Goodman Games to Reprint Classic Judges Guild Products at Archival Quality

Goodman Games plans to start a series of hardcover reprints of classic Judges Guild releases at archival quality. I assume the series will be released via Kickstarter.

This is damn exciting (and I'm sure will be damn expensive, but not as expensive as tracking down the originals on eBay.)

You can find out more about this and other Goodman Games upcoming products at the Spellburn Podcast Gen Con Special Report

OSRGAMING.ORG Domain Actively Being Shopped

+Vincent Florio has told me that OSRGAMING.ORG, a domain that he holds and which hosts the forums of many RPG podcasts, is actively taking offers. Vince refused to state why the domain is being shopped, but he did say he had received at least one credible offer thus far.

Not a bad domain to own if you desired to be a hub in the community.

Shit - maybe we could crowdsource the funds to make a viable offer.

End of the Week Catch Up - D30s and Guest Posters, Oh My!

If you haven't noticed yet, it's been a busy summer, not just here at The Tavern but at my regular job as well. There have been times I've been lucky to get my daily post in.

So, first things first. Lets give away the D30 prizes that were offered up by +Richard LeBlanc of New Big Dragon Publishing.

The D30 Sandbox Companion goes out to: +John Stephens 

The D30 DM Companion goes out to: +Stu Rat 

The following 5 will each get a sheet of Order of the D30 Stickers:

G-woulf, +Sophia Brandt , Christian Kolbe, +Dennis Higgins and +Austin Schaefer 

Congrats to the winners!

Email me at tenkarsDOTtavernATgmailDOTcom and I'll make sure your info moves on to Rich.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Now, on to other stuff.

I've opened the doors of The Tavern to guest posters, which has caused some confusion. Totally my fault. It's a new process and I haven't done a good job of labeling the posts as "posts from folks other than your Tavern Keeper."

Moving forward, I'll probably move to a format of "Guest Post: Insert Title Here (Palatial Privy Cleaner)". So - warning - title - name of guest poster.

Now, some of these posts will be from other bloggers in the OSR - I think it's a great way to get some folks with great thoughts and ideas some extra visibility. We are a community that shares but sometimes we miss some of the best stuff out there.

Other posts will be from "anonymous posters". I know their identities, you do not. Some may take a few posts to get their sea legs and others may come right out of the box and make us look at our own sins and crimes. I'm excited, because I rarely know the post details until it's submitted for posting and even I'm impressed by the names behind the names ;)

In the end, i am responsible for all that is posted here at The Tavern, but just because I allow it to be posted does not mean I necessarily agree with it. Just as I am light handed with the moderating of the comments here, I'm fairly light handed with the guest posters. Still, if you think something is out of hand, feel free to contact me. Also, if you have a guest post or series of posts you are interested in sharing, drop me a line.

Tales from the Tavern Cellar: A DnD BX Basic Reboot

Since you all bitched the other day that my last gem was so old, I put my ear to the cracks of the tavern floors and while Erik was dazzling the tavern folk with tales of his podcast, this little gem spilled into my lap. The title alone screamed at me, clawing at my eyes, and drawing me in for a closer look. Its title was, a “DnD BX Basic Reboot”.

As I followed the link like a man who had to push the button with the sign “don’t push this button”, it brought me to a PDF which seemed to be neatly written. The Layout was nice on the eyes, so I decided to give it a closer look.

When I did that, I heard something snap in my mind. Was it that pin that holds my sanity in place? I was sure it was. As this had nothing to do with BX or Basic D&D, all it was a plus/minus system with a ton of anime art. The furthest thing from BX or Basic D&D. The only thing it had in common with D&D was the Fantasy element and the classes from D&D.

The more I read the more I realized this was just someone’s attempt to re-invent an already working wheel, because they feel *their* ideas are better then what was already written as the best selling RPG of its time. Seems like the thing to do, right?

Want to leave feedback or have The Crusty Grog talk about something? Go ahead, email him. I dare you. thecrustygrog@gmail.com

Indecent Indiegogo - Chronicles of Gor

I remember the Gor series well. I picked the first 12 books or so up from a garage sale in the late 80s at a quarter a book. Made it through the first five or six books before giving up on the series. The sex / rape / slavery depicted was not what I was looking for in my escapism. Well, that and the writing was fairly poor. Yes, i devoured almost all scifi and fantasy I could get my hands on those days, good or bad, but even I had my limits.

