Hahaha, that seems to be from the South Sac, Fruitridge, or Florin area. The Assembly of Wicca ran a feed store/antique store/occult book store in that area. They were a controversial group even among Wiccans, but never did anything reprehensible that I'm aware of...
I would pay good monies to get a hand on the book they write about in the introduction. Anyone has access to this book?
Also, they worship Azatoth? The fictional creation oc H.P Lovecraft? Yes, real people have a lot to fear from him, as much as from cthulhu and yog-sothoth!
"... why do they devote so much space to talking about the soul, the spirit, punishment, eternity...?"
Yeah, any books discussing such topics must be evil and should be burned! Wait...
I have to admit, as ludicrous as this sort of thing was, that was part of the appeal for me. I didn't get into D&D until around 1999/2000, so I'd heard of the scare but didn't see any reason for it in the newer books. It made a lot more sense when I read the 1E DMG, though. For a God-fearing Catholic boy, that book was actually kinda scary; it seemed to exude a mysterious power. How cool is that?!
It's was certainly a surprise to me to read that claim but one groundless claim among many is no surprise. The author of the piece knew 99% of the audience it was written for were never going to bother actually reading any of the D&D books for themselves.
I grew up in a smallish-town, fundamentalist church, and responses like this were pretty common, partly because general art and culture are mostly frowned upon in such circles, and partly because answers to big or important questions are assumed to be pretty simple to work out. Thus the shallowness of pamphlets like this; you get lots of knee-jerk reaction with very little attempt to look beyond the first thing that comes to the writer's mind. I was fortunate enough to be introduced to gaming by a bunch of guys at my church, and we gamed regularly in the home of one of our elders/bishops, who was a highly educated guy and fully supported the hobby. Not everybody's experience, I know.
D&D is a threat to this nation's youth: players end up as nerds, who debate game issues well into adulthood when it's no longer cute. If players didn't get started with D&D, they wouldn't end up as power gamers, marshmallow DM's, killer DM's, and aspiring thespians. Let's not even get into the Munckin problem. Don't let your kids play. Don't let them end up like you.
I still get knee jerk reactions like this at my church, but only with the older set. I'm 33, so the older set would be twice that number, age-wise. I just don't even bring it up, because it's a fight I cannot win. I let them think whatever they want. Most times they don't say a thing to me when they find out I play "that game," because I've taught Sunday School for so long now that my discernment and judgment is pretty much trusted, at least amongst those that know me. The fact remains, though - it's still a problem for those of us who are Christian and play.
Grudge from the Grave
-
*The Nature of the Beast* is a scenario set in an England rent by division
and strife during the reign of Charles I. This division is between the
Protesta...
More thoughts on Only Heroes Get to Resist
-
I've never implemented this rule, but I keep thinking about running a game
that would use it:
One Heroes Get to Resist
I have a few more thoughts on it, n...
QuarHammer
-
I stumbled, addled, into my local semi-rural game store in search of
off-brand Contrast paint to finish up Ionus Cryptborn, and while wandering
around, I ...
More (Mostly Pointless) Messing About
-
I thought I would try an experiment: I re-scaled one of Bergman's 1:100
Char B-I (bis) models to 1:200 and printed it on my Mars Pro. It's the
yellow ...
#AtoZChallenge2024: V is for Vampire
-
[image: Dracula by Edgar Alfred Holloway]
Dracula by Edgar Alfred HollowayLong before I was ever known as the "witch
guy" I was the "vampire guy." A lot of...
Stonehell: Dipping their toes in the sewer
-
Session 227 was played on 9/24/23
Morgana, Magic User (Rob)
Blotto, Goblin Fighter (Lanse)
Koltic, Cleric 7 (NPC)
Aroon, Fighter 5 (NPC)
Jameth, Fighter 5...
AD&D ability tests, streamlined
-
As I've mentioned in my Hyperborea review (check it pout!), I really liked
how the game tries to streamline AD&D ability checks:
This is a simpler versi...
On preparing adventures for the Ghostbusters RPG
-
With my mind on a lot of things lately related to West End Games' classic
RPG *Ghostbusters*, I was thinking of putting together a blog entry
offering so...
d100 Wasteland Weirdos
-
Possibly some Charginspire leaked onto our new album.
Sampler short
https://youtube.com/shorts/Yj7jn40iomM?si=dflfJ10EdYYJqMYr
My Gunderholfen solo play...
