I don't recall many of these making a huge splash over here, but I'm sure they had their niches at some point.  I think that I have a couple of issues of these lying about somewhere (d8 and Arcane seem really familiar) - I'll have a look later on today if you like.  There's also a new independent rpg magazine started up here (imaginatively called the Independent Roleplaying Magazine, or IRM) that covers a whole bunch of games.  My flgs stocks it and the owner is trying to push it as a bastion of independent UK gaming.  It's not bad - a bit reminiscent of old White Dwarf.

I purchased a set of Adventurer Magazines (by Mersey Leisure Publishing) whilst living in the UK. It ran for 11 issues, with Issue 1 in April of 1986 through June/July 1987. Most issues were about 64 pages in length, with most of the RPG articles for MERP, D&D, Call of Cthulhu, Runequest, etc. It didn't focus on any one system too much. Most early issues included a full colour poster. They talked about issue 12, but I've never seen anything past issue 11. The magazine started out as bi-monthly, went to monthly, and then back to bi-monthly with issue 11, probably because the magazine was in trouble, but that is just speculation on my part. Just to throw a value on them, I'd think picking up the set on Ebay from someone in the UK would set you back less than $50, of course with the crap exchange rate you might pay a bit more. I have a few surplus issues to sell if anyone is interested.

Fantasy Chronicles ran for 9 issues, starting in July 1986, and ending in March 1987. Most issues were about 42 pages in length. As said above, it was published in Ireland (Dublin), and mainly available there and in the UK. The publisher, Fantastic Publication Ltd., doesn't appear to have published much else. Like, Adventurer magazine, it covered most of the popular systems of the time. If it ran past 9 issues I've never seen them mentioned. It's worth about the same as the above, but is a little bit harder to find, unless you go to a used RPG store or used RPG seller at a con in the UK.

I bought both of the above sets because I am a Glorantha/Runequest completist. I have details on the Runequest info on my website, www.glorantha.info in the magazines section. I don't have all of the other articles listed though, just RQ.

Arcane ran for about 20 issues.
Valkyrie ran for about 28 issues.

I'd have to dig out the others you mention. I'm not aware of d8 magazine.

None of them are that hard to get in the UK, but much harder to find over in the US.

Hope that helps,
Rick Meints

yes i have had someof them over time and read them all - didnt really strike me as anything special to be honest.

i liked the imagine mags a lot more.

Al