Mini Review - Beneath the Ghoul Lair (OSRIC)

March has been a really good month for "Old School" releases.  I think I need to take a day off from work just to get to all of the recent releases I want to look at, let alone earlier releases I haven't gotten to.  Someone want to add more hours to the day?

Beneath the Ghoul Lair, a Westgate Adventures! Dungeon Raiders! module (I hope I got all that right - so many titles - heh) is the latest release from Johnny Rook Games.  Aimed at a party of levels 2-4, I'd advise they have access to silver weapons if they don't yet have a magic weapon or two in the party.  As you can guess from the title, there be undead in them there hills!

BtGL is setting light in nature.  The hook is a decent one that can be placed just about anywhere.  The stronger you make the hook, the more you party will be involved in the story evolving around them.  You can drop it as is, and it should work, but tweaking should make it a better fit.

There are 2 nice dungeon maps that would have fit well into any classic TSR module if they were only done in that horrible classic blue.

Four new magic items, a new spell (which looks familiar) and three new monsters (one of which looks familiar, but i guess its new to OSRIC).

From the blurb:

This adventure is designed for 4-8 characters of levels 2-4.
A pack of vicious ghouls recently attacked a group of adventurers.  The party's ranger tracked the ghouls back to an old cave but dared not go inside as it was too dangerous.  A plea has gone out to any able-bodied adventurers nearby to clear out this undead infestation.  You and your allies have heard the call and set out urgently for the cave to end the threat, find some treasure, and hopefully survive the horrors beneath the ghoul lair!

About Dungeon Raiders! Modules
Dungeon Raiders! games:

• Are "story-light" modules designed for quick adventure, great treasure, and fantastic stories!
• Are designed for any campaign setting while maintaining good content and high quality playability!
• Are great for one- to three-night game sessions when players want to "just go get some XP and gold!"
• Can be easily expanded into much larger games or stories!
• Are sensible, not rediculous, and fun, suited for any new players or old players wishing to revive and keep alive the spirit of classic role-playing!

Black and White interiors, 19 pages.

Damn the Wintry Weather!

Last Friday we hit 75 degrees in NYC. Today I awoke to snow on my car and sleet in the air. I'm done with winter. You can take it back.

Yeah, I know this isn't game related in the least, but I was due for a weather rant in any case ;)

The World is Ruled By Cats (at Least My Corner Is)

I'm a firm believer in this.  If you have a cat, you do for them.  Dogs do for you.  Kinda.

My little girl is a talker, she's extremely vocal.  Her different cries all mean something, and I've learned them over the last few years.  At the moment she is telling me to go to bed.

She understands a number of words... well, more like a handful then a number.  We each speak in our specific language, so we use two languages for one set of communication.

Damn, that seems like a crap load of work.

Still, it makes a lot of sense in a fantasy setting.  The Rock Trolls communicate with grinding noises, yet they understand the Gnolls and their yapping / barking language.  Maybe not word for word, but they get the ideas that are being communicated.

Alright, the lady is getting pissed, and she's just a cat.  Just wait until I actually understand women ;)

When The Wiz Speaks, I Listen

ChicagoWiz left a comment on my blogpost about Fire in the Jungle. As he planned to also post about FitJ, he jokingly wondered if we should have a "Jungle Week" theme. There may be something to that.

We've already touched on that with the Hot Elf series of posts (thanks James and the Underdark Gazette), but that was pretty much tongue in cheek. There really is no reason there couldn't be a theme of the week (or month) where if a blogger were so inspired, they would make a post during the week (month) that hits upon the common theme.

All of us see things from our own perspective, so even 20 blog posts from 20 different bloggers on the same general subject will be very different. The OSR has many nooks and crannies that haven't been explored, or could use more exploration, or are just fun to write and read about.

It could to be very loosely organized or not even organized at all. We all saw how the Hot Elf series went viral. It didn't need much of a push.

All this is me thinking out loud. Just throwing the thought out there. If the wet toilet paper sticks to the ceiling, we may just have something. ;)

Mini Review - Fire in the Jungle (Your Choice of Old School Rules)

Fire in the Jungle is a sandbox setting for the Old School ruleset of your choice.  Dustin Brandt, author of said sandbox and fellow blogger was kind enough to send me a copy to review.  I'm grateful, as it's a great read.