Standoff at Sandfell Sea Fort
-
By MalrexThe Merciless MerchantsOSR/1e/2eLevels 4-7 Eerie lights? Strange
noises? Ships are sailing blind into the rough shores of the Bay of
Saurvorn. Why...
A World in a Magazine
-
Four years ago, I wrote about my history with miniature games and getting
back into them during the lockdown. Summer 1995 saw me seduced by the world
of ...
New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin
-
[image: New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin]
I don't know how many of my peeps here are into 3d printing, but I'm always
collecting the STL ...
Play as Sculpture, Play as Prism
-
Watching my eldest child and friends engaging in imaginative play, I'm
often struck by the fact that what seems to excite them is deciding who
gets to be...
Session #12 & Adventure Sites Compilation
-
Firstly, I wanted to let everybody know that Adventure Sites I by Coldlight
Press is now available as a free download on DriveThruRPG. It includes my
own...
Clerics of the Flanaess, Part 2
-
Sorry it took so long to get to the next article in this series, but here
we are! This continues the details of specialty clerics for the World of
Greyhawk...
On the Sector Turn
-
It's very simple.
There are many important things cybertechtronically enhanced secret agents
need to do: Buy illegal tanks with railguns. "Convince" the...
Arsenic & Old Lace (a Review)...
-
The free-kriegsspiel revolution (or FKR; sometimes free-kriegsspiel
roleplay) has been getting a lot of attention lately, which seems
inevitable given re...
The Light Dawns
-
THIS!!! Yes, a thousand times, this!
Back in the day, I referred to this as “neo-classicalgaming,” which is to
say, the sorts of games that came ou...
Improvised Awful Lights Missions
-
Asking about The Awful Lights, a commenter asks:
*I'd love to hear about how this is run - with the Handler determining
mission location and objectives ...
Jim Ward's Adventure in Gygax's Wonderland
-
Last weekend at GaryCon, many of us raised a glass to the memory of Jim
Ward, who passed away just days before the convention. Ward was very
helpful to m...
It’s Tolkien Reading Day
-
I recently started rereading *The Silmarillion*. I had last read it over
two decades ago. I liked it then but I’m really enjoying it this time!
Despite b...
Osr anchorites?
-
It's been a long time since I listened to any osr podcasts. Anchor was a
lot of fun. I'm not sure if the community is still going? I deleted the
app ...
Chaos War Dogs
-
Welcome back to the Vault! My gaming partner and I had a fun day at the
Meme Team doubles last weekend, placing mid-table results wise. My eye is
now lo...
ShadowDark Magic Items
-
The next campaign I run will use the ShadowDark RPG. I'm not sure when
that'll be (I'm hoping a little later this year), but ShadowDark is my
choice. I'v...
Xandering, Jaquaysing, or Arneson-ing the Dungeon?
-
Yet another gamer firestorm arose shortly after the passing of Janelle
Jaquays when it was noted that Justin Alexander had changed a rather well
known p...
GLOG Class: Bioweapon
-
I got this idea from mad gods on bear blog.
Crab Evo from Kagaku Sentai Dynaman
A thousand soldiers were slain. Too many to be tragic--this is just a fact...
The Economy Engine, v0.2
-
I made a thing. For D&D 3rd edition, so it might not be that interesting to
a lot of people. But I made it and I think it’s cool. The 3rd edition
Dungeon M...
*'s in SpaaaaaAaaaace
-
A lot of SF (including a certain 2D6 RPG grandaddy) deal with ancient
aliens taking humans from Earth and dropping them, fleas and all, on one or
more w...
What Else Have I Got in Me?
-
Brechewold's been done for a little while. Still incredibly pumped to have
this labor of love out in the company of LotFP's marvelously creative body
of ...
Last move - to self-hosting!
-
As my vote regarding Substack in the “marketplace of ideas”, I’m moving to
self-hosting.
I’m now at (and hopefully staying for a long time at)
Blog: ht...
Time Rolls On
-
Today is December 31, 2023, in the mid-afternoon. In less than ten hours it
will be 2024. 2023 2023 was a good year. But all years are good years. Both
goo...
Play Report: Skull Mountain
-
At the end of the last Skull Mountain session the PCs had retreated to
safety at Owen's redoubt, met with visiting elves, and recovered from
injuries ...
