Wednesday, March 25, 2020
Five Free e-books from Osprey each week for the Next Four Weeks
Tip of the hat to Thaddeus Moore.
More free stuff!
Link to Osprey
Many people all over the world are staying at home to combat the spread of COVID-19. While self-isolation might be a bit daunting, it’s also a great opportunity to catch up on your reading. To help pass the time, we’ll be giving customers five free eBooks each week for the next four weeks. Read through the options, add the eBook to your basket and use the code FREEBOOKS1 at checkout to get your free eBooks.
CBT 8: US Marine vs Japanese Infantryman by Gordon L. Rottman
Illustrated by Johnny Shumate
The brutal fighting between US Marines and Japanese infantry on the island of Guadalcanal in many ways came to typify the island-hopping war in the Pacific. This book not only explores the differing tactics and equipment used by the two combatants but also shows how the challenges of fighting in inhospitable tropical jungles impacted on soldiers on the ground, as combatants had to deal not only with their determined opponents but also the twin issues of disease and stretched supply lines. Written by a former special forces veteran with extensive knowledge of jungle warfare, this fully illustrated book lifts the veil on one of the most pivotal and ferocious close combat duels of World War II.
DUE 65: Bf 109E/F vs Yak-1/7 by Dmitriy Khazanov, Aleksander Medved
Illustrated by Jim Laurier, Gareth Hector, Andrey Yurgenson
Step into the cockpits of the Luftwaffe's Bf 109 and the Red Air Force's Yaks 1-7, two fighters which were involved in some of the largest, fiercest aerial battles in history. The Iconic Messerschmitt fighter and its combat hardened pilots inflicted a fearful beating on the Yaks in the beginning of the war. Some of the highest scoring aces in history benefitted from the Bf 109's technical superiority over the overweight and underpowered Yak 1, racking up incredible successes against their poorly trained and equipped adversaries. And yet, as the Soviets accumulated combat experience, their tactics improved, as did their mounts in the upgraded Yak 1B and gradually, the Red Force eroded the Jagdwaffe's dominance of the skies in the eastern front, though with the 109G they would never lose qualitative superiority. Featuring first-hand accounts from veteran pilots, rare archival photographs and expert analysis, this volume brings to life the vicious dogfights that took place between the Bf 109 and the Yak as they vied for mastery of the frozen skies of the Eastern Front.
ELI 110: Sassanian Elite Cavalry AD 224–642 by Kaveh Farrokh
Illustrated by Angus McBride
The Sassanians ruled the last great imperial Empire of Persia before the Arab conquests of the 7th century. Rome's only equal in the classical world, the Sassanian Empire had an enormous impact on the development of architecture, mythology, arts, music, military tactics and technology. Within the Sassanian military, the cavalry was the most influential element, and Sassanian cavalry tactics were adopted by the Romans, Arabs, and Turks. Their cavalry systems of weaponry, battle tactics, Tamgas, Medallions, court customs, and costumes influenced Romano-Byzantine and medieval European culture, and this book allows the reader to see how a little-studied eastern power affected the development of cavalry traditions in the western world.
RAID 37: Blackbeard’s Last Fight by Angus Konstam
Illustrated by Mark Stacey, Johnny Shumate, Alan Gilliland
In April 1713 the War of the Spanish Succession came to an end. During the conflict hundreds of privateers - licenced pirates - preyed on enemy shipping throughout the Caribbean. These privateers now found themselves out of a job, and many turned to piracy. One of theme was Edward Teach - more popularly known as "Blackbeard”. He joined the pirates in New Providence (now Nassau) in the Bahamas, and by early 1717 he had become a pirate captain. From then on he caused havoc off the North American seaboard, in the West Indies and off Honduras, before appearing off Charleston, South Carolina in May 1718. He blockaded this major port for a week, an act that made Blackbeard the most notorious pirate of his day.
