Deal of the Day - Carbon 2185 | A Cyberpunk RPG Core Rulebook

Cyberpunk is all the rage. D&D 5e is STILL the system nearly everyone gravitates towards. Put them together in a stand-alone ruleset and it's almost like reinventing peanut butter cups ;)

Today's Deal of the Day is Carbon 2185 | A Cyberpunk RPG Core Rulebook. This D&D 5e-powered cyberpunk game (using the good ole OGL in case anyone is asking) is normally 24.69 in PDF, but until tomorrow morning it is on sale for 5.60.

Play as a Cyberpunk, a rebel refusing to live life by the rules of the oppressive megacorporations that rule San Francisco in this high action tabletop roleplaying game by Robert Marriner-Dodds.

Carbon 2185 gives you the chance to play in the cyberpunk worlds you've seen in movies, television shows, and video games.

The Core Rulebook is the only thing you need to run and play hundreds of hours of games in the world of Carbon 2185.

Carbon 2185 is a brand new tabletop roleplaying game built using the D&D 5e open game license, with all the magic, magical items, and fantasy elements removed, and replaced with cybernetic augmentations, upgradable and customisable weapons, and computer hacking skills. 

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. 

DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.  You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube,  or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar  

Kickstater - Arcane Adventures - 10 Quests For £10 (OSR & 5e)

Arcane adventures and challenges for D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) 5th edition & OSR TTRPGs

I love the opportunity to grab adventures for my gaming collection, as you never know when you are going to be running an RPG session with minimal prep time. 

10 adventures for 13 bucks (give or take) is almost a no-brainer for me, so count me as a backer of Arcane Adventures.

Arcane Adventures is a collection of one-shot style missions designed for Fifth Edition rules plus OSR TTRPGs, and is tailored to emphasis the Arcane Arts. These adventures are easy to read, easy to include in any session, and can be completed in around 2 to 4 hours each.

Created with the DM in mind, these adventures are made for ease of use and can run alongside any campaign and fit any setting. The intended levels for these adventures will be mostly levels 1 to 4 with a few at level 5 to 8, and are perfect for those who love fantasy adventures and role-playing games.

Unleash the power of magic as you explore forgotten tomes, enchanted forests, and arcane laboratories. Face off against powerful sorcerers, navigate dangerous elemental planes, and delve into the dark arts to stop the forces of evil from overtaking the land.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. 

DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.  You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube,  or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar 

Apparently Devils in D&D 5e are Just Misunderstood

Bad Mike and I touched on this story earlier tonight on the Talking Crit Livestream, but I thought it was worthy of sharing on the blog:

D&D lead rules designer: Devils don’t have to be evil any more 

While the title may be a bit extreme and expands upon a topic that has already been touched upon (orcs and drow no longer necessarily being evil) Jeremy Crawford takes it to the next level:

Almost all other creatures will either be listed as “Any Alignment” or, in a few cases, “Unaligned” – and even creatures with a “strong moral inclination” such as Angels, Devils, and Demons, will merely be listed as “Typically” Good or Evil, to be customised at the DM’s discretion. It’s aimed at underlining the idea that alignment – which plots a creature’s position on the twin spectrums of Good to Evil, and Lawful to Chaotic – is meant as a “narrative suggestion” and “roleplaying aid” rather than a fundamental, cast-iron rule.

I don't remember alignment being a cast-iron rule. I always thought it was meant as a guideline and a narrative shortcut.

"It's a raiding party of orcs" - evil

"It's a hunting party of elves" - good

Individuals were always potentially exceptional. That is the narrative power behind characters like Drizzt - he is exceptional. If all Drow could be good heroes, he'd no longer be special.

Devils are just misunderstood in D&D 5e. I knew it all along...

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. 

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube,  or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar  

D&D 5e to Get a "Revision" in 2024 - Backwards Compatible

I know, I know. Since Tenkar doesn't even play D&D 5e, why is he posting about its revision THREE Years in the future? 