So, 25 years after I was introduced to, and decided to pass on Gor, we now have an Indiegogo project to make Gor into an actual RPG. Luckily(?) for us, James Desborough is keeping it to it's roots:

Yeah, as I recall it wasn't so much sex / gender issues as it was slavery and rape. Not things I want to fantasize about in my roleplaying.

No mention or hint at the actual game system isn't helping sell it to me either. I mean, James says the work is basically complete, so how about some ideas on the system that may be worth strippin away from it's setting.

Oh, and it's "Flexible Funding", the "Fuck You" of crowdsourced funding - even if it doesn't fund, your pledge is still taken. So in reality, there is no goal post to hit.

I am sure all publicity is good publicity - but I'm not including links. If folks are really that interested, they can find it on their own.

Sometimes as a hobby, we are our own worst enemy. I'm sure James is betting his own history of internet battles will be as much a selling point as the setting itself. It will be a shame when I find myself on the side of his detractors for what seems like the first time.

Tales from the Tavern's Cellar... Feats in AD&D 1E?

Well. Well. Looks like it’s time to focus on things that only a cellar dweller hears, things that the inn keeper himself seems to ignore.

Ya see, living under the tavern, you hear all kinds of things, some good and some bad.

Honestly you hear and see more bad than good. Boy I tell ya, there is a list of BAD a mile long down here going back many years.

Today’s little gem that floated its way down into the cellar in 2006, its a product called “First Edition Feats”.

It can be found on RPGNOW.com, by Mob United Media… MUM? Hey Mum, can you give me a load of crap to shovel into my game.

First edition is by no means a PERFECT game, but it’s set in its ways, and plays well. There is no need to add giant horse turd into the game, such as FEATS, for $2.99!

Not only does this guy think anyone in the community would want to have feats, he thinks he can make a quick buck off of this shit.

Well, let me crawl back down the stairs to find another gem to share with you from my list of crap.

Want to leave feedback or have The Crusty Grog talk about something, feel free to email him thecrustygrog@gmail.com

DCC RPG Reference Booklet - POD Via Lulu / Free in PDF

+Jeremy Deram has been kind enough to put together a DCC RPG Reference booklet for use my the DCC masses as the game table. These are the charts you've been looking for.

If you are a non-spell caster in DCC you could probably get away with leaving your rule book behind. Regretfully, I can't say the same for the spell casters, but then again, you folks knew what you were in for when you chose a caster ;)

Links to the PDF and POD versions are at the People Them with Monsters blog.

Improvised NPCs - Do You Keep Track of Them?

I know I don't. I should, but I don't. It's almost easier to kill them or remove them between sessions than to remember the mannerisms that brought them to life. Yeah, I'm that disorganized.

So, how do you handle improvised NPCs as a DM?

Roll For Initiative Podcast Reviews "Basic" 5e D&D

+Vincent Florio and DM Nick do a decent job of reviewing the "Basic" 5e D&D rules from an OSR perspective in the latest Roll for Initiative Podcast. It's funny. My 5e Player's Handbook arrived today and I have even less desire to read it (and absolutely no free time or energy to do so these days.)

It appears to be much of what I expected, where the damage and hit points "go to eleven" and there are way to many safety features to prevent / avoid character death and true risk. Sure, a good DM could easily overcome that, but than why run the 5e rules?

When work calms down I'll give my Player's Handbook a decent read through, but for now my bathroom reading will be reserved for Designers & Dragons.

One Dead Ogre and Four Battered Egos (Guest Poster Charlie Akins - Dyvers Blog)

(+Charles Akins  is the proprietor of the Dyvers Blog, the go to location for capsule reviews of the blogs in the OSR corner of the universe.)

One Dead Ogre and Four Battered Egos

"The ogre is dead," I said as I threw a coke can into the steel trash drum for effect.

Dee looked up from where he had buried his head and said, "Grand. Does anyone feel like dancing?"

"Love to," Alice said with a smile, but I'm fairly certain that the effort would drop me."

"We should be better than this," Jeff grumbled, "There were four of us - a balanced party mind you - against a single ogre that talked like a three-year-old and had all the battle finesse of a brick to the back of the head!"

"There he goes bring up our sex life in public again," Alice groaned.

"I'm serious."

"So is she!" I exlaimed.

"Very funny, Charlie," Jeff said, "but you know damned well and good that there isn't a single reason in this world for us to have been overrun and damned near destroyed by that brain damaged -"

"You're taking this a bit personally, don't you think," Alice interrupted him. "It's just another tough fight in a campaign filled with them. I don't see any of us should be bent out of shape over a victory."

"We almost lost Joe in the second round!"

