Top Secret / New World Order Core Rules for 1.99 in PDF

I nearly missed this! There is currently a Setting Sale over at DTRPG. One of the deeply discounted titles is Top Secret / New World Order Core Rules. Normally 9.99 in PDF, for a short time Top Secret / New World Order is on sale for 1.99!

I've played Top Secret / New World Order at NTRPG Con and Total Con, and it is a blast to play :)

The new espionage role-playing game from Merle M. Rasmussen, creator of the first espionage role-playing game.

The time: now. The place: everywhere.

Your mission: preserve peace and stability in a world rife with conflict, mistrust, duplicity, and shadowy organizations.

You are an agent of ICON: The International Covert Operatives Network. You have been recruited from your former life, trained in the ways of tradecraft, and sent into the field to handle the missions that other agencies cannot, or will not handle.

One player is the Administrator, describing and controlling the game world, while the other players take on the role of international spies, working behind the scenes where governments won’t go.

Tense negotiations, dangerous combat, thrilling car chases, tradecraft, surveillance, intrigue, and subterfuge are all at hand with the roll of the dice.

Top Secret: New World Order is a tabletop role-playing game recommended for 2–8 players. 

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Historical Setting Sale - DTRPG - Up to 40% Off - Tavern Picks

There is a Historical Setting Sale over at DTRPG. Some are settings and some are core rules with the setting baked in. As I type this, there are over 3 days left in the sale.

Mythras - the game formerly known as RuneQuest - Mythras is the new name for an older game, but while the name might have changed, the system remains the same, but presented in an updated format with new interior artwork and layout design, along with some new content (Special Effects, small tweaks to the rules, and Spirit Combat Effects). In fact, we've managed to pack more into a smaller space, and reduced the price accordingly. For those new to the game, Mythras is a percentile system. In Mythras your characters are defined by their culture, career, community, background, comrades, skills, magic and cults. Progression is through skill advancement – not levels or similarly abstract concepts. As your characters adventure and quest, their capabilities improve and their relationships deepen and strengthen. Players and Games Masters have complete flexibility over what can be achieved, and the way characters develop is entirely dependent on choices players make, depending on their characters’ aspirations and motivations.  6.99 to 4.19

Mythic Babylon - a setting for Mythras - Mythic Babylon is a role-playing supplement for the Mythras game system. It provides everything you need to take your Mythras game back to the 18th century BC and enter a world of cut-throat diplomacy, Machiavellian politics, and ecstatic prophets. Within these covers you'll find information on the society, culture, religion, trade, laws, and beliefs of Old Babylon and the surrounding lands. The setting is presented as a sand-box with a wide-ranging gazetteer of places to explore, each loaded with plot hooks. For those who like to play against the backdrop of history, we provide a timeline of past and near future events. A bestiary and a chapter for game masters rounds out the end of the book. This book contains everything you need to create adventures in the lands of Sumer, Akkad, and Subartu from the low lying Eden to the Cedar Mountains and even into the Underworld. Follow in the steps of kings like Gilgameš, Kubaba, or Hammurabi in this mythological and historical setting that was nearly 4000 years in the making.    17.99  13.49

Wolves of God: Adventures in Dark Ages England - Kevin Crawford is always a winning choice - Wolves of God is an old-school-inspired historical fantasy game from the maker of Stars Without Number and Godbound. Set in 710 AD, PCs take up the roles of daring English adventurers: brave Warriors, holy Saints, and sorcerous Galdormen all setting forth to brave the savage wilds of post-Roman Britain. Whether plundering ruined caesters, delving into the bewitched halls of ancient Roman Arxes, raiding the cattle of rival lords, or helping holy abbots in need of strong arms, the heroes will plunge deep into the savage past of this half-conquered island. 19.99  11.99

Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea (Compleat Second Edition) - for the handful that haven't encountered AS&SH yet - a sword-and-sorcery role-playing at its pinnacle. Play an Amazon fighter, Atlantean magician, Esquimaux shaman, Hyperborean warlock, Ixian necromancer, Keltic barbarian, Kimmerian cataphract, Pictish thief, Viking berserker, or one of many other possibilities. The heroes of a HYPERBOREA campaign delve the mazes and labyrinths of vast dungeons filled with horrifying monsters, lethal traps, and bewildering puzzles. They explore savage frontiers, breach hostile borderlands, probe ancient ruins, and investigate cursed tombs. They plunder for treasure and magic in a decaying world inhabited by bloodthirsty beasts and weird, otherworldly beings. Now in its second edition, AS&SH™ has been expanded to include new classes, new spells, new monsters, new magic items, and more! It also includes a new, full-colour map, an introductory town and adventure, as well as hundreds of new illustrations! This new edition is backwards-compatible with the original edition of the game.  19.00  11.40

Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells - simply a fun setting - a rules light, Star & Sorcery Role Playing Game with an Old School spirit. This is a complete Role Playing Game, inspired by the Old School Renaissance, the Pulp Literature and the many Science Fantasy stories brought to us by movies, comics and games. Based on the Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells RPG, this game system provides players and Overlords (that's how we call the GM in this game) a set of flexible and streamlined rules, as well as an array of tools to make gameplay fast and fun, allowing them to have exciting adventures with solar blades and cosmic spells!