Quite simply, Dungeons & Dragons is the engine that drives the RPG hobby, and even if I don't use the rules, I appreciate the importance it holds.

The most important takeaway? 

Backwards compatibility, which I've been predicting. WotC has seen what Paizo did to its core business by releasing a version of Pathfinder that was not backwards compatible with its prior edition. 

From Reddit:

They used the words "new evolution" and "new version", but not "new edition". They also confirmed that it's going to be backwards compatible with 5e.

Now, things may change. Remember, when Monte was the lead designer for code name D&D Next, his goal was a group where: "your White Box character could play in the same session as the BX character and be joined by a 1e character and a 4e character" yadda yadda. That never happened. Pretend it was never mentioned.

The relevant part starts at the 8 hours and 10 minutes mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxb8xiDU5Kw

More info at ENWorld.

Candlekeep Mysteries Fallout, Freelancing Drama

So, I've covered the Candlekeep Mysteries Freelancing Drama on The Tavern's YouTube channel, but I was asked to provide a summary on the blog side of things. Long story short (you can read the long story at BoLS):

WotC decided to do an adventure collection to be written by authors from marginalized segments of society. This is the same collection that had the wheelchair-accessible dungeon.

Graeme Barber, perhaps better known as PoC Gamer, was signed to write one of the adventures in question. As Graeme stated on his blog:

Its form and content had made it through the pitch and drafting process, and I had no reason at the time of submission to suspect that it would be subject to the edits and modifications that went into it. Especially because we (the writers in general) had been hired specifically because we were “fresh voices” and “new perspectives”.

So, what did Graeme submit?

He submitted an adventure with potentially world-changing fluff:

I determined that I wanted to link back to the Days of Thunder and bring the Grippli back, all by building on what had come before and that was current.

This delved deep into Yuan-ti lore specific to the Forgotten Realms, building on the schism implied in the Tomb of Annihilation about Yuan-ti that weren’t evil (or at least weren’t hostile) and just wanted to exist. The idea was that good Yuan-ti were working to hasten the awakening of the World Serpent, the mother goddess of the serpentfolk, by recovering an ancient tome from the crypt in the old temple (from the story in the book). The evil Yuan-ti want to stop them. The Grippli are caught in the crossfire.

The adventure started with finding the book, and there was a list of things the players might be looking for in Candlekeep. They would find the book, and the first part of the mystery was figuring out how to read both stories that were on the three cylinders therein. The stories were legends from the Batrachi Empire, involving the various frogfolk of the Forgotten Realms. This would reveal the temple, and then lead to the characters learning about the Grippli village. Further investigation revealed lore about both the Grippli and the Yuan-ti. The mystery then shifted to investigating what was happening.

The emphasis here was on the ancient nature and unknown materials that things were made of from the Yuan-ti side of things. The sword was a literal fang from the World Serpent, the scale mail made from a giant snake unknown in the modern era. Metal fittings were made of a mysterious copper alloy. The Yuan-ti had more nuance, and the adventure added a mythology and history to them that could open more doors if desired by the DM and players.

The Grippli were presented as having had patron deity return and bring them back up to speed with the gift of literacy in their ancient language; they had art, nothing was primitive; I used the terms simple and utilitarian, and the domed mud brick village was filled with colours and decorations. Their village was a mix of new made buildings and impossibly ancient buildings and edifices that had withstood the test of time. 

What was published? The adventure without the fluff:

 All references to the Batrachi, World Serpent, Days of Thunder, the tome, or any other motivations were removed. The Yuan-ti were reduced down to just being evil for evil’s sake for the most part (without the cut lore, it makes less sense), the Grippli had their culture stripped out and so on. Colonialist language and imagery around the Grippli was inserted as well, moving them from being simple and utilitarian with obvious culture and technology to being “primitives” who “primitively decorate” their thatched huts with crab bits.

