OSR Christmas - Day Six - CE 8 - Goblins of the Faerie Wood - Print + PDF - DCC RPG

Its Day Six of OSR Christmas. Before we get to today's festivities, let's find out who is the recipient of yesterday's awesome gift.

I would do a drum roll but that doesn't work so well on a blog post. Oh well.

Keith Sloan - congrats. Email me at tenkarsDOTtavern and we'll get you hooked up.

Now for today's gift. We are giving away the Goblins of the Faerie Wood (Print + PDF)

Lo, the enchanted forest wherein lives the goblins and faeries beckons… will you heed the call?  Now you can, with Purple Duck Games’ Campaign Elements 8: Goblins of the Faerie Wood for Dungeon Crawl Classics!  Whether “questing for it”, seeking enigmatic items like the weird of Sorthal, or just stumbling into a thin wall between The Lands We Know and the World of Faerie, entering the Faerie Wood of the Goblins will be a memorable experience.  Your DCC players can meet King Ifhane of the Red Hoods, roam the Goblin Field and sample its wares, ask dangerous questions of the Gray Ones, or seek the advice of the Ogre Sorcerer… al at their peril! 

CE 8: Goblins of the Faerie Wood is suitable for a 0-level funnel for goblin characters- using an exciting appendix for creating goblin adventurers who can be stealthy warriors or tricksome witch doctors, adding a new exciting option for your DCC gaming.  With six detailed encounter areas, lots of interesting twists and turns, get your copy of CE 8: Goblins of the Faerie Wood from the goblinoid good-guys at Purple Duck Games- where our games are what you want!  

Comment on this post before 8 AM Eastern Time, December 19th, 2016 to be in the running for $8.19 in an RPGNow Gift Card. Goblins of the Faerie Wood in Print + PDF is exactly $8.19 (gift receiver is responsible for shipping cost) or use it for other purchases at RPGNow. The choice will be yours - if Santa picks you :)

Purple Duck PDFs Are 50% Off Through Canada Day (Some Excellent DCC RPG Picks)

I had to ask myself: "When the fuck is Canada Day?" Thankfully I didn't ask "what" instead, as that would have disrespected our Northern Neighbors ;)

The answer is - July 1st.

Purple Duck is putting their entire catalogue of electronic releases on sale at 50% off right through July 1st. There's Pathfinder stuff, 4e stuff, Icons and more.

Most importantly for folks like me there is some excellent DCC RPG stuff and some very affordable stock art. Heck, the stock art was reasonably priced before - this is simply a steal.

So, go to Purple Duck's page at RPGNow and browse. Oh, and tell The Duck "Tenkar sent ya." ;)

Early Black Friday OSR Sales Update #5 - Purple Duck Goes 40% Off in PDF (DCC RPG)

Yep, Purple Duck has put it's DCC RPG releases (and Pathfinder if you are of that mind) releases on sale at 40% off in PDF.

The DCC RPG releases are damn good.

I'd recommend AL 1-5 - The Stars are Falling (5 low level DCC Adventures) for a mere $7.79 as a good place to start.

Free RPG Day Sale - Buy a PDF Copy of Nebin Pendlebrook’s Perilous Pantry and receive a free PDF of A Gathering of the Marked (DCC RPG)

+Jon Marr over at Purple Sorcerer Games is running a sale for Free RPG Day. Buy a copy of Nebin Pendlebrook’s Perilous Pantry (from this link) and you will receive a free PDF of A Gathering of the Marked.

I ran A Gathering of the Marked over the course of three sessions a while back via Google Hangouts, and it was damn fine. Everyone had a good time, including me as the DM ;)

Think of it as a buy one, get one free offer ;)

From the Blurb of Nebin Pendlebrook's Perilous Pantry:

The tiny village of Bitterweed Barrow is unaccustomed to mysterious tunnels, missing halflings, or the need for brave adventurers, but now it has all three! Can a band of gong-farmers and shoe-cobblers muster the courage to descend into the darkness and confront the terror that waits beyond Nebin Pendlebrook’s unexpectedly perilous pantry?

