#FreeOSR - Dyson's Dodecahedron - Vol 1 Issue 1

Say what you want about Dyson (and I probably have), but few come close to Dyson's skill when it comes to maps suitable for fantasy adventures (and occasionally beyond). Matt Jackson might exceed by a tad, but Dyson is by far the most prolific dungeon mapper I've seen.

Dyson's Dodecahedron—Vol 1 Issue 1—is offered at PWYW pricing, as are many of Dyson's other OSR releases.

Dyson's Dodecahedron is an irregularly scheduled 12-page digest-sized OSR zine for the Labyrinth Lord RPG with content easily adaptable to just about any OSR style system.

The very first issue of the Dodecahedron presents an eclectic mix of material for old school play drawn from the early days of the blog:

• Pain, Wounds & The Death Spiral presents a system whereby serious injuries to a character are easily tracked and accounted for, reducing a character's abilities over time as they become more and more injured.
• Obscene Eyes are horrid subterranean monsters of strange alien intelligence and disgusting appearance.
• 2d6 Thief Skills rewrites the classic thief abilities into a simple 2d6 chart and three core abilities - the thief's favoured skill, other skills, and climbing walls. This both makes thief abilities simpler in play and in book-keeping.
• Atarin's Delve is a small dungeon adventure that can be played on it's own or inserted into any other dungeon or megadungeon. It features a bandit camp, some magical traps, and of course Atarin Darkhunter.
• Polearms! explores the many varieties of "pointy and/or bladed bits on the end of a long stick" that can be covered by the basic polearm - from the classic Bardiche to the Reticulated Earspoon-Guisarme. All of course have exactly the same stats and handled by random tables.

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RPGNow Deal of the Day - 2016 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review (Dyson Logos)

If you play RPGs, especially fantasy RPGs, you need the 2016 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review. I'm serious. Actually, you need just about all the maps that +Dyson Logos produces. They are, quite simply, amazing art that doubles as RPG maps.

This just released last week so this is fresh AND on sale! Normally $8.50 on sale for $4.25

From the blurb:

The 2016 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review is a 107-page curated collection of most of the maps and descriptions thereof that appeared on Dyson's Dodecahedron throughout 2016. Designed to be a letter-sized spiral bound book, this digital edition also includes a second version of the book where many of the maps have been resized (larger) to better fit the page once all the text has been removed.

Like the 2014 and 2015 Cartographic Reviews, this volume contains almost all the maps published to the website in 2016 except for one megadungeon map that is still incomplete at the time of publication. The PDF edition of these maps is provided as a convenience for readers of the blog and fans of RPG cartography and contains no exclusive content - everything in this PDF can be hunted down on the Dyson's Dodecahedron blog and downloaded at high resolution. What this collection gives you, however, is that material collected in one place, sequenced, and annotated from the notes on the blog.

5% of purchases made through The Tavern's affiliate links helps to fund The Tavern.

Dyson is now up to 74 Free Commercial Use Maps - Go Patreon!

The latest Free Commercial Use Map, a classic from 2013

+Dyson Logos mentioned this on Facebook, but I thought I'd spread the word. Thanks to Dyson's Patreon supporters, there are now 74 Dyson drawn maps available for free commercial use. Did I mention there are more maps added every month?

Dyson is one of the most skilled and most prolific mappers in the gaming community, and the idea that publishers can use a selection of his creations for free in their commercial projects is nothing short of amazing.

I've already got 2 of Dyson's maps pegged for use in a current project.

Here's the link to the free commercial use maps. If you're just using for personal use, he has hundreds more.

You have no excuse. Stat out a dungeon now!  ;)

Swords & Wizardry: Light - Choosing Some Dyson Maps for the First Four Page Adventure

Every ruleset needs a kick ass adventure to go with it right from the beginning, and there is no better selection of adventure maps than those offered up by +Dyson Logos . I've been backing Dyson's Patreon since forever and it is because of that Patreon that the following maps are offered with a free commercial license.

We need to start with a Tavern, right? Hell, it might even be run by a surly dwarf. Cenkar Talishun or some such nonsense. And we know there are going to be rats in the basement. Maybe even coppers ;)

Then, after the party gets their feet wet in the basement of the tavern, they can move on to bigger and more rewarding dangers:

At the moment I'm hoping to have the S&W: Light rules, the GM's pamphlet (Deadly Machinations) and the first 4 page adventure all ready around the same time. All free to DL with permission to print and distribute.

RPGNow Deal of the Day - 2015 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review (Dyson Maps)

You know the quality of Dyson's maps. You might not know it's his maps when you see them, but you should. Heck, his blog Dyson's Dodecahedron, is a virtual sampler of the work he does. And it is good. Damn good.