Essentially, where you could see the welds and joins before, you could now see the chop marks and bolts. The story was reduced to a simple rescue mission against unmotivated baddies with confusing parts where bits of the original plot flashed up as absent. This was especially notable in that there was no plotline or reason for anything the Yuan-ti were doing; the conflict between the good and evil Yuan-ti was left completely unexplained until a tidbit at the end of the adventure that, without the cut content, made little sense. 

So, Graeme went on Twitter to complain that WotC butchered his work and he wanted his name removed from further printings of Candlekeep Mysteries. 

Here's the thing. WotC wanted a short adventure, not world-changing setting material. What Graeme wanted to write is fine for one's home campaign, but a bit too specific for a generic published adventure. His hissy fit in Twitter and his blog simply burned bridges, not just with WotC but likely with other potential publishers.

As a freelancer, you need to stick to the script. If you want to change the world, you need to write your own IP.

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(Re)New Release - Lost City of Gaxmoor Bundle (D&D 5e)

The Lost City of Gaxmoor is currently available for D&D 5e from Troll Lord Games. Yes, there is a current trend / market for the conversion of OSR releases to the 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules. There just might be a Tavern Chat podcast episode hiding in that trend.

The main Lost City of Gaxmoor book is 19.99 in PDF. The Lost City of Gaxmoor Bundle (including the main book) is 31.99 (a 10% saving) and includes Weapons of Gaxmoor and The Long Valley.

5th Edition Lost City of Gaxmoor -- The sun sinks slowly over the desolation of the ancient and once grand Empire. In the distance, just upon the slopes of a broad cliff, lie the ruins of a city. Her alabaster walls wind their way along the rocky mesa, guarding buildings both fair and ruined. It was a great city in its day, now long since fallen to the ravages of time and war. Long ago she stood as a shining doorway to the east, a place for rest and restocking of provisions for those on the long trek into the wild lands of the barbaric frontier in the Western Empire. But all that is past for this, the ruins of the Lost City of Gaxmoor.

The Lost City of Gaxmoor, written by Ernest G. Gygax and Luke Gygax is a sandbox adventure converted to the 5th Edition of the world's most popular role playing game. Designed for characters that range from 1st to 10th level. It is a monumental city adventure where your characters are plunged into city dominated by fighting factions, monsters, demons and all manner of creatures. Use it as a stand alone, integrate it into your own world, play in the Burning Sands or the World of Aihrde.

City Map by Alyssa Faden!

Complete with a host of celebrity contributions including James M. Ward, Jeffrey Talanian, Stephen Chenault, Davis Chenault, Stefan Pokorny, Joe Goodman, Bill Webb, Satine Phoenix, Elisa Teague, Joe Manganiello, Alex Kammer, Rob Schwawlb and Stephen Radney-Macfarland!

The Lost City of Gaxmoor is a game master's dream. The setting is full to overflowing with adventures, adventure hooks, set ups and more. With almost 200 Areas of Interest and a veritable host of NPCS, as well as factions of monsters at war with each other, the NPCs and soon the characters as well, it offers countless hours of fun. Throw in the machinations of ancient gods and the rise of a demon prince and you suddenly have a campaign setting that just won't quit.

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Frog God Games PDF 75% off Sale - Nearly Everything (Includes newer releases such as the Lost Lands Setting)

Ah, tis the season, the season for deep discounts and gifting. OSR Christmas kicked off on the Youtube.com/ErikTenkar stream last Wednesday, will continue there again tomorrow with more DTRPG Gift Certificates to be gifted (then gifts here on the blog side for the 24th and the 25th). So, what would you spend your DTRPG monies on?

How about Frog God Games 75% Off of Nearly Every PDF Sale over at DTRPG? Swords & Wizardry, Dungeons & Dragons 5e, and even Pathfinder 1e.

