From: [l--i--n] at [wizards.com] (Charles Keith-Stanley)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,alt.games.whitewolf,rec.games.frp.storyteller
Subject: Wizards of the Coast Sells Everway and Ars Magica
Date: Wed, 06 Mar 1996 14:14:53 -0800

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: 
Sue-Lane Wood                   John Tynes              John Nephew
Media Relations                 President of TCCorp     President 
Wizards of the Coast, Inc.      Pagan Publishing        Atlas Games
(206) 226-6500                  (206) 528-7665          (612) 638-0077


Everway(TM) &  Ars Magica(TM) FIND NEW HOMES
Wizards of the Coast, Inc. Sells Roleplaying Lines 

March 6, 1996 (Renton, Wash.) -- Wizards of the Coast(R) announced today
that it has found new homes for its roleplaying lines Everway(TM) and Ars
Magica(TM).  Seattle-based Tynes Cowan Corporation has acquired Everway
for release through its roleplaying game imprint, Pagan Publishing.  In
addition, Minnesota-based Atlas Games has bought the publishing rights for
Ars Magica.  These transfers are effective immediately, and come less than
three months after Wizards of the Coast announced it would no longer
pursue its roleplaying lines and would begin looking for new homes for the
games.

"It has been a top priority at Wizards to find good homes for our
roleplaying lines," said Peter Adkison, CEO and President of Wizards of
the Coast.  "I am confident that Pagan Publishing and Atlas Games will
give them [the games] the attention they deserve to succeed."

Pagan Publishing's initial product plans for Everway include the release
of Spherewalker Source Cards -- a set of fantasy art trading cards used as
inspirational material and visual reference in the game -- as well as
several other projects planned by Wizards of the Coast's former Alter
Ego(TM) roleplaying game team.

"We have the experience, the reputation and the passion to make this
work," said John Tynes, president of TCCorp and editor-in-chief of Pagan
Publishing.  "In the five years since we went into business, we've never
settled for anything less than the best -- and Everway is as good as it
gets.  This is a dream come true."

Atlas Games' plans for Ars Magica include the long-awaited fourth edition
and a steady schedule of supplementary titles over the coming years.

"This is a very exciting acquisition for us, in both strategic and
historic terms," said John Nephew, President of Atlas Games.  "Ars Magica,
as a fantasy roleplaying game, is a complement to our current product
lines.  The game has a dedicated fan base and great potential for future
growth.  The game also brings Atlas Games back to its roots."

Tynes Cowan Corporation (Pagan Publishing) is a privately-held publishing
company based in Seattle, Wash.  Since 1990, they have been producing
books and a magazine under license for the Call of Cthulhu(R) roleplaying
game, as well as launching a successful mail-order catalog and a
forthcoming line of fiction and non-fiction.  Atlas Games publishes a
number of products, including Over the Edge(TM), a role-playing game; On
the Edge(TM), a trading card game (named "Best New Collectible Card Game"
by GAMES magazine in December 1995); and Once Upon A Time(TM), the
storytelling card game.  The company, which currently employs seven
people, was formed in 1990.  

Wizards of the Coast is a game manufacturer based in Seattle, Washington. 
In August 1993, the company created a worldwide sensation when it released
its first trading card game, Magic: The Gathering(R).  To date, more than
a billion cards have sold worldwide in six languages.  Wizards of the
Coast has branches in Glasgow, Scotland; Antwerp, Belgium; and Paris,
France.  Currently, the company employs more than 240 people in its four
locations.

-- 
Charles Keith-Stanley                    [w--ew--f] at [wizards.com] 
Cyberspace Coordinator                    [l--i--n] at [wizards.com]
Wizards of the Coast                   http://www.wizards.com