14.99  8.99

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

Dungeons & Dragons Setting Sale at DTRPG - All Editions - Some Deep Discounta

There is a Dungeons & Dragons Setting Sale at DTRPG at the moment, and some of the discounts are deep. The average discount is 30%, but some discounts hit 40% or as high as 67%. I'll be highlighting a few Tavern Picks below.

Planescape Campaign Setting (2e) - love it or hate it, the original Planescape Campaign Setting is a thing of beauty. I'm partial to Sigil, The City of Doors myself. Discover the multiverse! Enter infinite universes of infinite variety, worlds beyond the prime-material settings of the AD&D game. Explore Sigil, the City of Doors, filled with portals to every layer of every plane. All you need is the right key. Until now, only the most powerful wizards could peek into the magnificent multiverse, but no longer! Gone are the unimaginable distances and the insurmountable obstacles that only the ultrapowerful could hope to overcome. Now even the greenest adventurer can enter the planes, though surviving long is another matter . . . . Have at it, berk! Powers, proxies, planars, petitioners, and wondrous monsters await just beyond the portal. Step through and partake of the infinite excitement of Planescape. 14.99 4.99

Dragonlance Campaign Setting (3.5) - With the new Dragonlance series from Weis & Hickman on the way, Dragonlance may see a resurgence. - Sagas from the lands of Krynn are filled with valiant heroes destined to discover ancient secrets and vanquish terrible evils. Like those great champions, you will band together with brave companions to set forth on daring adventures. The tales of those bold deeds will become the newest legends in the world of Dragonlance. From Solamnic Knights and Dragon Riders to kender, tinker gnomes, and draconians, the rich tapestry of the Dragonlance world comes alive in this campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. With historical content covering eras from the War of the Lance to the War of Souls, along with expanded rules for aerial combat, the Dragonlance Campaign Setting provides the character races, prestige classes, feats, spells, monsters, and maps you need to fully explore the world of Dragonlance. 14.99 4.99

T1-4 Temple of Elemental Evil (1e) - probably my favorite release from the 1e era of AD&D, I've run it multiple times. Good stuff. What began years ago, with the introduction of the players to the quiet village of Hommlet and the amazing lands of Greyhawk, at last is complete. Here is the long-awaited campaign adventure, featuring the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil, where a great evil broods and grows beneath its blasted stones. This is your chance to drive it back and scatter its force again. This product includes the village of Hommlet, the filthy shire of Nulb, and reveals the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil and the labyrinths that lie beneath, a warren of darkness. And beyond these ruins, even more is revealed. For the first time, this product provides a complete campaign adventure, which will take beginning characters from 1st all the way to 8th level and possibly beyond! Hours of adventuring await you! 9.99 5.99

Dark Sun Boxed Set (2e) - I had a lot of fun running the Dark Sun Setting, until we literally burned out -Amid the barren wastelands of Athas lie the scattered city-states, each in the grip of its own, tyrannical sorcerer-king. Protecting their own positions with dark magic, they demand absolute obedience. The restless mobs are placated with bread and circuses --the arenas overflow with spectators seeking release from their harsh lives. The land outside the cities belong to no one. Savage elves race across the deserts while insectoid Thri-Kreen satisfy their taste for blood. Dwarves labor at projects beyond the scope of men, and feral halflings lie in ambush. Athas is a land of deadly magic and powerful psionics that offers the promise of glory or even of survival. Those who do not have the cunning to face life on Athas will surely perish - leaving nothing but bones bleached white under the blistering rays of the DARK SUN.  9.99 5.99

B2 The Keep on the Borderlands (Basic) & Return to the Keep on the Borderlands (2e) - Possibly the best known of the original D&D modules, I ran it using 1e rules. The 2e version adds extra details while remaining true to the original source material. This module includes a cover folder with maps and a complete description booklet to form a ready-made scenario for DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® Basic Set. It has been specially designed for use by beginning Dungeon Masters so that they may begin play with a minimum of preparations. Within are many features to aid novice players and Dungeon Masters: legends, history and background information, a list of adventuring characters, tips on how to be an effective Dungeon Master, plus an interesting area for characters to base themselves in (the Keep) before setting out to explore the Caves of Chaos.  Both versions: 4.99 2.99

Note: Unrelated to the above, Doug Rhea (NTRPG Con) is currently hospitalized regarding complications to his Stage 4 Cancer. Prayers and positive thoughts would be appreciated. I will update you when more information is available - Tenkar

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

Deal of the Day - Swords of Kos Fantasy Campaign Setting

I've heard good things about the Swords of Kos Fantasy Campaign Setting. As a Deal of the Day special, I may just need to pick this up. Yes, I am a setting junkie.