World of the Lost Lands - $55 down to 13.75

The new Christmas adventure, Orcus on 34th Level, from $9 down to 2.25

The old Christmas adventure, How Orcus Stole Christmas, from $4.79 to 1.20

The new Bunnies & Burrows RPG? $11.24 to 2.25

Hex Crawl Chronicles for .75 each

Rogues in Remballo for 15 cents

Tome of Horrors Complete (4.50) and Monstrosities (3.75) - 9.25 for the pair. Damn!

I went through all of the Swords &Wizardry releases (one link to rule them all ;) and except for the bundles and the rare print POD, they are all 75% off. Heck, about half are priced under 2 bucks.

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Sale - D&D 5e Core Books, Adventures & More - Up to 50% Off at Amazon

Black Friday comes early for 5e players in seems :)

A huge tip of the hat to the Taverner that left me the tip of Amazon's Dungeons & Dragons 5e Sale this morning, as the discounts cut deep.

What prices are we looking at?

Player's Handbook, the DMG, Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden, Waterdeep Dragon Heist, Explorer's Guide to Wildemount,  Dungeons & Dragons Ghosts of Saltmarsh, Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide, Eberron: Rising from the Last War, Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica are priced at  50% off 

Tasha's Cauldron of Everything, Mythic Odysseys of Theros, Xanathar's Guide to Everything, Monster Manual, Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes, Tales From the Yawning Portal, Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage, Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus are priced at 40% (or more) off

There are some additional titles that range from 20-35% off. All can be found at the following link: Tenkar's Tavern D&D Amazon Storefront. Same link as above.

Remember, a portion of your purchase price goes to support The Tavern, its projects, and the gaming community.

The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. 

DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are the affiliate programs that support The Tavern.  

You can catch the daily Tavern Chat podcast on Anchor, YouTube, 

or wherever you listen to your podcast collection.

Don't forget to subscribe to The Tavern's weekly Newsletter! We currently have 150 subscribers. When we hit 200 subscribers, I'll award 2 random subscribers a $10 DTRPG Gift Certificate.  

Kickstarter - Maximum HP #4 - Undead for 5e

I've been a reader of Maximum HP since the first issue. Initially written for OSRIC and other OSR systems, Issue #4 delves into 5e. Maybe going forward Lloyd can look at the releases from Art of the Genre and do a hybrid OSR/5e format. Literally the best of all worlds.

Maximum HP #4 is an issue centered on the Undead, a timely topic for the month of October. I've got a soft spot for the undead, and I and Glen Halstrom have talked about doing a Swords & Wizardry monster book for over a year. Any lack of progress on the said theoretical project is my responsibility alone.

You can back the Maximum HP #4 Kickstarter for as little as 5 bucks for the PDF. Print copies are 10 bucks plus shipping.

Full disclosure. I've known Lloyd for years. The first time his work came to my attention was with the Whisper & Venom boxed set Kickstarter where he was the lead artist. His work was great then and he's only gotten better with age ;)

Welcome to issue #004 of MaximumHP - Undead! This project is creating the fourth Maximum HP RPG 'zine with the theme of the Undead. Within its pages you will find adventure, magic, monsters, and more for your 5E game! this is our premiere edition with content for the Fifth Edition of the world's favorite roleplaying game!

 Creatures not living, but not aloud to expire. Haunt, torment, laugh, and cry the souls of the night and the stuff of dreams and night mares arise. Not only in the darkness of the night, but the darkness of our mind do the undead reside.

In this issue we journey into the unsettling world of unnatural things. Don't let your player explore just another crypt with tiresome skeletons and zombies. Bring the unexpected, bring MAXIMUM HP!

D&D Care Bear Errata - 5e Removes Racial Stat Penalties

I will confess. I've never played 5e, but as the rising tide that lifts all ships, I've followed 5e. It's close enough to the OSR rulesets that I can convert adventures and settings if needed.

It was also sold as a balanced RPG system.