Designed to be completed in a single furious session, this Instant Action 0-Level Dungeon Crawl Classics adventure drops your players into peril straight away. Dangerous foes, wicked traps, and ancient secrets await!

Features:

42 pages of classic 6'x9' digest-format old-school b/w dungeon fun.

Designed to be completed in a single 4 hour session, perfect for convention or demo play, but with enough hooks to become a centerpiece for your beginning campaign.

37 page appendix contains paper miniatures of every combatant, initiative cards, battlemaps of the entire dungeon, and printable pics of every image in the adventure.

Purple Duck Sale - 33% Off DCC, LL, S&W, Stock Art

+Purple Duck Games is running a sale on it's entire catalog.


DCC RPG adventures, Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry, Stock Art and more.

I may need to pick up some more stock art for the "Secret Project" I'm partnered up in...

You can find the Purple Duck page here.

Mini Review - The Monastery of Inexorable Truth (S&W Adventure for Levels 3-4)

+Purple Duck Games has released it's first Swords & Wizardry compatible adventure - The Monastery of Inexorable Truth.

Now, i am most certainly biased in favor of this adventure as my group and I playtested it with the author, +David Przybyla (who is also a regular member of our group). We used PCs from my regular campaign along with me rolling up a 3rd level cleric. It was so brutal and yet so damn good.

I really thought we were going to be TPK'd more than once, but in the end everyone in the party survived. We certainly did better when we started thinking out of the box (my instinct was to go in head first, but then again, I rarely get to play and not DM- maybe that's a good thing ;)

Nice amount of action, enough going on to make you think - and think again - and a background story that makes sense - if the party figures it out. It took us three sessions to wrap this up, but I expect most groups would take two. We are slow starters :)

I can't recommend The Monastery of Inexorable Truth enough. (even includes a blank map for VTT use - well done +Mark Gedak )

From the blurb:

THE TRUTH CAN BE DEADLY

It is said that the truth will set you free... but is that, itself, the truth?  The monks of the Order of Veracity built an amazing monastery complex in the frozen mountains, using the heat of natural magma flows, in order to contemplate the truths of their stern god, Ket the Unbroken.  When they were given a wondrous tome, the Codex of Inexorable Truth, they thought that all of the truths in the world would be theirs to behold... and it would be a lie to say that their bones rest easily because of it.  But the truth can be a valuable thing, and your party of intrepid adventurers has been tasked with obtaining the truth borne in the pages of the Codex, and must journey to the dark halls of frost and fire- to learn the Truth.

The Monastery of Inexorable Truth is a Swords and Wizardry adventure for player characters of the 3rd and 4th level, including the map and key to the Monastery, five new monsters, and rules for administration of the Codex of Inexorable Truth, a powerful artifact held within the Monastery. Challenge your players to explore the domain of Ket the Unbroken, where to be tested is to find the truth of one's inner self- if you survive!  Get it now from the intrepid investigators at Purple Duck Games!

For Those that Play Mutants and Masterminds (or just want to peek at a cool modern sourcebook) - Deus ex Historica (376 page sourcebook) is PWYW

Let me preface this by stating unequivocally, +Mark Gedak - aka +Purple Duck Games games is one of the most generous indie / 3rd party publishers I have had the pleasure to deal with. I can attest to this by the stack of in print DCC RPG adventures Mark has published and sent to be to given away to this blog's readers. The man is, simply put, aces.

So, here's the background as to why over 375 pages of Mutants and Masterminds goodness, aka Deus Ex Historica, is being offered at a Pay What You Want pricing:

Purple Duck Games originally shared -   

After much deliberation, I've decided to place Deus ex Historica (M&M) up as pay-what-you want.  

Deus Ex Historica was a product that was kickstarted by 4 Winds Fantasy Gaming. When I took over 4WFG, I inherited the responsibility for completing the kickstarter but not the funds from the kickstarter. This was known to me at the time. It came to me with the art (paid) and the writing (unpaid). 

The book turned out to be 376 page long. The writers have been paid, the kickstarter rewards have been sent and its been out in PDF for quite a while now.  

But its not moving. My additional costs on this product (rewards, paying writers, some additional art) amounted to just over $5K. It has brought in $450. So its definitely a terrible red smear in my ledger.  