Normally 19.98 in PDF, until 11 AM tomorrow morning Swords of Kos Fantasy Campaign Setting on sale for 7.99 - 60% off.

Welcome to the Swords of Kos Fantasy Campaign Setting, a swords-and-sorcery milieu set in a Dark Ages fantasy version of the Mediterranean and the lands surrounding it! It is set a century after a Great Cataclysm destroyed the old world, plunged it into chaos, and reawakened magic and all form of ancient races and monsters. Now, the agents of Gods and Titans struggle against each other on behalf of their masters, nations strive to survive or dominate one another, and adventurers descend into the ruins in search of wealth and lost technology.  

This universal campaign setting, which represents 14 years of development and has roots in the early 1980s, is ideal for adventures of the sorts inspired by the works of Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, and Jack Vance. It has deliberately been designed to be system free and compatible with any set of role-playing game rules suitable for ancient, medieval, or fantasy venues. It is the "Bible" of its world and its contents can be used either as part of a cohesive milieu or individually to enhance other campaign settings or adventures, and both by game designers and writers interested in authoring fantasy fiction. In that this setting was used as the playtest backdrop for games using the OGL/d20, Pathfinder, “Basic” Dungeons & Dragons and Labyrinth Lord retroclone, and Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules, it is an especially ideal setting for them.  

This book includes:

• * MAPS of Kos City, Kos Island, the Aegean, and the Mediterranean. 
• * WORLD OF KOS, overview of the world, the impact upon it of the Great Cataclysm, and a timeline; sections on Languages, Clothing, Wealth & Money, Entertainment, Military Organizations, and Adventurer Culture. 
• * KOS CITY, an overview of the community that will be the starting point for many adventures and 50 specific places adventurers might visit in it, to include taverns, training halls, and temples (and which was designed to parallel the general sorts of places described in Skirmisher's Gold-bestselling City Builder). 
• * KOS ISLAND, detailed descriptions of the island of Kos, what lies around it, of its 12 major towns and villages, and of 10 specific places located on the island or smaller islets in the waters surrounding it. 
• * LANDS BEYOND KOS, detailed descriptions of 16 different nations, brief entries on nine regions, and writeups on three specific places. 
• * ENCOUNTERS, 21 encounter tables — 14 nation-based and seven terrain-based — that storytellers can use for inspiration and game masters can use to determine what things characters might encounter in the course of their adventures.  
• * LIVES, 118 system-free biographies of personages who live on the island of Kos or the lands surrounding it and are mentioned or appear as characters in the related sourcebooks or stories about the campaign setting. 
• * RACES, 17 species of people native to the world of Kos, including Antaeans, Arachneans, Bull Centaurs, Cynocephalians, and Myrmidons (along with more familiar Humans, Centaurs, Dwarves, Elves, Gnolls, Gnomes, Goblinoids, Half-Elves, Halflings, Lizardfolk, Merfolk, and Orcs). 
• * MONSTERS, a section on creatures that dwell in the world of Kos and and their roles in it. 
• * DEITIES & RELIGION, a section on gods and godesses, their worship, and the ongoing war between the Olympian Gods and the primordial Titans. 
• * GLOSSARY of terms useful for storytellers and gamemasters using this book. 

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OSR Picks for the RPGNow September Setting Sale - 33% off select PDFs - Part VI - I'll see your Two Temples and a City

RPGNow is running a September Setting Sale with thousands of titles in the mix. That's a lot to sort through. I'm going to try to pick out some of my personal favorites that are OSR or system neutral over a small series of posts (although one or two may creep in from outside those parameters) Part 1 is here.  Part II is here. Part III is here. Part IV is here. Part V is here.

Temple of Elemental Evil - my original print copy of T1 - T4 saw more use in my high school and college days than any book other than the core three. I must have run this a half dozen times - at least. By far, my favorite old school adventure - A sinister force, long thought destroyed, stirs from the black hole that spawned it. Like an ebony darkness it prowls the land and safety is but an illusion, for it watches from every shadow and ponders possibilities. - What began years ago, with the introduction of the players to the quiet village of Hommlet and the amazing lands of Greyhawk, at last is complete. Here is the long-awaited campaign adventure, featuring the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil, where a great evil broods and grows beneath its blasted stones. This is your chance to drive it back and scatter its force again. - This product includes the village of Hommlet, the filthy shire of Nulb, and reveals the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil and the labyrinths that lie beneath, a warren of darkness. And beyond these ruins, even more is revealed. - For the first time, this product provides a complete campaign adventure, which will take beginning characters from 1st all the way to 8th level and possibly beyond! Hours of adventuring await you!