I'm guessing that balance is no longer important to the powers that be.

ComicBook.com

Dungeons & Dragons players will no longer have a negative ability score modifier when building a character of a certain race. Last week, Dungeons & Dragons officially released updated errata for a number of their sourcebooks and adventures. The Volo's Guide to Monsters errata was particularly important in that it removed the negative ability score modifiers for playable kobolds and orcs. While kobolds originally had a -2 modifier to their Strength score, and orcs had a -2 modifier to their Intelligence, the updated rules remove those modifiers entirely from the game. Additionally, the errata also removes the orc's "Menacing" trait with the "Primal Intuition" trait, which grants players proficiency in two of the following options - Animal Handling, Insight, Intimidation, Medicine, Nature, Perception, and Survival.

A few things to note:

This isn't errata, its a rules change not to fix and balance, but to make imaginary "races" politically correct.

So, my Kobold can be as strong as any other race. Same for my orc's intelligence. 

Because, you know, orcs are highly intelligent and Kobolds are amazingly strong - not scrawny in the least.

Are we removing bonuses that were balanced by the penalties? Er, no.

At least orcs are still "menacing", right? Nope.

they’re trying to remove “racially insensitive language” this errata also includes an update to Orc’s inborn “Menacing” has been swapped for Primal Intuition which gives a choice of skill proficiencies

Might as well make all the races the same, with just fluff to differentiate. Shit, WotC might be reading this ;)

Further thoughts on The Tavern Chat Podcast.

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Kickstarter - Cat's Cradle: A Fantasy Town for 5e and Other RPG Systems (Frog God Games)

This is one of the reasons I am very happy to be associated with Frog God Games: 

PPA Loan and COVID-19  We’re using the proceeds of a PPA loan to employ our writers and artists on an immediate basis, which lets us keep paying them at normal levels despite a bad market. For this reason, we’re following the unusual procedure of offering a Kickstarter before the work itself is completed. The books will be printed at the Arizona printshop we use for Indiegogo projects rather than in China, which allows us a much faster turnaround to backers. Most of the initial legwork has already been done, and the project should be almost completed by the time the Kickstarter ends, with the exception of layout and some of the art orders. To the extent the Kickstarter generates any profit — which isn’t guaranteed in this market — we will continue turning the profit around to new projects, to generate as steady a stream of work-flow as we can.

 That is good looking out.

So, what is the Cat's Cradle Kickstarter?

Cat’s Cradle stands at the intersection of a caravan and river route, which brings in mysterious travelers, unscrupulous grifters, and -- quite often -- dangerous villains. The Kickstarter includes a town sourcebook for Cat's Cradle, the adventure Eye of Itral, and Fortune Hunters, a book of town-oriented NPCs.

Indiegogo - Grimmsgate

A low-level adventure for Swords & Wizardry, 5e D&D and Pathfinder 1e, written by Matt Finch.

Yes, I already have the original printing of Grimmsgate for Swords & Wizardry. Forgive me if I want the new, snazzy printing ;)

NOTE: Thank you to the many fans who requested a Swords & Wizardry option for this book. That option is now available as its own perk. To receive your copy of Grimmsgate in the Swords & Wizardry version, please select S&W PDF Only or S&W Softcover Book + PDF.  To make a change your existing order please contact pexx@froggodgames.com for assistance.

An Adventure for 5th Edition D&D and Pathfinder First Edition, for Characters Level 1-3

Deep in the wooded wilderness, the village of Grimmsgate is an outpost town on a seldom-traveled trail, right at the edge of nowhere. The village’s half-ruined temple of Law, dilapidated inn, drunken blacksmith, exiled trader and a few fur-trappers are enough to keep the bloody-minded denizens of the dark forest at bay, but nobody really expects the village to still be there in another ten years. The woods have become too dangerous for the trappers who once caught animals for fur, and merchants no longer travel the poorly-maintained road.

