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White Dwarf (magazine)

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White Dwarf
EditorMark Latham
CategoriesWargames
FrequencyMonthly
First issueJune/July 1977
CompanyGames Workshop
CountryUnited Kingdom
Websitewww.games-workshop.com
ISSN02658712
File:WhiteDwarf090-170.gif
Cover of White Dwarf issue #90, June 1987.

White Dwarf is a magazine published by British games manufacturer Games Workshop. Initially covering a wide variety of fantasy and science-fiction role-playing and board games, the magazine is now dedicated exclusively to the miniature wargames produced by Games Workshop, mainly the core systems of Warhammer Fantasy Battle, Warhammer 40,000 and The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game.

History

Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone initially produced a newsletter called "Owl and Weasel" which ran for twenty-five issues from February 1975 before it evolved into "White Dwarf".

Originally scheduled for May/June 1977[1] but first published one month later on a bimonthly schedule with an initial (and speculative[2]) print run of 4,000, White Dwarf continued the fantasy and science fiction role-playing and board-gaming theme developed in Owl and Weasel but owing to the increase in available space began to produce reviews, articles and scenarios to a greater depth than had previously been possible.

The magazine was hugely influential in the 1980s when it helped to popularise RPGs in the UK, including those American RPGs for which Games Workshop had the UK licence[citation needed], competing directly with TSR's own UK publication, Imagine, and various other mainstream UK and imported fantasy and science-fiction gaming magazines. In addition to this a generation of writers passed through its offices and onto other RPG projects in the next decade, such as Phil Masters and Marcus L. Rowland.

In the mid-late 1980s, however, there was a repositioning from being a general periodical covering all aspects and publishers within the hobby niche to a focus almost exclusively on Games Workshop's own products and publications - the changeover being relatively abrupt and obvious by issue #100. In this respect it took over some of the aspects of the Citadel Journal, an intermittent publication that supported the Warhammer Fantasy Battle game. The magazine has always been a conduit for new rules and ideas for GW games as well as a means to showcase developments. It often includes scenarios, campaigns, hobby news, photos of recently released miniatures and tips on building terrain and constructing or converting miniatures.

Today, the magazine focuses exclusively on miniature wargames and thoroughly covers the models, miniatures and related paraphernalia created by Games Workshop and has carried the tagline "Games Workshop's monthly gaming supplement & Citadel miniatures catalogue" for a long period. Being owned and published by Games Workshop, White Dwarf features a marked editorial bias towards stressing the positives of the Games Workshop Hobby.

Grombrindal the White Dwarf is also a special character for the Dwarf army, whose rules are published only in certain issues of White Dwarf (being revamped for the most recent edition of the rules). It is never stated who exactly the White Dwarf is, but it is implied that he is the spirit of Snorri Whitebeard, the last king of the Dwarfs to receive respect from an Elf. The image of the White Dwarf has graced the covers of many issues of the magazine, and is regularly featured in the interior artwork as well. The image was also used on the character sheet for the Dwarf character in Hero Quest.

White Dwarf today

In December, 2004, White Dwarf published its 300th issue in the United Kingdom and North America. Each issue contained many special "freebies" as well as articles on the history of the magazine and the founding of Games Workshop.

The magazine's content is divided between the three core games (Warhammer Fantasy Battle, Warhammer 40,000 and The Lord of the Rings SBG), with roughly equal amounts of page space devoted to each.

Older issues of the magazine (in the 80s) included features such as the satirical comic strip Thrud the Barbarian and Dave Langford's "Critical Mass" book review column, as well as a more rough and informal editorial style.

The monthly battle reports have arguably been White Dwarf's most popular feature for many years, as acknowledged during various White Dwarf editorials. Battle reports used to be blow-by-blow accounts of a battle between two or more forces, usually with their own specific victory conditions. The reports followed the gamers through their army selection, tactics and deployment, through the battle to their respective conclusions. The format has gone through several changes in recent years - ranging from a simplified, generalized style in the 2006-7 editions, to a return to a more detailed and visual style from October 2007.

Since the extremely popular Battle Games in Middle Earth magazine finished its series, two members of its team (Mark Latham and Glenn More) have joined the White Dwarf team; Mark Latham later became the editor of White Dwarf in July 2007. It was hoped that White Dwarf's future articles would be improved to the Battle Games in Middle-earth standard, as the then moderator of the Games Workshop official forum, Steve Hammatt, said: "Hopefully this will mean good things for future LOTR content in White Dwarf." [3]

On the 26th of May 2007 White Dwarf celebrated its 30th birthday with celebrations in Games Workshop stores around the world.

Spinoffs

There is also a biweekly online supplemental free e-zine Black Gobbo that is produced by Games Workshop's US studio. It includes two regular columns, "Rules of Engagement" and "Ask the Scenery Guy," to help answer gamers' questions. Similar to its printed counterpart, it is devoted to the games and hobbies created by GW. Just like its printed counterpart, Black Gobbo also has its own character, published on the web with its own article, rules, and modelling tips. The name is a pun. Gobbo stands for Goblin, which is hated by the Dwarfs. Dwarfs are, likewise, hated by Goblins. Black is also the opposite of white, hence Black Gobbo is the exact opposite of White Dwarf; one being free, electronic, short, weekly, black and a Goblin while the other one cost something, printed, comparatively long, monthly, white, and a Dwarf.

In the late 1980s, mail-order subscriber copies of White Dwarf also received a small companion magazine Black Sun, written, illustrated and produced by Tim Pollard (with occasional contributions from other GW authors such as Andy Chambers). It contained very informal 'inside' information from the Citadel Mail Order Department, news, game reviews, articles and competitions as well as a short lived cartoon serial. Some new rules for then current GW products also debuted in 'Black Sun'.
An earlier free companion magazine of the same title had been distributed in a similar manner from 1984, edited by Steve Williams.

UK White Dwarf editors

  • Ian Livingstone: Issue 1 (June/July 1977) - 74 (February 1986)
  • Ian Marsh: Issue 75 (March 1986) - 77 (May 1986)
  • Paul Cockburn: Issue 78 (June 1986; contents page erroneously headed "April 1986") - 83 (November 1986)
  • Mike Brunton: Issues 84 (December 1986) - 93 (September 1987)
  • Sean Masterson: Issues 94 (October 1987) - 107 (November 1988)
  • Phil Gallagher: Issues 109 (January 1989; there is no Editor credited in issue 108) - 116 (August 1989)
  • Simon Forrest: Issues 117 (September 1989) - 139 (July 1991)
  • Robin Dews: Issues 140 (August 1991) - 189 (September 1995); third longest-serving Editor
  • Jake Thornton: Issues 190 (October 1995) - 214 (October 1997); the card section in the magazine comes and goes
  • Paul Sawyer: Issues 215 (December 1997) - 301 (January 2005); occasionally called "Fat Bloke"
  • Guy Haley (UK editor from issues 302 to 310, international editor to 331): Issues 302 (February 2005) - 330 (June 2007)
  • Owen Rees (UK editor): Issue 311 (November 2005) - 333 (September 2007)
  • Mark Latham: Issues 331 (July 2007) - present

Bibliography

  • Haley, Guy (2004). "The History of White Dwarf". White Dwarf (300). Games Workshop: 6–11. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  • gonding@cs.odu.edu. "A Brief History of White Dwarf". Retrieved 2007-03-31. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

References

  1. ^ Livingstone, Ian (1977). "White Dwarf". Owl and Weasel (25). Games Workshop: 6. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  2. ^ http://www.eidosinteractive.co.uk/ian_livingstone/biography/part4.html
  3. ^ Post from Games Workshop forum

See also

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