The Lost Temple of Forgotten Evil (5e & OSR) - "A Fifth Edition Fantasy or OSR adventure for 4-6 players of level 4-6 - The small town of Boldon, and its surrounding villages are afraid. Dozens of people are missing, some speculate lost to some nefarious purpose. A broken drunkard tells fantastic tales of an evil temple and the horrible things within. The rare few who know the legends and history of the region are beginning to think the dark times have returned; not seen since the fall of the first age of man. People are beginning to feel the icy fingers of fear closing in. The party becomes aware of these events and is inspired to investigate. This leads them to a broken man who tells them a story of a lost temple. Has it been rediscovered by men seduced by its forgotten evil? The drunkard’s tale leads to others who might help the party discover more before they face The Lost Temple of Forgotten Evil." 6.95  4.66

Against the Giants: The Liberation of Geoff - The classic G1 -G3 series. Didn't much care for the D series that followed, but the G series was a blast - "A ravaged land. . . . Villains that really are larger than life. . . . A time for heroes. . . . A decade ago, the land of Geoff was overrun by a horde of giants, ogres, and evil humanoids, its people either slain, enslaved, or driven into exile. Now at last the tide has turned. Against the Giants features: The full text of three classic adventures by Gary Gygax: G1: Steading of the Hill Giant Chief G2: The Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl G3: Hall of the Fire Giant King - Details on 18 new encounter sites in the war-torn land of Geoff, linked together to form a grand campaign. - Dozens of hours of gameplay as the heroes struggle to free and entire country from the grasp of giant overlords. - An epic adventure for characters of all levels." 4.99  3.34

Project Oasis - somehow this one escaped me prior. I'll be rectifying that. "A thousand years ago, the world died. Now, out of the ashes of the great nuclear-biological Devastation comes a new world. A world where intelligent apes hunt humans for sport. Where subterranean mutant cyborgs serve great disembodied brains and plot world domination. Where apocalyptic cults try to finish what the bombs started. Where frightful artificial intelligences command armies of robot servants, and entire nations of clones lead peaceful and productive lives, unless you’re not of the right clone-lineage. Where mankind and his newfound fellow intelligent species try to pick up the pieces and rebuild civilization. This is also a world where a force for good, knowledge, and science works to help restore that which was lost, to guide this new world onto a path of justice and learning. That force is called Project Oasis. Project Oasis is a post-apocalyptic role-playing setting for use with Mutant Future™, Apes Victorious™, and other science fantasy RPGs. Contains a complete overview of 30th century North America, including new creatures and equipment for both the Mutant Future™ and Apes Victorious™ games, more than a hundred adventure hooks, plus a giant poster map." 9.95  6.67 

Metamorphosis Alpha: Epsilon City - "On a spaceship 50 miles long with more than a million colonists, Epsilon City was the single largest habitation. It was filled with entertainment centers, apartments, and offices for all the people moving about the ship during the long voyage. The city was designed to be maintained by its own artificial intelligence (A.I.) and a special series of robots able to maintain areas of the city when breakdowns happened. Epsilon City wasn’t even half full when the interstellar radiation cloud destroyed the people of the ship and turned 99% of them into piles of white ash. The city was wiped out. Now, three hundred years later, things are vastly different in the city. The A.I. is insane and has an aggressive personality. The special robots have had to change or be destroyed, and have mutated much like the rest of the life on the ship. Wolfoid packs now inhabit many sections of the city and consider this metropolis their lair. And many more dangers lurk, hidden and waiting to be explored… 2016 marks the 40th anniversary of Metamorphosis Alpha! In honor of this milestone, creator James M. Ward has authorized Goodman Games to publish Metamorphosis Alpha: Epsilon City. This huge expansion for the starship Warden is the biggest expansion for the original 1976 edition ever published! This product contains: The 272-page Epsilon City setting book, three 11”x17” maps, a 20-page cyborg supplement, and a 56-page adventure supplement." 25.00  16.75  

Purchases made via The Tavern's affiliate links help to support The Tavern. Additionally, if we generate $300 or more via OBS affiliate referral monies, I've promised to release a short adventure in the month of October for free on The Tavern. Well, we just did! Woot!  I'll look to invest at least half of the extra monies into art or cartography for the adventure. I'd love to pony up for original pieces of art, but that will require significant monies in the pot ;)