What great evil and what fabulous treasures are to be found in these lands? A brave band of adventurers might make their fortunes here. Or perhaps they might never return …

What's Inside?

A small village with map, key, and information for the characters to learn about the area
A wilderness map and key for outdoor adventures
A temple and underground complex with a dark mystery
A variety of new monsters

Indiegogo -Lost Menagerie (Mike Mearls)

This is the perfect tie for small, inexpensive crowdfunding projects. Lost Menagerie is from Necromancer Games - 8 bucks in PDF, 22 bucks in print plus PDF. Available in 5e, Pathfinder and Swords & Wizardry versions.

Lost Menagerie is a challenging adventure for characters of 7th to 9th level*, written by Mike Mearls, one of the two Lead Designers of Fifth Edition Dungeons & Dragons.

In the distant past, the great wizard Arfaleo the Seeker claimed favors from four mighty elemental lords to create a self-contained world. The wizard populated his microcosm with strange creatures, to monitor what changes might occur to them over time, even bringing a small settlement of humans into the interplanar cavern. Eventually, though, the wizard’s interest in his experiment waned and he moved on, leaving behind the bizarre anomaly he had created.

Since this time, the microcosm has changed in many ways, for it did not remain isolated from other planes of existence. New creatures have made their way into the wizard’s carefully-maintained experiment, and — there is no other way to say it — things have gone very wrong.

This adventure module is available for 5th edition, Pathfinder first edition, and Swords & Wizardry (OD&D).

*For Swords & Wizardry, the module is for characters level 6-8.

What's inside? Adventure!

• A lost plane of existence, abandoned for centuries by its creator
• Another sun, shining upon a strange, jungle oasis.
• The realm of a bizarre lich, and his twisted zoo, filled with mutated creatures
•  A sandbox adventure where terrible creatures dwell, and the tribes of the deep wander free
• Designed to fit into any fantasy setting
• Contains three adventure locations (all mapped), a small village under threat, and many challenges to overcome.

COVID-19 Effect: The printing for this adventure is done by a family-owned shop in Arizona, where a shelter-in-place order is in effect, making us one of their largest customers. Sales like this also allow us to keep a stream of income moving to our freelance artists, authors, layout artists, and editors during the shut-downs. Frog God will come out of this crisis intact, so this isn't a "keep the doors open" plea, but we want to let you know that your purchase is one that you can feel comfortable about. It directly affects small businesses and households. We hope that all of you remain safe and well for the duration!

Frog God Games 35% Off Sale at DTRPG - Swords & Wizardry (oh, and PF and 5e)

So, it looks like the Kickstarter for the NEW Swords & Wizardry Boxed Set will be launching on this coming Tuesday. Completely compatible with prior printings, the boxed set will certainly be getting new eyes on Swords & Wizardry.

Just in time, Frog God Games has put its entire PDF catalog on sale at DriveThruRPG at 20% (my math shows 35% or more) off. Now's the time to plug the holes in your Swords & Wizardry virtual collection ;)

Sale prices are in effect thru early Tuesday morning, so don't wait too long...

Yes, that is an affiliate link. Support The Tavern by using our affiliate links. I thank you in advance. Will work for beer...

Raging Swan Press Annual Christmas Megabundle

I literally love Raging Swan's catalog. If you are a DM that likes to be freewheeling, let your players follow hooks and clues that you didn't even put out there and like improvising by the edge of your seat, Raging Swan is for you.

Sure, Raging Swan's Annual Christmas Megabundle is for D&D 5e (there is some hope we may get the same bundle in System Neutral at some point), but converting from 5e to the OSR is fairly easy (the reverse isn't as true).

There are many campaigns worth of material in this bundle - locations, adventures, and treasures - oh my! 50 titles for 20 bucks.

Yes, that is an affiliate link above. Affiliate links keep the taps flowing and the lights on at The Tavern.

