Remember the Dragonwars of Trayth Kickstarter "Meltdown" at The Tavern? It's been Released as a Free PDF on RPGNow

My God. I remember the Dragonwars of Trayth Kickstarter fiasco like it was yesterday. Actually, it was October of 2014 but hey, whose counting?

The posts regarding this Kickstarter probably generated more comments than anything else that's been discussed here at The Tavern, and that's not including the comments from one of those involved in the KS that were subsequently deleted (but saved as screenshots for the sake of history and entertainment value).

Here's the original posts:

Kickstarter - Dragonwars of Trayth - Tabletop RPG (Pathfinder / OSRIC) - Revised with new Pics and Awesome Legal Threat!

Wayward Kickstarter - Dragonwars of Trayth - Tabletop RPG (Pathfinder / OSRIC) - Indtroducing The PR Fail

Tales from the Backwater Tavern

Closing the Door on Dragonwars of Trayth Kickstarter - Restoring the Deleted Comments

So, here we are and the first installment of a 25 piece epic series known as Dragonwars of Trayth (yes, 25 parts) is available as a free download on RPGnow. Oh, and a free character sheet download (ignore the misspelling in the file name, "character" is spelled correctly on the actual sheet. DO NOT print out all four pages, the first two are simply ads and color ink killers)

Did I mention you can get the character sheets in Pathfinder and OSRIC flavors but the module is only available for Pathfinder thus far.

You know you want to. I WANT TO. And I shall. It is, sadly, pushing away other titles from the top of the review pile (Ed Greenwood's the Terrible Revenge of Simpering Malexineuss the Pretender may still go first)

Remember, the download is free and your time is precious.

OD&D Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-gods & Heroes - $4.99 in PDF

and now the circle is complete.

white box and tan covers.

three plus four ends the tour.


Yeah, my poetry sucks. Thank the gods no one comes to The Tavern to read my poetry.

OD&D Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-gods & Heroes (0e) is available in PDF for $4.99 at RPGNow. Sure, you can snag a poor quality scan off of a torrent or two (as has been mentioned ad nauseam by the same commenter) or you can grab a legit and cleaned up scan from RPGNow for about the cost of a large / grande / tall / wtf they call a large coffee at Starbucks these days. Wait, they may add in a stale cookie for that price.

Note: the Melnibonean and Hyborian mythos have been removed due to copyright issues.

Kickstarter - The Mystery at Port Greely (OSR)

What can I say about The Mystery at Port Greely? It's written by +Jeff Talanian and inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. If that isn't an awesome combination of OSR goodness, I don't know what is.

See the cover above? The stuff nightmares are made of. Good nightmares I hope, but nightmares none the less.

Did I mention the Kickstarter funded in a day?

That 20 bucks gets you a signed and numbered copy as well as a PDF version?

That higher levels allow you to snag original art?

For now I'm in for 20, which is a steal...

The award-nominated role-playing game, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea™ is back with a brand new, exciting adventure, written by the game's creator, Jeffrey Talanian. 

This sword-and-sorcery adventure module is site-based, fleshing out a small portion of the Hyperborea setting and providing classic, memorable adventure material. 

The Mystery at Port Greely is designed for the AS&SH™ game, but it is suitable for use with the traditional editions of the world's most popular RPG, as well as its modern simulacra, such as OSRIC™ and Swords & Wizardry™. 

Physically, this module will be saddle-stitched, ranging from approximately 32 to 40 pages, and measuring 8.5 x 11 inches. It will feature a full-colour, card stock cover, and sharp, black & white interiours on durable paper.

My POD D&D 5e Basic Rules (with screwed up cover ;)

Yeah, I had a feeling the cover was going to be screwed up, but I didnt expect superimposed text to be the culprit. Does it really matter though?

Nope!

The insides of my D&D 5e Basic Book appear to be fine and really, that's what I need for the soon to be no longer be secret project...

White Star Companion released in PDF - More White Star from the Spahn Himself

Last night the White Star Companion was released. I know, because I got the message from +James Spahn while I was sitting at my work desk last night. Worst thing was knowing it was released and I couldn't peek yet. You know, that whole work thing.

Now I have peek although I have yet to give it a thorough read from front to back. Actually, it's rare that I read any RPG release from front to back these days. Still, I suspect you know what I means. I still need to sit down with this book longer than I have. That being said, I very much like what I see.

Daring Men of Tomorrow and intrepid Deep Space Explorers face off against a horde of savage White Simians in the floating jungle of a lost world. Plucky Sidekicks escape relentless Bounty Hunters aboard their modified skyboards. Somewhere on the edge of the galaxy, an Orbital Battle Station is about to obliterate an entire planet with the push of a button. 

The White Star Companion brings nearly one hundred pages of new options to your White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying experience. New classes, new aliens, new creatures, new weapons, and new starships are all revealed. Complete rules for planetary vehicle combat are provided along with ways to generate complete star systems simply by rolling a few dice. The brand new skill and Serial systems can instantly flesh out a character's history and talents. 