Jungle settings aren't usually the first choice of setting for most of us, I think because it isn't a setting that we can relate to.  North America and Europe are pretty much jungle free.  For gaming purposes, it gives the players a wild, alien world to explore.  It  keeps them on their toes.

Justin gives us a nice assortment of tools to bring the jungle to life.  We get natural medicines, major NPCs and monsters (most of which are native fauna with a twist).  We also get a Jungle Event System.

The Jungle Event System is similar to a Wandering Monster Table, but it isn't just adversaries to be fought. It's locations, events, personas.  The short of it is that is is much more useful then a Wandering Monster Chart.  I need to borrow this concept for the next game I run, Jungle or not.

We get a detailed and keyed hex map, with hexes listed and detailed briefly when there is something important there.

Then we come to the Ant Tunnel Exploration System.  Modeled on those lovely ants that visit in the summer, but much larger, these ants and tunnels are a challenge for any party.  We are also gifted with a Tunnel Event Chart - lets just say ant tunnel exploration should entertain both the party and the GM.

Next, we are given The Tomb of the Monkey God.  If this dungeon doesn't get the party lost, they are better mappers then me.  Oh, and more random tables.

A Player's Handout Sheet rounds out the package.

I'm still amazed at how much "stuff" Dustin squeezed into 16 pages.  It is certainly reads as if it much more.  Fire in the Jungle is almost system neutral, in that the few D&Disms could easily be converted to Tunnels & Trolls without much effort.

I'm not sure if I'd run this as is, but as its a sandbox, who will run it as is?  It's certainly made me think about jungle adventures and how it could be a nice change of pace to take a party out of civilization and drop them in the jungle.  Very well done and worth the price of admission, even if it's just to crib the charts ;)

From the Blurb:

A ready-to-go jungle adventure or a toolkit for creating your own jungle setting. This supplement contains:

• A brief history of the jungle’s troubled past and the natives who have survived there.
• A color judge’s map of the jungle with dozens of described locations to explore.
• A color player map to give the player’s a vague understanding of the shape of the jungle.
• A comprehensive Jungle Event System that reflects the harsh reality and wondrous excitement of journeying through this jungle.
• The Ant Tunnel Exploration System provides a framework for running adventures in these infinite, living tunnels.
• The Tomb of the Monkey God.  A dungeon module with an Escalation mechanic that ratchets up the tension the longer the PCs remain inside the tomb.  Unique, overlapping color map of this four-level tomb.
• Plus a variety of monsters, NPCs, hirelings, magic items, etc.
• And, of course, the cover art by Rommel Joson and the back cover art by Edbon Sevilleno.

Spring Cleaning Turns Up a Surprise From my AD&D Days

For the most part my AD&D stuff is packed away.  I just have way to much stuff to keep rarely needed stuff in prime locations for accessibility.  Still, every once in a while, I stumble across something that's out of place, wonder how it got there, and then the gaming memories flood back.

Case in point, The Book of Lairs for AD&D.  We're given over 60 developed lairs... more then adventure seeds, less then full adventures, this was a go to book (along with the AD&D Encounter Cards) that I went to when prep time was short (or non-existant) and I needed something to run with.  For a DM that was good at improvising, this was an awesome tool.

Now, is anything all that memorable from it?  No, I'd have to start digging thru it again, and I doubt I would find it as useful now as I did 25 years ago, but for the time it was pretty good.  I know it was, cause I've got the pencil marks throughout it to show that I used it on more then one occasion.

Oh, did I mention that Christian is making a return to blogging after a short absence?  Times are good.  He wasn't hidden on my bookshelf tho, I swear!  ;)

Friday Nite Movie at the Tavern - The Hebrew Hammer

Friday's movie is getting mentioned late this weekend, as I was running around Saturday and today we went seal watching in New York harbor (I'll need to go thru the pictures before I can post any).  So, a bit late, we present to you, the Hebrew Hammer.

Sometimes a movie doesn't have to be good to be funny.  I suspect this over the top spoof of the 1970s blacksploitation movies hit closer to home for me then it may others, as I saw so much of NYC in it (and was even able to recognize some obscure locations) from landmarks to culture (alright, stereotyped culture, but still recognizable).