We have tried sales including a deep discount one of at d20pfsrd and it didn't amount to anything. 

I'm very pleased with the authors work. I'm very pleased with the work of the artists who contributed. I'm very pleased with the final product. 

So even if I never break even on it, I want people to see it an enjoy it.  

So as of right now you can download it for nothing if you want. Download it, read it, enjoy it. There is nothing worse than a product that is not seen.

From the blurb:

DEUS ex HISTORICA

Gods from the Ages!

From the dawning days of the Second World War to the present day, the dynamic, colorful world of super-heroes has thrilled generations of readers. Whether draped in the dark of night, or wrapped up in brilliant colors, they duel with their arch-enemies across cities, countries, space and even time – modern myths to inspire the imagination.

With this book, you take a look into the files of future archaeologist Danni Cipher, and explore the Ages of the Super-Hero: from their Golden Age beginning, straight through to the Modern Age. Follow the way these comic book eras focused on different styles, struggles, attitudes and even powers, for hero and villain alike.

And more: you can step into the role of any one of four dozen ready-made heroes, to take up their struggles against dozens of their most diabolical foes! Golden, Silver, Bronze, Iron, Modern; each age presents its own team of heroes and the criminals and maniacs that they opposed, good to go straight from the book. Or as GM, use them to populate the backdrop of your own world's history, with secrets, stories and excitement that can serve to flesh out your players' own characters. With advice on scaling characters in power level to fit any campaign's needs; bases and vehicles, gear and gadgets; adventure seeds; and even a chance to peer into the timelines of our characters, to see how things might go villainous for them, these pages can provide more than enough material for any gaming group ready to make the leap into playing out their own modern myths!

376 pages packed with heroes, villains, and adventure seeds for a new superhero campaign

PWYW - Prince Charming, Reanimator (DCC RPG Funnel)

There is something special about DCC RPG adventures - there is usually a really strong story to each of them, and each adventure generally stands on it's own. Prince Charming, Reanimator is definitely special, it has a strong story and hook and if successful, may not need to stand on it's own. It's also the first "Pay What You Want" release for the DCC RPG that I can think of.

It's funny - I think I've gotten to the point where I can recognize a +Harley Stroh , +Michael Curtis or +Daniel Bishop DCC adventure just from reading the opening text. They are each strong storytellers and each has their own style. Prince Charming, Reanimator is certainly in +Daniel Bishop 's style.

I love the re-imagining of the classic fairytale, and the multiple ending options IS the way to write an adventure of this type. It is very much an Appendix N style adventure.

The price is right, and if you enjoy what you read, you can give Daniel and +Purple Duck Games a few silvers to ensure there are more stories to be told :)

From the blurb:

A 0th-level funnel for DCC by Daniel J. Bishop

Prince Hubert Charming, son of the Baron of Westlake, and heir to Westlake Manor, is well known as a cold man, whose watery blue eyes seem to betray no emotion at all. Yet he is a great lover of beauty, as all his wives have proven. The first he found working in the cinders of a woodsman’s cottage. Some say that the girl’s jealous stepsisters threw her down a well to prevent her from becoming the young prince’s bride, but even death did not bar Prince Charming, and she enchanted everyone at the wedding. Her stepsisters were placed in spiked barrels filled with hot coals and dragged through the town until they themselves died.

Whatever process Prince Charming used to revive his bride, it did not last forever. All too soon, the Princess Ella took ill and died.

Charming then found another bride, and there was no doubt in this case that she was dead. She was entombed in a glass coffin guarded by half a dozen or so dwarves. Yet,
when Prince Charming injected his magic elixir and kissed her upon the lips, her eyelids fluttered open and she breathed again! The story was told that the new Princess had been in but a deep coma, a sham of death, until a poisoned apple was dislodged by the Prince’s kiss. But folk began to whisper in dread, and none were surprised when it was announced that Princess Snow, like Princess Ella, succumbed to a fatal illness after only a few years of marital bliss.