"I was fine," Joe said as he waved him off. "All he did was rip my arm off and beat me unconscious with it."

"That right there is exactly what I'm talking about! You were so busy making jokes about blowing guys in college that you didn't even think to ask for a spot check. Hell, you just walked right in and let him slap you about."

"By the way," Joe said to me, "thanks for not making the 'why are you hitting yourself jokes.'"

"Thought they would be a bit too obvious on my part."

"And look at the two of you acting like you're friends," Jeff practically shouted.

"We are friends," Joe said, "were all friends here."

"No we aren't," Jeff said as he crossed his arms. "He's the Dungeon Master - the enemy. You're a player and you need to remember that his only goal is to tell his story and kill us if we get out of line."

"What are you talking about," Alice asked, "he asked me to roll for a random encounter and I rolled a one. Did you honestly think that meant that you weren't going to fight anything?"

"Oh, I'm fine with fighting but that ogre battle was just him punishing me for stealing that gem back in town from the blind prophet."

"You've lost your damned mind," Joe said, "That's not how he runs."

"Of course you'd say that," Jeff mocked as he jabbed a finger in my direction, "you're friends. Well your friend here just threw an ogre at us that didn't follow the damage matrix from the monster manual."

"You've memorized the damage output for an ogre," I asked a bit incredulously.

"Yes."

"Dude, you need to fix your life," I said.

He stared at us, focusing on each of us in turn before he said, "You're going to let him talk to me like that? I'm the only one standing up for us after the bullshit he just pulled."

"I don't think I want to play Dungeons and Dragons with Jeff anymore," Joe said.

"Seconded," I called.

"Fine," Jeff said as he stood and started cramming his things in his backpack. "Then Alice and I won't play with you jerks anymore."

"Speak for yourself, Jeff," Alice said.

"Alice," he said with anger, pride, and hurt playing in his voice. "You can't stay with them. You're my girlfriend."

"Were," she said as she refilled my wine glass, "the word you are missing from that sentence was were. As in you were my girlfriend."

"You can't mean that," he said.

"Oh but I can," she said without a trace of kindness in her voice, "I won't fool with any man so selfish and unkind." Jeff stood staring at her for a few seconds before he turned and slammed the door behind him.

The room was still filled with the electrical static that always follows these sort of things. Then Joe moved next to Alice and said, "So now that you're single," she stared at him with a face flush with anger, "would you mind if I told people that we were having an affair and you were pregnant with my child."

"But you're gay," she said with disbelief.

"Shush," he said with an evil twinkle in his eye, "don't go telling the truth now and spoil my fun."

New Big Dragon Gen Con Jet Lag Giveaway - Print Copies of D30 Sandbox and D30 DM Companion to Be Given Away (and Stickers too)

New Big Dragon Games ( +Richard LeBlanc ) in conjunction with Tenkar's Tavern Blog ( +Erik Tenkar ) have conspired cooperated to give away some gaming goodness in the wee hours post Gen Con.

If you haven't read me waxing poetically about the awesomeness of the D30 Sandbox Companion and it's mate, then you must not be a regular reader of this blog.

That's okay. Not only will we forgive you, we'll give you an opportunity to own a copy of the D30 Sandbox Companion or a Copy of the D30 DM Companion of your very own. We are talking dead tree. Paper and ink. Print.

Yes, one random commenter will win a copy of the D30 DM Companion and another will win a copy of the D30 Sandbox Companion. Both will also get Order of the D30 sticker sheets. Five runner ups will receive Order of the D30 sticker sheets mailed to their homes. Tag your books, your kids, your pets ;)

Just add a comment below. Tell us of your love of random charts. Do it before 9pm, Eastern Time August 19th, 2014 (Tuesday to the rest of us.)

Well, what are you waiting for?

OSR Gamers and Story Gamers - So Close, Yet So Far

Danke the Dachshund meet Toby the Siberian

I think we WANT to understand each other. We want to makes sense of what makes the other side tick.

We just don't get it. Probably genetics or something.

Still, we always seem to come back seeking to understand.

It must be FATE or something. Yeah, I still can't grasp that shit, and I went as far as buying dice for it...

Get the Freebooter's Guide to the Razor Coast in PDF For Free

Frog God Games is giving away free copies of The Freebooter's Guide to the Razor Coast for free to celebrate Razor Coast - Heart of the Razor winning the Silver ENnie for Best Adventure.

All you need to do is go to the Frog God Games website and download a copy. But do it soon - this giveaway wont last forever.

Available in Swords & Wizardry and Pathfinder flavors.