WPN 26: The Martini-Henry Rifle by Stephen Manning
Illustrated by Peter Dennis
The breech-loading, single-shot .458in Martini-Henry rifle has become a symbol of both the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 and the numerous battles in Egypt and the Sudan in 1884-85, but continued to be used by both British and colonial troops well into the 20th century. Its invention and introduction into British service were in direct response to the success of the Prussian Dreyse needle gun, which demonstrated that the breech-loading rifle offered faster loading, improved accuracy and superior range; significantly, the weapon could be loaded and fired from a prone position, thus offering the rifleman greater security on the battlefield. Due to the longevity of service, many Martini-Henry rifles survive today, both in museums and in private collections, and the weapon is highly prized by shooting enthusiasts. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and an array of arresting first-hand accounts and written by an authority on warfare in the Victorian era, this engaging study tells the story of the powerful Martini-Henry and its impact on the battlefield, from the Anglo-Zulu War to the opening months of World War I.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Tenkar's Tavern is supported by various affiliate programs, including Amazon, RPGNow,
and Humble Bundle as well as Patreon. Your patronage is appreciated and helps keep the
lights on and the taps flowing. Your Humble Bartender, Tenkar
Blogs of Inspiration & Erudition
-
-
Brewery of Lost Time - By Sean Sexton Self Published 5e Levels 5-6 I’m only doing 5e content by special requests these days, so, this was a special request. Nearly thirteen years...1 hour ago
-
Miskatonic Monday #120: Into the Unknown - Between October 2003 and October 2013, Chaosium, Inc. published a series of books for *Call of Cthulhu* under the Miskatonic University Library Associati...1 hour ago
-
Felltower pre-summary - I'll be brief: - we ended mid-fight - the PCs managed to temporarily evade the oozes, but at the cost of a number of skeletons - they stumbled across som...13 hours ago
-
Warsmith's Words: Obliterators - Welcome back to the Vault! Apologies for the lack of posting recently; I've been suffering with a yucky cold, and haven't had the motivation to blog. I'...17 hours ago
-
The Grass Isn't Always Greener - Sunday Morning Prayer Breakfast & Beat Down! Play Report! Neon Lords of the Toxic Wasteland Rpg & Cha'alt: Fuchsia Malaise - Our get together on a Sunday morning finds our group of gamer's PC in the grip of alien sentient mutant plants! The gang of player's PC's are on Cha'alt &...22 hours ago
-
The Yellow Crystals Fields - There is something about areas that have been corrupted the demonic powers of sorcery that occadionally leads to the growth of formations of pale yellow cr...1 day ago
-
-
Alternate Magic is near! - Here is a small teaser for my next book. The cover is nearly finished, as the text... but let me know what you think anyway! *Alternate Magic* is a collec...1 day ago
-
Plays Well With Others: Horror in Space (BlackStar) - [image: In space no one can hear you scream] It's *Friday the 13th!* Something of a holiday here at the Other Side. May is SciFi month and for the first...2 days ago
-
Knighting Knights - For a long time, I equated "knight" with the seventh level paladin character because Gygax chose to use the word "chevalier" to as a *level title*. That m...3 days ago
-
More POD reviews - Today we have been reading more POD BECME era D&D (the one before so-called AD&D that outlasted it). Those box sets and ...3 days ago
-
White Box Character Generator! - Danger is Real has taken my character sheet and made an awesome White Box random character generator. Very cool! Check out out here:https://dangerisreal.bl...3 days ago
-
Graphene - This *Bastionland Editorial *was originally sent as a reward to all Patreon supporters, and is released freely on this site a week after its original pub...5 days ago
-
My osr addiction - When I first discovered the osr, blogging and gplus I was super hooked. It was the escape I needed for a long time, it gave me fuel to work on creating....5 days ago
-
Recommend Me Books, Part 347 - This has always worked well in the past, and my 'to read' pile has shrunk from being about as tall as the Eiffel Tower to being only about the height of ...5 days ago
-
Zihindian Gods and Magic Items - We’re closing in on the final installments of my series on Zihindia, the land beyond the Sea of Dust. Today we have four more deities, and several new magi...5 days ago
-
Masks of Nyarlathotep Retrospective - Third time's a charm. Last night, after 11 months of play, my group completed our *Masks of Nyarlathotep* campaign. It was my third attempt at running...5 days ago
-