In all kingdoms there are tales, and in the Barony of Westlake, it is said that the Grimmswood hides the ruins of a long-lost realm. The daughter of its final king, cursed by a malevolent faerie, pricked her finger on a spindle upon her sixteenth birthday, in the blossom of her youth, and died. With her death, the kingdom went to ruin. Few now dare to go far into the Grimmswood, although the riches of the lost kingdom are said to lie unclaimed within. Fear of dark fey magic and even greater evils keep men out.

Or they did so until now. For Prince Hubert Charming of Westlake has determined that the long-dead Princess Beauty is only cursed to sleep away the aeons, and he will have her for his bride. His men rounded up a stable of “volunteers” at the beginning of one early autumn morning, and here you are, with what makeshift arms and equipment you had upon you when you were “volunteered”.

Your mission, the Prince’s Bailiff explains, is to enter the ruined castle, find the place where the “Sleeping” Beauty lies, and bring her forth for Prince Charming to restore with a kiss. Those who choose not to go upon this quest must take their chances with the Prince’s Guard, twenty men strong, and be declared outlaw. Those who choose to hazard their lives within the ruined castle may keep what they find, apart from the sleeping princess, but dare not leave without her.

Mini Review - The Twice Robbed Tomb (Labyrinth Lord Adventure)

The Twice Robbed Tomb is a nice little adventure for LL or really any OSR system of your choice. It's not huge and is probably playable in a single session, unless you have to herd an unruly pride of cats like I do every Saturday night, in which case it may take multiple sessions ;)

Ah, to be a teenage boy w/o
the internet again ;)

I always appreciate it when a publisher includes a players' map, as I run my games online using Roll20, and I hate inadvertently revealing secret door and traps to the players before the proper time. Purple Duck is pretty good with including an unkeyed map for use in VTTs, and this time is
no exception.

I'm not so sure about the level spread. A party of 6 2nd characters will probably get their asses handed to them. I'd personally move the range to 3-4, with 5-6 characters, but that's because I'd hope to see most of the party survive. Maybe I'm not "Old School" enough... heh.

I do like the adventure. Just enough surprises to keep it fresh, some "save or die" moments that give the observant players ample warning and just enough to play in a night of gaming. For 2 bucks it's damn close to a steal.

From the blurb:

The long-disappeared loot of Pheniket the Pharaonic’s tomb was indeed a mere distraction, a few baubles hidden from the looting rebels. The opening of the tomb fifty-odd years ago allowed some of Pheniket’s almost completed efforts to come to fruition, and a demonic being known as a succubus has set up in the uncompleted lower level of the tomb, served by a large pack of ghouls attracted by the necromantic powers of a node of negative energy secured by Pheniket in his last days.

To build her power, the succubus, Invexia, has used her powers of temptation to start a campaign of corruption and seduction, using greed to bring gullible adventurers to Pheniket’s tomb. She knows of the other of Pheniket’s creations, a portal to the Plane of Shadow that he used to control his fledgling kingdom. It is this nexus of power that subsequent plunderers unknowingly seek. She solved the entrance requirement- a certain astrologically-shaped golden key- and is now sending charmed catspaws to ‘sell’ maps and keys to greedy adventurers, bringing loot, prospective undead soldiers, or perhaps even playthings and minions to her spider’s web beneath the Twice-Robbed Tomb…

A Labyrinth Lord adventure for 4 characters of 3rd level, or 6 or more of 2nd level.

Free Stuff Today Only From Purple Duck Games

Today is +Mark Gedak 's birthday, the man behind Purple Duck, and he has put some stuff out there for Free TODAY ONLY:

Following Daniel Bishop example of giving things away on his birthday. I've put the following things written by me up for free today. Get them if you haven't yet. 

Purple Mountain I 

A Score of Trapped Chests

Legendary II: Legendary Weapons  

I wish I could offer something newer but most of my time now is spent in layout and not writing. 

Feel free to share the link so that nobody misses out. 

Mini Review - The Folk of Osmon (DCC RPG Campaign Element)

The Folk of Osmon is the third release in +Daniel Bishop 's Campaign Elements series. These are set pieces, locations, hooks, etc meant to be dropped into an ongoing campaign or to be used when the party zigs instead of zags. In many ways, their are the sandbox elements currentlt missing from much DCC RPG play.

