Swords & Wizardry Light - Forum

Saturday, July 8, 2017

Free RPG Day PDF Releases - Past and Present

Yep, there's a whole bunch of releases, going back years for Free RPG Day.

Here's the main link to all of the "Free" Free RPG Day releases in PDF at RPGNow

Some releases from this year:

Conan: Free RPG Day 2017: The Pit of Kutallu - PDF The Pit of Kutallu is a scenario which was part of FREE RPG Day 2017 and is self-contained standalone adventure featuring a cut down version of the 2d20 system for Robert E. Howard’s Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of, a game of dramatic pulp adventure and heroic conflict.

All you need are to play are two twenty-sided dice (2d20), a dozen or so six sided dice (d6), paper pens and some tokens or beads to track momentum, a group of friends and your imagination!



Vaginas are Magic! - Vaginas are Magic! is a book of blasphemous, dangerous magic featuring spells that only women characters can cast. It also includes a new magic system for use with Lamentations of the Flame Princess and all other traditional class-and-level tabletop role-playing games.

This is a book of 20 longform spells, a new magic system, and a short essay about magic. Each spell has its description, a half dozen effects if the spell is improperly cast, and a full page illustration accompanying it. Yes, that's 20 pages of art.

Spells are each named after a metal song. Of the twenty spells, three have sexual content, and three of the twenty illustrations could be considered explicit in that way.

RuneQuest Classic Quickstart - free in PDF https://www.chaosium.com/blog/free-rpg-day-is-over-heres-how-to-get-your-copy-of-the-rq-quickstart-if-you-missed-out/ but damned if I can find it at the site.

edit - and here's the RQC link:

https://www.chaosium.com/content/FreePDFs/RuneQuest/CHA4027%20-%20RuneQuest%20Quickstart.pdf


Torg Eternity - Free RPG Day Special - They came from other cosms—other realities—conquerors joined together to steal the Earth's living energy…to consume its possibilities. The Possibility Raiders brought with them their own realities, turning portions of our planet into someplace else.

High Lord Baruk Kaah, a lizard-like humanoid from a world called Takta Ker (which literally translates to "The Living Land"), rules a primeval, mist-shrouded realm that now stretches across wide swaths of North America.

But you were just an ordinary person living an ordinary life on the day the Maelstrom Bridge crashed down and New York began to transform...

Friday, July 7, 2017

Kickstarter - The Midderlands - An OSR Mini-Setting & Bestiary


About time I got to looking at Kickstarters again, right?

This time we are looking at The Midderlands - An OSR Mini-Setting & Bestiary.

Wait! Do you see that? "An OSR Mini-Setting & Bestiary" - I think I'm in love ;)

Oh, and its by Monkeyblood Design, which is a seal of quality in the OSR.
The Midderlands is an old-school game setting with bestiary for use with old-school role-playing games. It is based on Swords & Wizardry Complete, but could easily be used with other old-school systems and even non-OSR systems such as D&D or Pathfinder
It is a green-hued, dark-fantasy, late-middle ages, early-renaissance view through grime-smeared spectacles. The setting itself is based on an area in the middle of England near where I live called The Midlands. Many of the locations are loosely based on reality, but others are pure fantasy from an addled mind. 
The setting part of the book contains something I call "game-juice". Not heavy of history and monotonous detail, but enough to get the game-juices flowing and let the game master twist and tweak as they need to in order to fit their campaign. 
There is also humour and occasional swear words.
Even some Swords & Wizardry Complete loving.

Shit, I'm in. PDF is $13, Print + PDF is $39. I'm going in for $39.



Fat Dragon Games Printable Terrain - PWYW Selection Through This Weekend



Yes, I feel like I've been playing catch-up for this week. My holiday weekend in the Pocono Mountains of PA was an amazing recharge of my battery but I'm still not where I should be when it comes to posting.

That being said, Fat Dragon Games is offering SIX of their printable terrains at PWYW pricing through the weekend.

This is an amazing offer and your are limited only by the amount of paper or card-stock you feed into your printer.

E-Z DUNGEONS: Deluxe Edition - Normally $15, you can often find it on sale for $7.50 - PWYW

Ah heck, just catch all SIX at this page. Grab them all. You would be a fool not to.

