Tenkar's Tavern: ptolus

Showing posts with label ptolus. Show all posts

Monday, May 30, 2022

Bundle of Holding - Ptolus Cypher (and 5e)

I was, and still am, a fan of the 3x original edition of Ptolus. There are now versions of Ptolus for 5e and Monte Cook Games' Cypher Systems. Ptolus is quite simply one of the finest urban setting books ever. Ptolus is well worth the $17.95 price for the nearly 700 pages of content.

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Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Bundle of Holding - Ptolus and More (Monte Cook)

There is a campaign worth of material in Ptolus for those that want to spend a campaign exploring a city. Over 800 pages of city based campaign material. Damn!

I have the hardcover version of Ptolus, and it is good. I'll probably never run it as it, but that doesn't make it any less good. I really do need to mine it for it's bit's and pieces.

You also get the Player's Guide to Ptolus, The Banewarrens, Chaositech, The Night of Dissolution and two Campaign Journals. All for $19.95 when you grab the Ptolus Bundle of Holding

Beat the average and you get:

Books of Experimental Might I (retail $9) and II ($7)
Complete Book of Eldritch Might (retail $13):
Books of Hallowed Might I (retail $6) and II ($7)

Not sure if beating the average is needed for the OSR crew interested in Ptolus, but what you get in the basic package is pretty damn good.

Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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Monday, May 30, 2022

Bundle of Holding - Ptolus Cypher (and 5e)

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Bundle of Holding - Ptolus and More (Monte Cook)

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