The Last Reality Boom - Saw two Multiverse movies recently, one day after another actually; "Dr Strange: Multiverse of Madness" and "Everything, Everywhere, all at Once". This plu...6 days ago
-
Plugging Away - As of a month ago I'm now working again on a part-time basis (three days a week). In January I walked away from a position I'd held for over 20 years bec...1 week ago
-
Monsters of Blackmoor Supplement II - part 2 - Mermen are the first monster described in Supplement II, and one of the most interesting for the key role they appear to play in the underwater ecology ...1 week ago
-
From Fort Endurance to the Village of Hommlet (Greyhawk Classics Campaign) - *P**ART **2**: **F**ROM **F**ORT **E**NDURANCE TO **H**OMMLET* (Coldeven – Flocktime 578 CY) [Part 1 here] *2.1 Rest and recovery at Fort E...1 week ago
-
Armchair Skeleton - This is a 28mm model from somebody's post-apocalyptic stuff, printed on my Ender 3 FDM machine, and it's a pretty good example of why I don't really b...1 week ago
-
Q: Running hybrid AD&D game: virtual+in-person? - *(Also asked this on the r/OSR subreddit...)* Thanks to COVID, I had to put my long-running, in-person AD&D campaign on hold. So two years later... I'm l...1 week ago
-
April '22 in Review - Fun things to do in the middle of a pandemic: Close on a house Quit your old job Pack up everything Move Unpack enough stuff Start a new job Unfortunately...1 week ago
-
Back in the Day: Playing The Never Used Rules - As most everyone who finds this obscure blog knows I started playing OD&D in 1977 and switched to AD&D 1e in 1979 and have been playing 1e ever since....1 week ago
-
Alignment As Moral Shorthand... - Character alignments are surprisingly controversial in some corners of the hobby, although hardly a universal complaint. I've come to the conclusion that...1 week ago
-
Free GM Resource: Monday Blues Maps from Paratime Design - [image: Free GM Resource: Monday Blues Maps from Paratime Design] I know it's been a while and it is what it is. The last few weeks I've been seeing some ...1 week ago
-
E'a, Chronicles of a Dying World - David M. Fitzgerald's *E'a: Chronicles of a Dying World *is one of the more obscure digest-sized unofficial supplements to early D&D, little known even...2 weeks ago
-
OSR: Pantheopolis and the Divine Exodus - Pantheopolis, the City of Many Gods! Pantheopolis, whose armies ranged far and wide! Their legions captured countless cities, and with each victory, the...2 weeks ago
-
[BLOG] Wizards of the Coast Fucks Over Hungarian D&D Licensee and Treats D&D Fans Like Crap - For Realz NowThis is kind of a long and convoluted story, but this is a good time and place to share it. The video below (audio in the Hungarian, caption...3 weeks ago
-
Random Research - This post was prompted by two players having questions that required NPCs to do research. One PC is a cleric, the other a paladin. They worship different...3 weeks ago
-
Multiple Fighter attacks revisited for Swords & Wizardry - Inspired by the classic edition rule where a fighter gets one attack per level when attacking 1 HD or lower foes (or in ADnD lower than 1 HD starting at ...1 month ago
-
On a Future Coming - Hey all. I've been busy writing. It turns out that when you write for a living, it's hard to write on a blog. The good thing is, there's actual profess...1 month ago
-
One Man's Science is Another Man's Magic - SF fans often have a jaded view of technology. We see it all over movies, read about it in literature and view it in art (turns out a lot of technologica...2 months ago
-
Secret Society Factions in ORWA - In the coming weeks 5 Years Left will be ending. Its been a fun and creatively rejuvenating game, but after nearly two years I’m ready to shift focus. I wa...2 months ago
-
Ivan Reitman, 1946-2022 - I didn't want too much more time to pass before posting something here in tribute to filmmaker Ivan Reitman, who the world lost unexpectedly on Saturday,...2 months ago
-
Saving Throw for Evey Lockhart - Fans of Trilemma Adventures: one of our own needs our help. Evey Lockhart is the writer and designer of weird, sad, queer old-school stuff that you’re pr...3 months ago
-
Vox Machina: Good for a Few Laughs - TL;DR: it’s ok. How’s that for brief? Ok, seriously, it’s got some fun moments, but isn’t nearly as clever as it thinks it is. Better? Dig...3 months ago
-
Julius Moessel (1871 - 1957) - [image: Julius Moessel - Symphony in Hell, No. 2, 1940's]Symphony in Hell, No. 2, 1940's [image: Julius Moessel - Symphony in Hell (No.3)]Symphony in He...3 months ago
-
Growling Mage Tavern - The other day I used Frog God Games *Journey Generator*. There was a set of tables to create an inn or tavern. So I rolled up one because you can never ...3 months ago
-
Achievement versus Experience - Hello everyone, Pardon me for digressing out of Victorious for a bit, but as a proponent of the Old School gaming style I’ve often thought about the differ...3 months ago