The latest release raises the already high bar ser by the previous two releases.

The Folk of Osmon is a setting piece. As the scale is 10' per hex, the scale isnt large, but the value certainly is.  A new human like race, four new creature, natural hazards, random encounter charts (often overlooked in other DCC RPG adventures), four fairly well detailed encounters / hooks / mini adventures and three other possible hooks for the Judge to flesh out.

Daniel squeezes one hell of a lot of gameplay into a relatively small page count. Probably my favorite of the three releases thus far and I've liked them all.

From the blurb:

A mighty civilization once thrived where now only lonely Osmon Mire stretches across the land.  The crumbled and vine-laden ruins of ages-old buildings arise here and there from the reedy mud and water.  The remains of statues and derelict temples adorn low hills rising from the muck.  Fell beasts roam the mire at night and man-like shapes haunt the swamp.  After dark none willingly passes the low hill, with its blood-encrusted altar stone, where the Folk of Osmon are said to sacrifice their victims.

The Campaign Elements series is designed to help judges create persistent campaign worlds, as well as deal with patron quests, divine requests, and the sudden need to “Quest For It”.  Whether it is because you are short on players one evening, or the wizard needs to locate a new spell, the Campaign Elements series has you covered.

Each of these areas is short enough to be played through by most groups in only a single session.  That doesn't mean that the value of the area is limited to a single session – each adventure includes notes on “squeezing it dry”…effectively getting the maximum re-use from your investment.

Mini Review - The Falcate Idol (DCC RPG "Campaign Element")

The Falcate Idol, otherwise known as CE-1, was released a few hours after CE-2. So, its the first by number but second by actual release in the series.

In the case of The Falcate Idol, it is more of a short adventure than a simple location. It has built in tweakness for the ref, and is suitable for 2-8 2nd level characters or even 1-2 3rd level characters. It just depends on the time of the month the party finds the temple in question. Well, and which parts of the party you want to screw with ;)

It can almost be placed anywhere, so flexibility is awesome both for location and type of party (numbers and levels) it's aplicable for. This in of of itself adds nice value to the piece, and Daniel sets it all up well. The extra leads at the end can keep parts of the "campaign element" in play for a long time.

Actually, there is an element to this adventure that may literally dog the characters for months to come, which can be a nice way to set some continuity between sessions.

What I'd like to know is when +Daniel Bishop is going to reveal the world all of his adventures and other setting pieces are inspired from. I'll even accept some hints and teases on the blogside Daniel ;)

From the blurb:

The Cult of the Harrower is ancient, and each of the eight eyes of its spider-idol is rumored to be a moonstone gem the size of a pigeon's egg.  Moreover, somewhere within the cult's sanctuary, a pool flows from the Egg of Creation.  Will your Thief seek to make a legendary score?  Will your Wizard pursue the shards of the Egg?  Will your Cleric join the cult?  Or will your Warrior fight his way through the web-covered passages to rescue them if they fail?  Any or all of these scenarios are possible!

Mini Review - The Black Goat (DCC RPG "Campaign Element")

DCC RPG Week continues here at The Tavern. The latest release for the DCC RPG game is The Black Goat. It bills itself as a "campaign element" for the DCC RPG and it took me a little bit to wrap my head around the concept, but when I did, it's pretty damn good.

The Black Goat is not an adventure itself, it more of a location and an encounter that has the potential to seed other adventures. This and releases like it help turn episodic play towards the sandbox. (I say "releases like it", as this is the second in the series but the first to release on RPGNow). There is more game play potential in The Black Goat them most of the shorter DCC RPG adventures and it requires more roleplay than brawn to be successful, which is a nice twist.

New patrol, new patron spell, decent map of the location and lots of further gaming potential. If a player gets bedded by The Black Goat, more power to them. ;)

There is no level range indicated and I don't think one is needed. The Black Goat is there to set up further adventuring for the PCs, and that's easy enough for the ref to tweak to his party's needs.

Well done +Daniel Bishop

From the blurb:

Not all mountain passes are lonely.