-
Heya folks, the 21st Salt Mine book, Import Export, has hit the digital
shelves! In the 21st book we follow Aaron Haddock-codename Stigma-as he
tries to ...
Moving On...
-
So, my D&D 5e experiment has blown up the lab in a puff of green smoke
leaving my face blackened like Wile E. Coyote after a failed roadrunner
Acme trap...
How to Keep Megadungeons Fresh
-
People often consider megadungeons boring. Not because the play style is
boring, but because they are in the same locale for a majority of the
campaign. If...
The Blade Itself
-
I just finished listening to the audiobook of The Blade Itself, volume one
in Joe Abercrombie’s The First Law trilogy. This was my first exposure to
his wo...
Genteel Magistrate at FenCon XVIII
-
Victorious author Mike Stewart will be a guest at FenCon XVIII this weekend
at the Sheraton DFW Airport hotel, 4440 W. John Carpenter Freeway, Irving,
TX, ...
This is an Important Game Mechanic
-
*"That's the GM's Regional Map from my AOWG. And it's a damned good
regional map. It's not a good map for a Simple Homebrew Campaign. It does
some s$&...
Clean Your Room
-
Looking back at my little blog here. That last post… wow, I was having fun
playing WOW Classic! That was August of 1999 and I was having a blast… it
was ...
My RPG Zine Trilogy is on Kickstarter!
-
I can't believe I didn't post about it here!
The Dead are Coming, Screams Amongst the Stars and Running Out of Time are
on *Kickstarter right now!* Thes...
Maximum HP 004, one week to go
-
Just one week to go for Maximum HP issue #004, the undead. We are pushing
through stretch goals and wracking up contributions for the best issue yet.
We...
Steve Jackson Interview
-
James Maliszewski recently did an interview with Steve Jackson over on his
Grognardia blog. Steve chats about the beginnings of The Fantasy Trip and
upcomi...
Undermountain Map Origins
-
As documented on the Ruins of Undermountain sales page, "TSR didn't
actually use Ed Greenwood's original maps," at least not in their entirety.
This post d...
WB:FMAG Total Print Sales
-
Hello Folks,
The last time I did a quick sales report was in September 2018.
I pulled reports from Amazon, Lulu and DrivethruRPG from October to current
fo...
The Minotaur for Old-School Essentials
-
*Minotaur*
*Requirements:* Minimum STR 9, Minimum CON 9
*Prime Requisite:* STR and CON
*Hit Dice:* 1d10
*Maximum Level:* 8
*Armor:* Leather, including shield...
WIZARDS OF POHJOLA
-
Init +0
Melee Atk
• sword or dagger +1 (1d5 or 1d3)
Ranged Atk
• hot iron sparks +3 (1d4+2 to two targets within 20' but not closer than
5')
AC 14
HD 12d...
Dungeons & Dragonmead Fall Schedule
-
*As you know, I run public classic Dungeons & Dragons games at **The Loaded
Die**/Metro Detroit Game Night's Board Game Nigh at **Dragonmead**, in
Warren...
D&D Sling Damage vs. Large Targets
-
In many early editions of D&D, weapons were assigned two damage values: one
for small/medium targets (i.e. man-sized) and one for large targets (giants
and...
James A. Smith, Jr. Memorial Video
-
A beloved father, devoted friend, and D&D Dungeon Master extraordinaire. We
miss you! To view video, click here Memorial Video
Note - The original video...
Let's Talk About Pacing!
-
The idea, I think, is that the RPG is ultimately about the long game. Even
rolling back to the early days of Basic & Expert, the goal of the player
was...
Profane and Profound Prep Part 2
-
This is part 2 of my work to edit my magic items for a DMsGuild release,
along with adding cursed items along the way. Here is part 1. Bone of a
Saint 8000...
SHORT BREAK.
-
I'm going to take a break for a week or so and will start up again in the
New Year. Thanks for reading and we'll start with Level 6 when I get back.
Iain Lovecraft, 3D Sculptor
-
Nope, it's got nothing to do with Cthulhu. I just did a video conversation
with Iain Lovecraft, who designs 3D miniatures and terrain. If you're not
doi...
New website!
-
Slowly but surely, all the content here will make its way — in updated
form! — to my new website: timbannock.com. For fairly obvious reasons, that
site wil...
Please Update Your Link!
-
If you're seeing this, it means your link to the Greyhawk Grognard blog is
out of date.