5% of all sales made through The Tavern's affiliate links go to support The Tavern. Thank you so much for your support.

The Tavern has Matched the First $500 Raised by Taverners for Mona Dowie's Cancer Related Expenses


Ignore the naysayers. The OSR is one of the most caring and giving communities to be found. Anywhere.

By my calculations, readers of The Tavern raised at least $625 for Mona Dowie's cancer related expenses. I'm sure I missed some donations and more will be coming in the future.

I had initially offered to match the first $250 raised by Tavern Readers. Tom Tullis / Fat Dragon Games and Tim Riley together matched my match - we now had $500 in matching funds and the community just blew us away by donating over $600.

I can't tell you how proud I am to be a member of the OSR and the community that has grown around The Tavern. You folks literally are the best.

Thank you.

Thank you all.

Mona's GoFundMe can be found here. Just because we met out matching goal doesn't mean Mona and her family no longer need support. They do.




Thursday, July 6, 2017

The Ennie Nominations Have Been Announced - Should You Care?



So, the Ennie nominations have been announced - should you care?

Probably not. If you read The Tavern you are at least nominally interested in the OSR and as a rule, the OSR gets vastly overlooked (I must say LotFP snagged a few nominations, but that's an American in Finland publisher, so James gets extra points when scored ;)

Before I point out some things you MIGHT want to vote for, let me make a few observations:

1 - WotC got ZERO nominations. They did get a "Judge's Spotlight" for Tales of the Yawning Portal but no actual nominations.

2 - Paizo got ONE nomination - for its "pawns" (miniatures) - no nominations for actual gaming content.

3 - LotFP got SIX nominations - Veins of the Earth got four of them. They also snagged a "Judge's Spotlight".

4 - Only one of the five nominated blogs comes close to The Tavern's traffic - Gnome Stew. Actually, that's a well deserved nomination.

Alright, so as far as Tavern Picks go:

Best Adventure
Blood in the Chocolate (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) - its actually a damn good adventure that your PCs might survive.

Best Aid/Accessory
Kobold Guide to Plots & Campaigns (Kobold Press) - Kobold Press - need I say more?

Best Art, Cover
WGAF

Best Art, Interior
Baby Bestiary Handbook Vol 2 (Metal Weave Games) - amazing art - simply one of the best.
S. Petersen’s Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors (Chaosium) - also excellent

Best Blog
Gnome Stew: The Gaming Blog - To be honest, I never heard of the other four...

Best Cartography
The Cursed Chateau (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) - It is an OSR pick. We gotta represent.

Best Electronic Book
Hubris: A World of Visceral Adventure (DIY RPG Productions) - Stuffed full of inspiration. Savor the reading, as it is a five course meal and then some.

Best Family Game
Eh...

Best Free Product
What, no SWL?

Best Game
Not my bag, man

Best Miniature Product
Nope

Best Monster/Adversary
S. Petersen’s Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors (Chaosium) - Simply on of the best. Timeless
Veins of the Earth (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) - 66 fucking Euros? Holy shit! No wonder I hadn't heard of it before.

Best Podcast
Spellburn - Excellent podcast and unscripted. Can't say the same about others

Best Production Values
Call of Cthulhu – 7th Edition Slipcase Set (Chaosium) - a beauty to behold - it does justice and more for CoC
Baby Bestiary, Collector’s Edition (Metal Weave Games) - you need to see it to believe it

Best RPG Related Product
Call of Cthulhu: The Coloring Book (Chaosium) - I haven't seen it but I can imagine.

Best Rules
Adventures in Middle-Earth Player’s Guide (Cubicle 7 Entertainment) - If I only ran 5e
Veins of the Earth (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) - How much is 66 Euros in USC?

Best Setting
Le sigh

Best Supplement
The One Ring – Horse-Lords of Rohan (Cubicle 7 Entertainments) - Well, it is Tolkien

Best Website
Nothing to say

Best Writing
Veins of the Earth (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) - $75.32. Goddamn
The One Ring – Horse-Lords of Rohan (Cubicle 7 Entertainments) - Tolkien

Product of the Year
Veins of the Earth (Lamentations of the Flame Princess) Times like this is when retirement sucks.