I laughed even tho I didn't want to.  Not sure if that is a ringing endorsement or not.

I could see putting together a one-shot using the Fate rules.  Everyone gets a racial / ethnic stereotype to play and get's to try to save the world from evil Santa - or was there already done in Spirit of the Century?

Awkward End to Campaign Leads to New Beginning - Next on Geraldo!

Last nite was supposed to be the last session in the Fantasy Grounds powered Castles & Crusades game I've been playing in for over 2 years now, at least for a while, as the game is being put on hiatus for the immediate future.  With only 2 players and the GM showing up, it became more of a 2 hr chat session.  That is, however, the nature of the beast, both with a VTT or at the dining room table.  Even with the best laid plans and intentions, real life tends to interfere and take precedence.

The shame of it is that we didn't get to a good point to pause the campaign.  The damn hobbit may have that mask stuck to his face for an extremely long time at this point ;)

All is not lost tho, as the plan is to keep the group together.  Cad, one of my fellow players and an occasional blogger, is considering taking up the GM reins for a bit.  I tossed my vote for a Labyrinth Lord Campaign and so far my vote is winning (as far as I know, it's the only vote cast so far... heh).

We really have been lucky with this group, as it was / is a really great bunch of folk.

Now, as for the Geraldo line in the title - I'm just feeling mischievous, so you'll need to forgive me.  Maybe Jerry Rivers can find some loot in Al Capone's Vault that I can use in a Gangbusters session ;)

Mini Review - Tome of Tomes, Volume One - (Systemless / OGL / OSR)

This is one of those pleasant surprises that makes me say "Why didn't I think of that?"  The answer in this case is that I doubt I would have come anywhere close to putting together the excellent piece of work Joseph Browning did with Tome of Tomes, Volume 1.

Now, technically this is aimed at the Old School, D&D rooted rules and clones, but there really is no reason this couldn't work just as well with 3.5 / Pathfinder or even Tunnels & Trolls.  Any fantasy based RPG that has folks with dangerous weapons and spells looking for loot should find this right up their alley.

Joe does a great job not only detailing the details of the tomes in question (size, weight, author, materials, value, fields of study and the like) but he also gives each tome a paragraph that deals with background and other fiddly bits.  These books live and breath.  I would have loved to have had some of these in my 12th level wizard's study back in the day.

A hundred books for three bucks.  Hard to beat that.

My personal favorite?  Beardless Ladies - Kinda like a Playboy for Dwarves.  I suspect there is a copy hidden in the Tavern's Privy ;)

From the blurb:


Books in fantasy games have always been sources of mystery. We're all familiar with the sight of the magic user's eyes lighting up like a 5-year-old at Christmas when one is found. This work provides 100 tomes for your gaming pleasure, ranging from the magical to the mundane, from the common to the unique. Never again will you be at a loss to describe that recently found libram.


Tome of Tomes is a compilation of books that could be found on a sage's shelf or on the shelves of a city library. Each tome is described and classified according to field of study and special knowledge category (if applicable).

mini Review - Chronicles of Arax (Solo Adventure Game)

As many of my regular readers know, I'm a big fan of Tunnels & Trolls (and other solo systems in general).  Solo gaming fits my schedule, and is a rewarding RPG experience in it's own way/

Chronicles of Arax - Solo Adventure Game is a new entry into the solo RPG nitch.  There aren't many systems for such gaming, so new blood is always welcome.

Tunnels & Trolls solos are story driven, with branches that one takes depending on choice, actions taken, and/or success / failure.  Which can limit the re-playability of the solos, as previous choices can affect future replay (knowledge is power)

In the Chronicles of Arax, upon completion of an encounter, you randomly determine the next encounter, until you reach the last encounter.  This system allows for a certain amount of re-playabiliy due to the randomness of the progression thru the adventure.  It's a nice little twist.

Oh, before I forget.  Character generation is not random.  Customization comes thru leveling your character.  Stats are based on "die size", similar to Savage Worlds.

All in all, a nice change of pace for this enjoyer of solo adventures.  The price can't be beat - Free!