With the White Star Companion, you'll expand your game to the edge of the galaxy and beyond! White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying is completely compatible with Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox and many other old-school roleplaying products.

Here's the list of new classes:

Bounty Hunter
Deep Space Explorer
Freed Assimilant
Man of Tomorrow
Novomachina
Plucky Sidekick
Two-Fisted Technician
Yabnabs

Did I mention the hyperlinks in the PDF yet?

Oh and it gives options for a simple skill system.

Alright, fuck this post. I'm reading the White Star Companion from front to back starting now...

Humble Bundle RPG Book Bundle - Pathfinder - Starting at a Buck

I don't normally post much about Pathfinder as it is WAY too crunchy for my tastes. I will, however, make an exception today with the Humble Bundle RPG Book Bundle - Pathfinder. Why? Simply because for as little as a buck you can get some excellent value even as an OSR gamer.

The 1 buck level gives the core game and some other goodies - the ones that stand out are the GameMastery Guide and the Pathfinder Beginner Box. Really, if the only value you find is using 1% of each of those 2 items, you've made your buck back and then some

The Bestiaries available at the higher levels are ripe for OSR conversions, but by far the best value is a single dollar.

Bundle of Holding - Castles & Crusades - Starting at 12 Bucks

I like Castles & Crusades. I like it a lot. I've referred to it as the Rosetta Stone of the OSR in the past and I still see it that way. You can pretty much grab an adventure from any edition (can't speak for 4th) and run it in C&C pretty much as is.

On a side note, I've also referred to C&C's Classic Monsters as the frugal DM's Tome of Horrors Complete. Much of the same source material, compatible with most editions and much more affordable.

Really, you can't got wrong with Castles & Crusades and it is a HIGHLY supported system.

12 bucks gets you in the door. Just over 20 bucks get's you a whole lot more.

Creature Compendium only 1 Measly Buck (0e/1e - limited time - PDF)

Has New Big Dragon Games ever released a product that was less than excellent? I think not.

200 creatures for a buck? That's half a cent a monster.

The Creature Compendium is on sale right now for 1 (one) small (inconsequential) buck (dollar) in PDF. Do yourself a favor if you don't already own a copy - grab it now!

Remember those flashes of inspiration
that electrified your brain when
you first picked up that hardback volume
of monsters all those years ago? 

The countless nights you sat up thinking of how to use those monsters,
where to put them, and when your players would meet them? Those unceasing
waves of joy that swam over you and your players as you unleashed
those creatures, critters, beasts and behemoths upon their characters? 

Collected herein are over 200 monsters from Abysmal to Zathoa,
instilled with that same spirit, presented in a “dual-stat” format,
and designed to be used with most early editions of the world’s
original role-playing game and comparable retro-clones.

Looking at Possible PubCon Locations in Queens, New York

Damn, the post title looks official ;)

As we head towards the end of February and to March (and therefore closer to me putting down the gun and shield and spending more time with the pen and keyboard) there are a few things to touch upon. Tonight, I'll touch upon the one I hear the questions asked about the most:

PubCon

I'd like to get an informal PubCon set up for a saturday afternoon in late spring / early summer here in Queens. So far, I've "scouted out" three potential locations:

1 - a local pub (The Grandstand) where I know the owner. We would have to ensure that it's a day they haven't reserved the hosting room. Probably could comfortable fit 50 or so gamers. I'd be happy with a dozen ;) - close to the subway

2 - a Korean BBQ (Unidentified Flying Chickens) place with a dozen beers on tap and a basement that is used for overflow customer seating. Food is good as is the craft beer collection - close to the subway

3 - a local brewery (Finback) with about a dozen taps of it's own brewed beer. Does not serve food but encourages patrons to bring their own. The have board games available for customer use, so they should be open to gaming. Does occasional community events. Probably wouldn't charge for use of their picnic tables - not close to the subway

As I said, if we get this off the ground it would definitely be as informal as possible.

How Many Facebook Accounts Does One Whitman Need?

Only Ken Whitman could be friends with... Ken Whitman

https://www.facebook.com/ken.whitman.374/friends

How many Facebook Accounts does one Whitman need?

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009540615587

https://www.facebook.com/Whit-Whitman-1015112031881963/

Does he talk to himself among the various accounts? Does he have others?

Damnit! I could clone myself via Facebook! Why didn't I ever think of that?

Oh, THAT's why!

Kickstarter - LAND, the game (24 hour funding period)

The Tavern's Community is awesome, especially when they can bring wonders like this to my attention. LAND, the game has a funding period of 24 hours. I've seen Kickstarters run as little as a week, but this is the first time I've seen one that will only last a day. Act fast, because when LAND is gone, it's gone - at least until it comes back. Maybe 24 days next time? Or is that 39? The graphic says one thing, but the countdown says another.

Sadly, this shot in the foot isn't going to be helpful even with a relaunch.