Voting this year will take place from July 11 to July 21.

Don't forget to vote Frog God Games as Fan Favorite Publisher. Vote early and vote often. Well, I mean, get your friends, family and pets with an intelligence of 3 or higher to vote. Don't submit multiple votes yourself. That would be wrong. Neither Frog God Games nor The Tavern advocate ballot stuffing. Heck, the Frogs have no nominations and neither does The Tavern. Don't vote. See if I care.

Grumble... Grumble... Get off my lawn ya damn kids and take your peeing dog with you!

Deal of the Day - Play Your Character Like A F@cking Boss



Yep, Venger did it again.

You've got to give the man credit - he knows how to name a product ;)

Until tomorrow morning 11 AM Eastern, Play Your Character Like A Fucking Boss is the Deal of the Day at RPGNow, on sale from $3 to $1.80 in PDF

No, I don't own it, but I'm rarely a player these days.

Anyhow, here's the pitch:
Don't let the other guy have all the fun!  It's your game, too.  Roleplaying is a contact sport, so get in there and make it happen!!! 
There may be a reason why your games aren't as awesome as they could be.  Could be the system, might be the GM, or possibly it's you - the player.  I'm not saying this little self-help guide will turn you into the fucking boss overnight, but it's a start. 
How to Game Master like a Fucking Boss has done a lot of good for GMs over the last couple years.  This shows the other side of the curtain, and I believe it's just as vital for GMs to know what's going on with players as it is for players to examine life behind the screen.   
It's a quick but important read with tips, tricks, and techniques for getting the most out of your roleplaying game.
Remember, your purchases made through The Tavern's Affiliate Links warms the heart and raises monies for The Tavern. I am not affiliated with Venger Santanis, but we did have breakfast together at Gary Con and he's quite personable. Perhaps even talented ;)

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Tavern Chat - Tonight - 9 PM - I may not show

Tonight is a Wednesday Night, and that means Tavern Chat.

I may or may not show up tonight for the chat - I'm just in a kinda funk with recent events.

Don't let me stop y'all from enjoying yourselves, just use the chat window on the right side of this page :)

Posting Returns Tomorrow - Rest in Peace PO Miosotis Familia - NYPD


I'm kinda stunned and numb today.

I know the risks associated with police work. Every cop does. Assassination isn't on the list of risks that I was familiar with.

Forgive me from straying from the usual game related post. Well be back to regular posting tomorrow. In the meantime, there is a family that could use some prayers and kind thoughts.

http://www.odmp.org/officer/23305-police-officer-miosotis-familia
Police Officer Miosotis Familia was shot and killed from ambush as she sat in a marked command post vehicle at the intersection of East 183rd Street and Morris Avenue in the Bronx. 
As she sat in the vehicle at approximately 12:30 am a male approached and fired one shot through the window, striking Officer Familia in the head. 
Officers responding to the call of an officer down confronted the male subject fleeing the scene. The officers shot and killed the subject in an exchange of gunfire. 
Officer Familia had served with the New York City Police Department for 12 years and was assigned to the 46th Precinct. She is survived by her three children.

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

Back at the Homestead - Ashley Hibernated for the better part of 5 Days and What's in The Hopper?

I took this photo of Ashley the night before the holiday weekend
So, I'm back in Queens, one of NYC's "outer boroughs" after spending Friday afternoon through morning today in the Poconos. We brought Danke (she travels well and loves to take country walks) and left Ashely with my son. Chris had one sighting in 5 days - on Sunday she asked for food, ate a whole can of cat food and wasn't seen again until she greeted Rach and I on our return this afternoon.

Lots of things to post on - I will get to them in the next 24 to 36 hours. Posts such as:

- An update on the Mona Dowie fundraiser (hint - I think we hit the $500 mark from the OSR to match dollar for dollar - woot!)

- Free RPG Day releases from last month are making their appearances in PDF - I'll give you the links to find them and do the Google-Fu for you ;)

- Ennie Nominees have been announced. No, Swords & Wizardry Light didn't make the cut. I'll tell you who did, make some Tavern suggestions on who to vote for and point a few interesting things out.

