spell-slinging heroes, villains and monsters make appearances in this collection of reviews.

We’re looking at a variety of magical styles, ranging from the dark and evil to the divinely inspired. I’m not talking about spellbooks here, but magic wielding characters or plots about magic in the world around them. We’ve got Harry Dresden, Willow and Redcloak alongside some Live-Action Mage and the Unwanted.

Anyway, let’s get on with those mini-reviews…

Round three of the Flames Rising Flash Fire Mini-Reviews series is here!

This week we’ve got a vampire theme going on with a mix of fiction, comics and games. Some vampire hunters might even make an appearance as well. You can’t have the monsters without giving the heroes a little screen-time too. So, grab your garlic, watch your neck and enjoy!

Written by Jason Vey, with additional material by Ross A. Isaacs, Dungeons and Zombies introduces high fantasy to the already impressive line-up of AFMBE (All Flesh Must Be Eaten) supplements. This book offers up plenty of new material for survival horror fans.

The book starts off with a short story and introduction. This sets the mood for the book and offers up some useful information on the how and why of the text. Moving right into character creation, D&Z offers a lot of new material for AFMBE fans. New Character Types, new Qualities & Drawbacks, new (and modified) Skills and more…

Not only did she play Tara on the Buffy: the Vampire Slayer series, she has also directed, written and created a variety of other products that range from comic books to role-playing games.

Horror author Christopher Golden tells us about his many Buffy: the Vampire Slayer novels, his work on Hellboy and the upcoming Ghosts of Albion RPG from Eden Studios.

Quick: An excellent game that captures the feel and fun of the movie and expands on the established mythos. Great as a stand alone game, as a “Campaign sourcebook” or as an addition to any other Eden Unisystem game.

If zombies took over, would you fight? One of the Living is a supplement for All Flesh Must be Eaten that focuses on the survivors.

The opening fiction sets the tone for this dark, survivalist supplement. While there were a few grammatical errors, the language is vibrant and photographic. You feel as if you are right behind Jack, with a hand on his shoulder, as he struggles to retell his story. When you realize that Jack’s hope orbits around the impending daybreak, you understand that this is not your typical All Flesh supplement. Overall, the flavor text is well-written and does a good job of enhancing the desperate setting.

Derek tells us about his work on All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Eden Studios Presents gives us a break-down on good vs. bad conventions.