Indiegogo - Feast of the Gobbler (S&W, 5e, PF)

Who wants a Thanksgiving-themed adventure? I know I do, and the author's I'd want to see it from are either James Spahn or Casey Christofferson. Both are amazing authors with just enough weird in their sense of humor to pull off a usable and entertaining holiday-themed adventure. This time around, we've got Casey giving us the Feast of the Gobbler ;)

What evils lurk in the deep woods? Only the Gobbler Knows! 

The Ennie nominated adventure originally released over 16 years ago returns with a fury of bad puns and just desserts! 

This adventure designed for 3-5th level characters takes you deep into the eternal autumn of the Greenhill Woods. Here the characters find themselves caught in the midst of a conflict between settlers and native folk at odds over a recent rash of deaths and disappearances. Their exploration of the region takes a surreal turn as they investigate Councilors’ Bluff, uncovering its dark secrets. 

The adventure requires equal parts detective work, puzzle and trap solving, and action adventure to discover the truth behind the missing ones and the horrible fate that awaits those who fail to stop the rise of the cult of the Gobbler! 

Available for the first time in print, this adventure classic is revised and re-edited to include brand new content for use with 5th Edition, Swords & Wizardry, or Original Pathfinder!

6 bucks for the PDF, 16 plus shipping for the print plus PDF. I'm in for the print plus PDF ;)

Amazon - Stranger Things Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Starter Set - 14.99

It was pointed out to me that the Stranger Things Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Starter Set is on sale for $14.99 (retail $24.99) over on Amazon. Heck, it even ships free with Prime. Not sure if its a Prime Days sale or not.

• The Stranger Things themed Dungeons & Dragons starter set has everything you need to unleash your imagination and live out the dream of exploring the upside down from the Netflix original series, stranger things.
• Embark on an exciting Dungeons & Dragons adventure, hunt for the thessalhydra, and have hours of fun with the Adventure book "created" by the character Mike Wheeler.
• Get all the essential rules you need to start playing from the D&D fifth edition starter set rulebook with a new colorful Stranger Things theme.
• Battle your way through the D&D universe & The upside down as one of the characters played by the Stranger Things gang. Five Ready-to-Play character sheets are included.
• The starter set also includes 6 Polyhedral dice and 2 Stranger Things Demogorgon figures, including one to paint and customize.
• Special "Red box" Design: a unique replica of the famous 1983 D&D "red box" As seen being played on screen by the Stranger Things characters.

https://amzn.to/2lvx2wl

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Kickstarter - The Koryo Hall of Adventures 5e Compatible Campaign Setting

"A new campaign setting compatible with Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition (5e) based on Korean locations, myths, and legends."

One of the most overlooked Asian themed settings in RPGs is Korean. As someone that used to work in and lives near Flushing, NY - often called the second largest "Korea Town" in the United States, I've always been intrigued with Korean history and myths since childhood, having Korean classmates throughout my public school education. To have an RPG setting that covers such background I find pretty exciting. And thus we have The Koryo Hall of Adventures Kickstarter.

In the Koryo Hall of Adventures campaign setting, you can explore four uniquely detailed lands within the continent of Jeosung. Roam the mystical forest wilderness of Haguiliesta or head to the city and meddle in the mercenary politics of Daewanguk. Heroes (or fools) may attempt to infiltrate the hermit kingdom of Haenamguk or brave the frigid peaks of Noonnara. 

You want more? How about taking part in a pilgrimage along the crest of Wunü Mountain, or exploring the eternally dark swampy forest of Hugakneup? You could also participate in the famous Cave Games under Cheonsanju mountain, or even trade grains and brewed alcohols  along the Chassalgil trade route.

Heck, you  can even sample before putting your hard money down:

Would you like to sample the setting? Setting creator Aurélien Lainé has written five free adventures set in Jeosung, containing just enough hints of the campaign world to get a good taste. Best of all, they're available as a free pdf download on his website.