- I pick my car up from the body shop tomorrow. It was the victim of a rear-ending on my excursion to Legendary Realms on Free RPG Day. Needless to say, I never made it there. Wait, that's not a post.

- Kickstarter info - because you know you want it.

and more. I think I need a second screen for my Surface 3 - I'm spoiled by my home set up which makes posting and having multiple screens open a breeze.

In any case - I'm back! Er, not that I was really gone ;)



Monday, July 3, 2017

Deal of the Day - Kobold Guide to Magic



Today's Deal of the Day is the Kobold Guide to Magic. Normally $14.99 in PDF, until tomorrow morning it is on sale for $4.99.

I have only the highest regards for the Kobold Guides series of releases. This is one I do not have - time to rectify that.

As an aside, it is system neutral.

Remember, 5% of sales made through The Tavern's affiliate links go to support The Tavern.
The popular and wildly useful Kobold Guide series tackles the biggest subject in fantasy: Magic! 
What makes a fantasy fantastic? Magic, of course! Whether it’s unearthly beasts, scheming sorcerers, legendary swords or locales that defy logic and physics, a compelling fantasy story needs magical elements. The tricky part is that in order for the story to work, you have to get your reader or player to believe the unbelievable. 
The Kobold Guide to Magictakes you behind the scenes to learn the secrets of designing and writing about magic from 20 top fantasy authors and game designers. Find out how to create more compelling, more interesting, and more playable magic at your table or in your stories—with the word from some of the most talented creators working today.
The topics are wide-ranging, from the secrets of Irish magic to tricks of impractical magic, from how to generate a sense of wonder at the gaming table to how to rejigger the teleport spell for stronger adventures tohow to sell a character's soul and how to run a game with visions and prophecies. There's even sections on the magic of J.R.R. Tolkien and the tools available to a game master for making magic their own. 
The Essential Guide to Magic in Fiction and Games 
This essential companion for fantasy gamers and readers alike feature essays by: 
Wolfgang Baur
Clinton Boomer
David Chart
David "Zeb" Cook
James Enge
Ed Greenwood
Jeff Grubb
Kenneth Hite
James Jacobs
Colin McComb
Richard Pett
Tim Pratt
John Rateliff
Thomas Reid
Aaron Rosenberg
Ken Scholes
F. Wesley Schneider
Amber E. Scott
Willie Walsh
Martha Wells
Steve Winter 
This latest volume in the best-selling and award-winning series of Kobold Guides tackles the mystery at the heart of the fantasy genre. Improve your game and expand your magical power with the Kobold Guide to Magic!

10 Buck Bundle at The Frogs - Tome of Adventure Design, Book of Dirty Tricks and More - S&W Legion has the Code


First things first - Tome of Adventure Design is easily worth more than 10 bucks in PDF on its own. With the coupon you can get at the Swords & Wizardry Legion Facebook page (membership has its privileges), you get TOAD, Bill Webb's Book of Dirty Tricks and S&W Treasure Deck 1 in PDF.

For every 10 sales of the bundle at the Frog God Website, the following will be added retroactively (they will be added for all after the sale has completed):
For $10! And for each 10 bundles sold we add another S&W Design Deck: 
Encounter Deck I
Encounter Deck II
Equipment Deck
Hireling Deck
Spell Deck I 
And once we hit that goal. we'll think of something else! 
Who wants Bill to stay in Europe for the entire summer???
 https://www.froggodgames.com/summer-legion-bundle-iii

Sunday, July 2, 2017

Apparently, I am a "Gainfully Employed Geek" ;)


So, we spent some time in Honesdale, PA yesterday. We had the car for a few hours and Rach wanted to hit the homemade soap shop which expanded to homemade teas, iced teas and some pastries (that's the iced tea above - yum)

Rach was already known so she introduced me to the two proprietors as her retired husband. When I explained I had been a cop neither thought I looked like one ;)

When asked what I did to keep busy, I mentioned I wrote games - Dungeons & Dragons (the universal example)

"Oh, so you are a gainfully employed geek!"

Kinda.

I certainly don't make enough from blogging or writing to live on but it is enough to supplement my pension with some discretionary funds.

Gainfully Employed Geek. I actually like the title...