I'll be checking out the premium content in the days and weeks to come (at a buck a piece, even the premium content is damn cheap).

From the Blurb:

An adventure game for just one person - YOU!

The world of Arax is a world filled with blood and battle, magic and monsters, slaughter and sorcery. It is a world where the weak are crushed and the strong survive, where those who are bigger and more powerful bully those who are weaker and more vulnerable. It is a world in need of a Hero, someone who can stand against the darkness and fight on behalf of the downtrodden. A Hero like YOU.

Chronicles of Arax is a game where you, the reader, takes on the role of a Hero in the world of Arax. It is your job to fight against evil and injustice, to undertake various Quests to further the goals of good, and hopefully get some fame and loot in the bargain!

In Chronicles of Arax, you take on the role of a mighty Hero who, in the face of utter darkness, stands up for the light by undertaking missions and adventures (known as Quests) that will hopefully aid the forces of light.

Throughout Arax a Hero can come from any walk of life, be it a noble Knight, an elf Druid or a stalwart dwarf Stone Warrior. This rules manual includes one Hero type for you to play as: the Adventurer.

The Core Rules are free, and premium expansions are available for $1 each

Mini Review - Come Hell or High Water (Labyrinth Lord)

It's that special time, the time for a Mini-Review! (I think I need more sleep).  GT2 - Come Hell or High Water, is the second in a series of modules from Knightvision games.  As such, it works best as a follow up adventure to GT1 - Path of the Delver.

So, what do you get for your hard earned 3 bucks?  56 pages of Labyrinth Lord material. about 3/4's is the adventure, the rest is new monsters, magic items, a new spell, possible PC's to use... material of that sort.  You certainly get value for you money.  Oh, and maps - lots of maps.  Good maps to use, even if you steal for other use (nitpick - change the map colors.  They are too damn bright.   Aargh! ;)

In my opinion, this adventure isn't a cake walk of any sorts.  Many of the creatures will be getting an increased chance to surprise the players.  Which makes me wonder it it is really made for Characters Level 1-2.  Based upon the fact that all the included PCs are levels 2-3, I'd suggest you treat the higher numbers as the suggested level range.  Besides, it is meant as a follow up to Path of the Delver (and if you don't play it as a follow up to Path of the Delver, you'll need to supply your own hook.)

From the blurb:

  "What evil machinations lie hidden in the flooded depths of ancient Kharnos Dzin? Whispers in the dark summon the uninitiated...as evil brews beneath the surface of a dead city. Great rewards lie in store, but will adventurers find more then they had bargained for?" Come Hell or High Water is a Labyrinth Lord and AEC compatible adventure designed for 1st and 2nd level characters. Set in the upcoming Ebonyr campaign setting, it can also fit into any generic RPG world. The adventure combines urban, underwater and classic dungeon crawl material. Inside the PDF you'll find:

• Over  11 new monsters including the Shock Sphere.
• 3 new magic items and spells

It Feels Like Spring

The temperature here in NYC is knocking on 70 degrees. Truly amazing for March 18th. I just walked out for lunch in short sleeves and I was loving it.

Back in High School and College much of my gaming group's RPG sessions were played at the picnic table in my backyard when the temperature and weather allowed. In retrospect, I feel sorry sorry for my neighbors, as we were a nosy bunch. Damn tho, we did have a lot of fun ;)

When I get home from work, I may let my little (feline) girl out on the front porch with me to enjoy one of the last days of winter. Days like today, I almost can't believe we had the snow storms that we had this past winter.

Do I Keep Inviting the Knights to My Dinner Table?

I've been reading Knights of the Dinner Table (KotDT) since Shadis magazine. I actually have the first issue of the magazine tucked away somewhere, and the few issues I've missed along the way I've filled in with the Bundles of Trouble compilations. Still, it just doesn't seem the same anymore.

The current issue is #172 - and I skimmed the strips more then read them. Maybe the jokes have changed, or I don't see the jokes with the same eyes, but even the stories seem less like anything I ever gamed. In the beginning I could relate - now, not so much.

72 bucks for 12 issues(first class shipping). For something I'm no longer getting a heck of a lot of value out of. 13 pages of the current issue deals with the ongoing story line, the rest is more or less filler. The other ongoing storyline (Gary Jackson back from the dead) is absent.