The sweet spot is 35 bucks for the print plus PDF.

Goodman Games Announcement - OAR #3: Expedition to the Barrier Peaks

You know you are having a busy con time when you are at the con and miss announcements like this - http://goodman-games.com/blog/2019/03/11/announcing-oar-3-expedition-to-the-barrier-peaks/

We’re very excited to announce the next release in our Original Adventures Reincarnated line: Expedition to the Barrier Peaks! As with previous releases in the OAR series, this one will include scans of the original 1E editions, a conversion to 5E, and new 5E material filling in some gaps from the original 1E module. 

OAR3: Expedition to the Barrier Peaks is slated for a September release. It will be solicited to distributors soon and will be available for pre-order once the book is at the printer. 

Originally run was a tournament adventure at Origins II, the adventure was published by TSR in 1980. Expedition to the Barrier Peaks is a famous adventure module, because it mixes “science fiction” and “fantasy.” For this reason it is both well known, and an enduring favorite for those who played it during its heyday. The 5E conversion is consistent with the original design principles, and also offers new avenues for exploration. 

In the adventure, characters come across a spaceship that has crash landed into your fantasy world, and have to deal with the consequences. Which include robots, plant people, and a zoo of alien creatures. And ray guns. It has ray guns.  

The OAR volume will also include complete scans of the original 1E publication. This includes both the adventure booklet as well as the extensive book of handouts that was part of the original publication. Dedicated fans may already know that the handout art changed between printings. Three handout illustrations were changed between the first (1980) and second (1981) printings of Expedition to the Barrier Peaks, and most of the remaining handouts were renumbered. The OAR volume will include scans of both versions of the handout booklets. For those of you who have an old ragged copy of Expedition to the Barrier Peaks in your personal collection, you will be able to discover which set of handouts you never had the chance to see before!

Kickstarter - The Ruins of Mistemere (a 5E adventure from Fail Squad Games)

Fail Squad Games has an excellent Kickstarter record. Strong adventures, excellent art, and Lloyd is one of the few that knows how to handle solid physical add ons to his projects.

So, what is The Ruins of Mistemere?

This adventure is inspired by, and is a revisit of, the first “Group Adventure” in a certain Red Box set of the world’s favorite basic roleplaying game. The original version of this adventure was likely the very first quest many players embarked upon in the days of 1983. It was also likely the first adventure run by many budding GMs at the same time.

Why reboot it?  

• For the sake of nostalgia. 
• To make a fresh version available to the next generation of adventurers and GMs.
• To add the Fail Squad Games flavor.
• Because it’s fun, and we can.

This adventure is written to be fully compatible with the 5E ruleset and written in such a way as to keep the author(s) from goblin jail time at the hands of certain wizards who live near a popular coast.  

Some names seem to have changed as planes of existence were traversed. Borgle is well known in many original adventures and legends; many report that his name was spelled with an “a” in place of the “o”. It is also told in ancient tales from different cultures that the spellings of Mistemere and Alena can be slightly altered from the records of the coastal wizards. 

I spoke with Lloyd at TotalCon last week. He was very excited about The Ruins of Mistemere. Lloyd feels it converts easily to the various OSR rulesets and I don't doubt him.

About The Ruins of Mistemere 

The Ruins of Mistemere is written as an introductory adventure for a group of 3-5 5E players of levels 1-2. The ideal match for the adventure is 4 players at level 1. 

While the beginning of the adventure relies heavily on the original story and layout of the "First Group Adventure" it has been changed significantly after the initial first few encounters. What follows is the Fail Squad Games' version of how the adventure progresses in our world (Artera). 

Over-all this is a short page count adventure (20-24 pages), but can carry a group for four sessions and into level 2 or 3 before completion.  

We've gone above and beyond to improve playability and tested this adventure at a number of conventions and tables before releasing our final version.

Full-color Print or B&W Print plus PDF are each 16 bucks. Not a bad deal at all.