-
Go Die In a Hole: a Podcast for You - Back in 2019, me and Nick put our microphones together and made a podcast called Go Die in a Hole. We made 2 episodes. It was a magical journey in whi...3 months ago
-
Happy Needfest and Merry New Year! - While life has continued to wear me out (in particular my day job*), with the new year's turn, there's always a fresh bout of hope that seeps into my fin...4 months ago
-
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 ...4 months ago
-
People of the World, Spice up Your Life - I have seen the *Dune*. It’s good, but, like all “content” now, too long. The forms of many designs are quite nice (love the costumes of the imperial de...6 months ago
-
The Worm Ouroboros - The Worm Ouroboros is a proto-fantasy (the in the genre sense) novel by E. R. Eddison, originally published in 1922. It is an amalgam of mythological tradi...7 months ago
-
This Blog has Moved! - I’ve moved this blog to a self-hosted one, on the same server running my old-school gaming forum, this blog will … Continue reading →10 months ago
-
Encounter Critical news?!? - So rpg bad boy Venger Satanis has bought the rights to the best game that isn't D&D.11 months ago
-
Silent Night (The Salt Mine 16) Cover reveal! - Heya folks, got a new cover in for Silent Night (The Salt Mine 16) and thought I should share.11 months ago
-
What's wrong with megadungeons? - I ran across a megadungeon article from last July. I know, I am a little behind, as I was dealing with my cancer when it came out. In the blog, DM David ...11 months ago
-
-
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...1 year ago
-
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...1 year ago
-
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...1 year ago
-
The Hero’s Journey 2nd Edition, Campbellian roleplaying at its best! - (this review done using the reviewers own purchased copy) I have been a James Michael Spahn fan since he wrote his Swords & Wizardry Companion. His writing...1 year ago
-
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...1 year ago
-
A Campaign Begins for Newbies - Like many of you, the affects of the Coronavirus pandemic has disrupted how hundreds of millions of us fellow mutants interact and function in our jobs, co...2 years ago
-
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...2 years ago
-
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...2 years ago
-
The Mauve Plague, Gravy Urns, and Batlace Frills: News from the Hill Cantons - And now the News... In a statement beamed from the Oracular Society today *Morafans the Rickmaster*, the Psychosocial Health Minister of the Overking, ha...2 years ago
-
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...2 years ago
-
Strange, Dangerous, and Inhuman: The Fey and Fairie - When I was a boy I loved fairy tales. Jack and the Beanstalk, Puss in Boots, Rumpelstiltskin - I devoured all of it. My fascination that there was a strang...2 years ago
-
Merlynd the Magician: A Remembrance of Don Kaye, TSR's Co-Founder Now Available - LINK to Description and Ordering: https://www.tlbgames.com/collections/the-red-book-line/products/merlynd-the-magician2 years ago
-
The Withered Crag custom print version for sale again - Just re-enabled the direct sales button for the custom print (classic style detached cover) version of F4 The Withered Crag, and also for F3 Many Gates of...2 years ago
-
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...2 years ago
-
-
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...2 years ago
-
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...3 years ago
-
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...3 years ago
-
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...3 years ago
-
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.3 years ago
-
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 doin...3 years ago
-
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...3 years ago
-
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...3 years ago
-
How can We Destroy this Campaign World? - d12 1. You must trick a bard into strumming the *Chords of Fate* on the *Lute of Annihilation* 2. Legends tell of thermonuclear weapons beneath megadungeo...3 years ago
-
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 ...3 years ago
-
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....3 years ago
-
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...4 years ago
-
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...4 years ago
There don't seem to be any "options". You take the books they offer, or nothing. You can't just go through the catalog and pick any 5.
ReplyDeleteI've never actually read an Osprey book, so I'm looking forward to the opportunity.
ReplyDeleteAwesome!
ReplyDelete