As for the gaming articles - inconsistent quality is the best description I can use. Nothing all that memorable.

I want to still like the Knights. Really. But I get much more enjoyment from OOTS, and it's free.

I might have to tap out at this point.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Tis the time for green beer, boiled meat, stinky cabbage and potatoes. Oh, and mustard on everything but the beer. Yummmmm!

I always saw AD&D's St. Cuthbert as the game's version of St. Paddy, although I never really made it a theme, even in the background, for any of the sessions. Might have been nice to have done so, where everybody, regardless of religion, class, race, ethnicity... celebrated with a St. Cuthbert Feast once a year. Imagine the problems the town watch would have with hooligans - heck, the party could even be hired to help the watch keep a lid on things.

Ah well, eating well, drinking in moderation and planning to enjoy some live music tonight. Maybe I should skip lunch for more food later ;)

The Trollish Taproom - Grab The New Solo "Escape from Khosht" For Free!

I just saw the email from Trollhalla on this one.  It appears there is a new Tunnels & Trolls solo available at OneBookShelf (RPGNow / DrivetruRPG), and the sucker is free.

Escape from Khosht is 40 pages of T&T for your solo pleasure (minds outta the gutter please).  I'm downloading this right now.  Grab your's here (and pick up the free T&T rules to the left of this post if you need them).

From the Blurb:

Everything had gone according to plan. The Eye of the Beast---a cut, polished diamond the size of a hill giant's fist rests in your hands. It is worth 200,000 gold pieces!

Obtaining the valuable gem comes at a cost, however, and soon you find yourself running for your life, hazarding the terrors of the night, braving sadistic guards, and slavering war hounds, wondering if there can ever be an ... Escape from Khosht.

Escape from Khosht is a solitaire adventure written by Andrew Greene, and illustrated by J. Freels for the Tunnels and Trolls game system.

The solo adventure comes with three pregenerated characters to choose from (a wizard, a rogue, and a warrior) as well as full stats and abilities for the two NPCs who journey with you, Radnoff and Chi-Chi.

(edit:  technically it's not NEW, as it is copyright 2002 - but the art is all new, it is new to OneBookShelf / etc and is probably new to YOU... heh)

Battle: Los Angeles - Better Then The Reviews Say

I went and saw Battle: Los Angeles last night with my son and my mother - three generations got to watch aliens invade California. I knew many of the reviewers had panned the movie, but my son really wanted to see it, so off we went.

My opinion? It was pretty good. No need for 3d (which every movie seems to be in today), the story never bogged down, and there were a few decent twists. It was nice to see a movie without all the Hollywood stars, as in this case the story and action were more important then the actors.

Most surprising to me is my mother couldn't stop saying great things about it on the way home. She ranked it up there with The Departed (an amazing movie in its own right). When a grandma can enjoy a sic-fyish, shoot-em up action flick, its gotta be good.

As for me, it kept me in my seat for the full length, despite the large soda a devoured during the flick. I felt like the unfreezing scene from Austin Powers when I finally got to the rest room.

I've Got the Mythic GM Emulator on My Mind

I've been stumbling upon numerous forum and blog posts in which folks have been using the Mythic GM Emulator to run solo games or even small parties with out a GM. How friggin' awesome is that?

I have a PDF copy of the Mythic RPG (and a softcover copy packed away somewhere - god but I need to organize and catalogue, but that's a whole other story), and the emulator is drawn from that. It's actually a set number of chapters from the full product.

I think this is something that could really work well for some out home gaming, maybe even drawing my son into it (like the Borg, I like to assimilate others when i can). I suspect it wouldn't work so well via a VTT, but that's okay. If it can handle 1 to 3 players at my kitchen table, I think we are good to go.

Way too much on my plate waiting to be read these days ;)

Two Trollish Blogs Come to an End

The Trollgod has suspended his 2 fiction blogs (you can find links in my blog roll). Both T&T Delver's Tales and Atroll's Flashfiction are no more. Well, they still are, but they are deadish now.

Not everything posted was destined to be a work of art, but they were fun places to check out when one wanted a short (or short short) story to kill a few minutes.

