Let’s have a quick look at some early issues of Chaosium’s Different Worlds magazine. This is the second issue, from April/May of 1979 (I think; they actually neglected to note that anywhere that I can see).

First thing, in the copyright matter, it says they pay $50 for color cover art, which, wow, that is like 175 2020 dollars! That’s not like, a fortune or anything, but it seems like Chaosium was doing pretty all right. This cover, by Willie Church and Steve Oliff is fine. I’m always down for some polar bear mounts. But it isn’t really a standout.

Inside, some fun stuff. The first issue of Different Worlds established the My Life and Roleplaying column. It continues here with Steve Jackson (Fantasy Trip, at this point) and David Feldt (Legacy, an early universal system).

This issue also introduces the Gigi D’Arn gossip column, A Letter From Gigi, which, along with My Life and Roleplaying and Steve Jackson’s game design articles for Space Gamer magazine, is easily one of the best things to see print in early RPG mags. It is a full page of delightful scuttlebutt and snark. The big news in this one is rumors of Dave Arneson filing suit against TSR for unpaid royalties. Gigi’s identity, I think, remains a mystery, but the consensus theory is that she was an amalgamation of gossip provided by Chaosium staffers and friends, penned by DW editor Tadashi Ehara (every column is formatted as a letter to Tadashi, after all).

Also in this issue, Dave Hargrave pens an introduction to Arduin and Steve Perrin details the Cacodemon cult for Glorantha.