Come meet the Mahmat Troth and the One they adore.  Only in the high pass will you discover what the Black Goat truly is.

The Campaign Elements series is designed to help judges create persistent campaign worlds, as well as deal with patron quests, divine requests, and the sudden need to “Quest For It”.  Whether it is because you are short on players one evening, or the wizard needs to locate a new spell, the Campaign Elements series has you covered.

Each of these areas is short enough to be played through by most groups in only a single session.  That doesn't mean that the value of the area is limited to a single session – each adventure includes notes on “squeezing it dry”…effectively getting the maximum re-use from your investment.

Purple Duck Games Sale - 25% Off Everything Until June 1st!

I really like Purple Duck Games. Not only do they have some nice DCC RPG adventures, but Mark is very open to feedback. When I mentioned in one of the reviews on this very blog that having an unkeyed version of the adventure map is almost a necessity for online gaming, the suggestion was addressed and the adventure in question was updated with an unkeyed map. Mark has been pretty good at adding unkeyed maps to later DCC RPG releases too.

Talk about customer service. :)

Anyhow, everything they sell is 25% off until the end of the month.

Oh, and they sell stock are too, so if you are looking to self publish, now is a good time to stock up on some stock art (I may do so myself ;)

Purple Duck Games Donates in Print Copies of "Through the Cotillion of Hours" For Future DCC RPG Contests at The Tavern

Just a quick but huge "Thank You!" to Purple Duck Games. We now have in print copies of Through the Cotillion of Hours - 1 copy each for the next 3 months worth of DCC RPG Contests (it was nice to see this waiting for me after a crappy day at work).

For the October Contest (to be announced in about 2 weeks) we also have a print copy of Emerald Enchanter that was donated by a blog reader.

This is in addition to a copy of Crawl! that Dak donates every month for the cause.

Add of course others that have donated in the past (and probably in the future too) like Purple Sorcerer, Thick Skull Adventures, Occult Moon, Tim Shorts and others that have donated to make these monthly contests a big hit.

I thank you all - but especially Purple Duck Today :)

Win Some DCC RPG Swag! Post a 0-Level Occupation

Alright, here we go. The 2nd Monthly Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG Contest. This month's contest topic is: 0-Level Occupations.


Here's what you need to do to enter:

1 - Add a comment to this post using the following example's format:

Occupation: Town Guardsman

Trained Weapon: Short sword

                              Trade Goods: Set of Manacles


2 - Add a description if you would like, but it's not needed.

3 - You're done!

The current prize list is as follows:

   1 Copy Each of Crawl! Issue #1 AND Issue #2 - which will go to the winner of my choice. This is where creativity will take precedence.  Dak Ultimak will mail them (read this as "physical copies") to the winner, so I'll be asking the winner for their snail mail address. (courtesy of Dak)

  2 Copies of Ooze Pits of Jonas Gralk (courtesy of Purple Sorcerer Games) in PDF to random entrants

  1 Copy of Perils of the Sunken City (again, courtesy of Purple Sorcerer Games in PDF to a random entrant

  1 Copy of Attack of the Frawgs! (courtesy of Thick Skull Adventures)

  1 Copy of Bone Hoard of the Dancing Horror (courtesy of Purple Duck Games)

adding more prizes to the pool!

   5 winners (who, in my judgement, have an entry that makes me laugh, giggle, say "holy shit!" or simply "Wow!") will win their choice of one of the first 16 releases from the Toys For the Sandbox series AND their choice of either TFTSB #23 Pirate Island or #24 The Lost Colony. The first part of this prize selection is from me and the second part is courtesy of Quinn Conklin, the writer of the Toys For the Sandbox series. How f'n cool is that?

Note: Entries to this contest may be used in a forthcoming issue of Crawl! Your commenting on this post means you acknowledge and accept that your entry may be placed in the hands of future readers of Crawl!, the DCC Fanzine and / or used in a free iOS or Android App or webpage by Purple Sorcerer Games.

Entries must be in by midnite, july 31st, 2012 EST - Enter as often as you may like, but only one entry will count towards the random prize pool. One prize per winner. End edit ;)