Please update your link to www.greyhawkgrognard.com (RSS feed is
h...
Mord Mar - Session 6
-
We weren't able to play Mord Mar last week, due to a family funeral. This
week we played on Monday for the first time, due to kids returning to
school and ...
A Small, Quiet Plea
-
There has been a great deal of discussing political agendas, social
grievances, and personal attacks within the little corner of gaming that is
my hobby....
Don’t Sleep It’s Broken
-
Expanding/editing my comments from What Makes Something Broken G+ thread:
“Broken”, for me, is anything that makes normal character choices, tactics,
or ro...
Swords & Wizardry Light-Themed Birthday Party
-
Last month, my wife and I helped our oldest to celebrate his birthday in
style. Ever since 2013, we have hosted a themed birthday party for our
now-15-ye...
I actually have something pretty relevant to this, I think:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.paperspencils.com/2012/07/08/dungeons-dragons-small-towns-zealots/
Huge collection of similar newspaper clippings; all from the same small town.
"If its only a game, why do players worship Tiazolteotl"
ReplyDeleteBecause the Christians who wrote the book were too worried about making a mockery of their own religion to include stats for Jesus and Jehovah?
Hahaha, that seems to be from the South Sac, Fruitridge, or Florin area. The Assembly of Wicca ran a feed store/antique store/occult book store in that area. They were a controversial group even among Wiccans, but never did anything reprehensible that I'm aware of...
ReplyDeleteI would pay good monies to get a hand on the book they write about in the introduction. Anyone has access to this book?
ReplyDeleteAlso, they worship Azatoth? The fictional creation oc H.P Lovecraft? Yes, real people have a lot to fear from him, as much as from cthulhu and yog-sothoth!
"... why do they devote so much space to talking about the soul, the spirit, punishment, eternity...?"
ReplyDeleteYeah, any books discussing such topics must be evil and should be burned! Wait...
I have to admit, as ludicrous as this sort of thing was, that was part of the appeal for me. I didn't get into D&D until around 1999/2000, so I'd heard of the scare but didn't see any reason for it in the newer books. It made a lot more sense when I read the 1E DMG, though. For a God-fearing Catholic boy, that book was actually kinda scary; it seemed to exude a mysterious power. How cool is that?!
Oh man ... I just wrote the Satanic Panic section in the book I'm writing ...
ReplyDeleteA simple reading shows the demons and devils are there to be opposed and defeated by the good guys. It always boggled me when folks saw otherwise.
ReplyDeleteI really wanted this author to show how d&d fosters homosexuality with the same "attention" he gives to blasphemy?
ReplyDeleteIt's was certainly a surprise to me to read that claim but one groundless claim among many is no surprise. The author of the piece knew 99% of the audience it was written for were never going to bother actually reading any of the D&D books for themselves.
DeleteI grew up in a smallish-town, fundamentalist church, and responses like this were pretty common, partly because general art and culture are mostly frowned upon in such circles, and partly because answers to big or important questions are assumed to be pretty simple to work out. Thus the shallowness of pamphlets like this; you get lots of knee-jerk reaction with very little attempt to look beyond the first thing that comes to the writer's mind. I was fortunate enough to be introduced to gaming by a bunch of guys at my church, and we gamed regularly in the home of one of our elders/bishops, who was a highly educated guy and fully supported the hobby. Not everybody's experience, I know.
ReplyDeleteD&D is a threat to this nation's youth: players end up as nerds, who debate game issues well into adulthood when it's no longer cute. If players didn't get started with D&D, they wouldn't end up as power gamers, marshmallow DM's, killer DM's, and aspiring thespians. Let's not even get into the Munckin problem. Don't let your kids play. Don't let them end up like you.
ReplyDeleteI still get knee jerk reactions like this at my church, but only with the older set. I'm 33, so the older set would be twice that number, age-wise. I just don't even bring it up, because it's a fight I cannot win. I let them think whatever they want. Most times they don't say a thing to me when they find out I play "that game," because I've taught Sunday School for so long now that my discernment and judgment is pretty much trusted, at least amongst those that know me. The fact remains, though - it's still a problem for those of us who are Christian and play.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't realized words lime "healing", "soul", and "worship" were Christian-only. Huh.
ReplyDeleteLearn something new every day.
*like
DeleteHail Stan the Dork Lord!
ReplyDelete