Until 1059 AM Eastern, tomorrow morning, Dyson's latest release, the 2015 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review is on sale for $3.75 (normally $7.50) in PDF. This makes it perfect for use in the various VTTs.

Need to know more about the 2015 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review?

The 2015 Dodecahedron Cartographic Review is an 88-page curated collection of most of the maps and descriptions thereof that appeared on Dyson's Dodecahedron throughout 2015. Designed to be a letter-sized spiral bound book, this digital edition also includes a second version of the book where many of the maps have been resized (larger) to better fit the page once all the text has been removed. 

Unlike the maps of Dyson's Delves I and Dyson's Delves II, the maps I drew for the Dodecahedron in 2015 were predominantly drawn on letter-sized paper, so a different format of map book was needed for this review of the year's cartography. The PDF edition of these maps is provided as a convenience for readers of the blog and fans of RPG cartography and contains no exclusive content - everything in this PDF can be hunted down on the Dyson's Dodecahedron blog and downloaded at high resolution. What this collection gives you, however, is that material collected in one place, sequenced, and annotated from the notes on the blog.

Let's Pick Some Dyson Maps for White Star / White Box Adventuring

Cartography by Dyson Logos

Yesterday I posted an informal poll asking my readers what they would like to see in terms of White Star / White Box content. Right out of the gate, adventures appear to be a strong contender. So, adventures will certainly be a major part of the mix of content.

The problem is, my mapping skills suck. So, I need a quick fix and I think we have one.

+Dyson Logos releases some amazing maps for free commercial use thanks to his Patreon Supporters (of whom I am proudly one of)

What I would like my readers to do is follow THIS LINK to Dyson's free Patreon Supported commercial maps. Pick the ones you would like to see written out as an adventure for White Star, White Box or both, provide the link in a comment below and tell us why you chose the map you did. If you have chosen multiple maps, please make multiple comments. It will make it easier for all to follow.

The goal is to write some up as 1-sheet, 4-page adventures, posted as they progress here at The Tavern with the completed adventures shared initial with The Tavern's Patreons.

So, have at it. Comment below. Do eet! Do eet now!

Tavern Chat Tonight - 9PM Eastern - Your Host Will NOT be There

Thursday's has been the night for Tavern Chat for a while now and I've been pretty good at making the chat sessions. Tonight will be different though, as tonight is Rachel and I's wedding anniversary.

With her new work hours, I suspect we won't get out to dinner until 8ish and back by 10pm at the earliest. Which means I'll miss the kick off of the chat but might make the last half.

Play nice amongst yourselves ;)

Want something to discuss? Dyson's Monster Manual Madness. There. Drops mic and leaves the stage...

Dyson Does... Holy Sh!t What Dyson Does! Monster Manual Madness

I cut my RPG teeth on AD&D 1e. As +Dyson Logos says on his blog post (where I "borrowed" this pic from) there is just something special about the 1e rules.

Me? I remember reading the Dungeon Master's Guide and Player's Handbook from front to back and back to front. I had to wait a bit for the Monster Manual but when I finally had a copy I wore it out. I'm pretty sure my MM would open to the same page if dropped on a table. The same page it would open for just about every teenage boy that played AD&D in the early 80s.

I loved the art in the Monster Manual. It fit the vision I had of Dungeons & Dragons at the time, or maybe it formed that vision. Damned if I know.

I never thought that it could be improved upon.

Damn you Dyson! I'll never be able to look at my Monster Manual the same again. What you're doing is making the Monster Manual magical again. It's beyond amazing. It's jaw dropping.

I hope you keep us constantly updated as this project progresses.

I'll need to save my pennies for the future when you auction the complete illuminated copy off...

Some Thoughts on Dyson's Creative Commons Released Maps (Go Patreon!)

As I've mentioned before, the new work hours are putting some major hurt on my creativity. Sliding into bed at 645 in the morning (or later) just runs roughshod over any kind of real life scheduling.

Which means I'm looking for inspiration, and +Dyson Logos has inspiration in spades.

On the chance you don't already know, Dyson has a Patreon campaign where, if enough money is raised each month, the maps that he draws and posts on his blog are released for free to be used personally or commercially. Here's the link to the free maps. Heck, you don't even need to be a backer to benefit from this but the more backers the more maps potentially released into the gaming wilds.

Anyhow, here's two that I'm currently looking at to inspire some of those drowsy braincells...

I figure the above would make for a nice city to kick off a S&W campaign when I finally get back behind the screen next March.

This would be just the right size to kick off a dungeon, and the river might even lead the players elsewhere.

Plenty of time for me to work on this but the fact that i want to work on this is pleasantly surprising. I may be awaking the inner muse ;)