Ken's leaving the blogs up for the moment, but there will be no new posts, at least not for the foreseeable future.

May the Blog Gods bless them, and keep them ready for a further resurrection ;)

Paranoid Flashback

Mongoose has recently released Flashbacks Redux for it's Paranoia game. It's a compilation of classic Paranoia adventures from the game's West End Games tenure.

I am currently having some very pleasant flashbacks, as I have many of the included adventures packed away in storage. For me, I had as much fun reading the adventures as I did running them, which I can't say for many games. At 256 pages, I'll be occupied with this and it's accompanying memories for a while.

It Contains;

* The Mandatory Mission Pack
* Clones in Space
* Orcbusters
* My First Treason
* Yellow Clearence Black Box Blues
* Code 7s
* Me and My Shadow Mark 4
* Pre Paranoia
* Vapours Don't Shoot Back

I know I own Clones in Space, Orcbusters, YCBBB, Me and My Shadow Mark 4 and Vapours Don't Shoot Back. Still, I haven't read them in over 15 years.

What is the Ideal Group Size For a VTT Run RPG?

Sooner or later I'll be getting my Tunnels & Trolls game off the ground via Fantasy Grounds.  I figure the ideal party size is about 4, but how large should he group (pool) be?

It's hard enough getting all your players to show up for face to face gaming, but with a VTT and people spread out all about the world, it's more common then not to have less then the full group show.

I think I  can scale T&T off the cuff for a smaller / larger party then expected for a certain session, just wondering how large a group I should hope to recruit.  Then again, it is Tunnels &  Trolls... I may have to fall back upon Swords & Wizardry if I want to recruit a full group ;)

The Trollish Taproom - When Less is More

James over at Grognardia asked folks to post about their re-imagining of iconic D&D creatures.  This is something you really couldn't do with Tunnels & Trolls creatures, as there really isn't much of a template to look at, at least in editions prior to 7e.

T&T 5.5e and prior doesnt have any sort of monster manual.  Creatures have a MR and little more.  Pretty much everything a GM would need to introduce to a campaign would come from his own imagination or would be borrowed from another game system.

7e introduced monster books to T&T.  Better late then never, I see them more as gap fillers then all encompassing, as the D&D MMs tend to be.

In Tunnels & Trolls, most monsters are a first-imagining. ;)

Saturday Nite Movie at the Tavern - District 9

I remember watching the trailers for District 9 when it was in the theatre.  I wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but it was a Peter Jackson movie, so I was intrigued, but not enough to spend NYC movie prices.  It landed on Netflix on Demand, so it was the movie of the day.

It's an interesting take on discrimination, slums, segregation all wrapped up in the personal growth of the main character - the sci-fi elements are just trappings for the underlying drama.  Oh, and lots of guns, shooting and bloody violence.

The setting itself could work well in for a modern day espionage type RPG, working the parallel societies into the game.  It's an interesting alternate modern day twist.

Of course, we had to follow that up with an episode of Survivorman, and a handful of of episodes of Jacked: Auto Theft Task Force.  Better then Cops IMHO ;)

Re-Imagining Iconic D&D Monsters - The Lonely Orc

Back in the days of my AD&D campaign, orcs were warrior / slaves (Ogre Magi pulled their strings) that were evil by nurture, not nature.  Sure, if you encountered a wandering group of orcs, chances are they were going to attack - there is that whole issue of "group mentality" and upbringing.  But if you can get one or two alone, away from the pack, things may work out differently.

The party found 2 lone orcs rummaging thru their camp one nite, and quick actions lead to the capture of the two (instead of the usual AD&D killing of all threats).  With the rest of their hunting pack killed by an armed patrol, these two had decided to try their luck on their own... scavenging, hunting, thieving, but avoiding violence where possible.

The orcs started as prisoners, but reached hireling status with decent treatment by the party.  One of the two died fairly quickly, but the other became a trusted party member.  This also changed the party's idea of intelligent monsters - if orcs could be loyal and non-evil, what about the other "evil" races?  Were the young offspring of these races "savable"?

It added a nice twist of grey morality to the usual black and white of AD&D.

Friday Nite Movie at the Tavern - Shutter Island

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie.  Even tho I annoyed the crap outta my girl by calling out lines just before they were said (sorry, to me they were obvious), the twist at the end was pretty good.  I literally didn't see it coming, but upon mental review, the hints were there.  Heck, I liked it despite Leonardo ;)

Lot's of stuff steal-able for a CoC type of game.  Heck, adding the Old Ones to this would have been a twist within a twist.

Topping it off with Survivorman in the Amazon.  It's a good nite.

RPGNow / OneBookShelf Seeking Donations For Japanese Red Cross

It seems like the world nearly gets past one natural disaster before the next one strikes. OneBookShelf is raising money for the Red Cross in Japan. At the moment they are seeking $5 donations. I don't know if they will be putting a package together for larger donations like they have in the past.

Hey, Who Painted My Hot Elf Chick Green?!?

Pssst!  You say yer looking for a Hot Elf Chick?  Are you sure you ain't looking for a Hot RPG, featuring Elves (and other wacky races)?  It sure is chic!

Look at the links to the left.  The links to the left are good for you.  They are high in fiber and Hot Elf Chicks.  Some even have decent role playing information.

You could even pretend to BE a Hot Elf Chick (guys, please don't try this... it's bad enough when you do it in a MMORPG... I certainly don't think I can handle you pretending to be a Hot Elf Chick at my dining room table.  Gals?  Have at it, it's damn HOT! ;)

(Thanks James... I have now been.... assimilated...)

What to do When the Game is Put on Hold

The C&C game I play in monthly via Fantasy Grounds is being put on hold after the next session, tentatively scheduled for 3/19. The last time this game was put on hold, it was off for over half a year, and the sessions went from weekly to monthly - we also lost a good chunk of the party.

So, I either need to find myself a new game to play in (if it's on a weekend no more often then once every two weeks) or I need to get my T&T game off the ground, or even both.

I've been lucky in that both groups that I've played with using Fantasy Grounds as my VTT have been very good. One knuckle headed playing in 3 years... "knock on wood" ;)

Of course, one could also see this as even less of an excuse to put off the renovations around the house that I can do on my own, or with a little help.

Still, I'd rather be gaming ;)

Do You Remember the OSR Kertuffle From a While Back?

You know, when some long term bloggers threw in their towels, and others left the park and took their balls with them? The OSR is still here. The clones / simulacrums have been reproducing like rabbits since then too.

The strength of the OSR lies in its diversity. It's like Baskin Robbins and it's bazillion of flavors - there's an OSR ruleset for everyone's gaming sweet tooth.

The OSR can never die. It can fragment, but that doesn't matter. Even if there is never another product produced for any of the OSR rules out there, the products we already have will last a lifetime.

I am an OSR Blogger, and I approve of this message ;)

Mini Review - The Nameless City (Swords & Wizardry)

The Nameless City comes in two flavors - Core/Complete and White Box.  Finally some White Box love ;)  They are separate products, so be sure you purchase the right one for you (it is suggested if you plan on using the module with a different set of OSR styled rules, that you opt for the Core/Complete version - I haven't looked at the White Box version, so I can't tell you what the differences are - yet).

What is The Nameless City?  It is an adventure for characters of levels 7-10.  It draws inspiration from a HP Lovecraft short story.  It  looks to be pretty lethal.

I did a very quick read thru this adventure, and it will require players that think first and then act.  Impulsive parties won't last long.  Many of the adversaries are spell casters, which makes this far from the usual dungeon crawl many players are used to.  The DM should expect to make plenty of notes when reading through this, and it will probably require multiple read throughs before you are ready to run this.  There is plenty of atmosphere, so reading to prepare should be a pleasure.

We get four new monsters added to the S&S ruleset - three should be familiar already.

From the blurb:

In the world there are ancient, degenerated remnants still living, survivals from unimaginable antiquity. What happens when the adventurers stumble across one of these deadly places? There must be treasure untold for those willing to brave the long-forgotten perils of ... The Nameless City.

This module by Alphonso Warden is loosely based upon the eponymous short story by HP Lovecraft, and is designed for characters level 7-10.

The module is available for both Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox and Swords & Wizardry Complete Rules and Freestyle (Core) Rules. If you're going to use it with another old-school system, it's obviously going to be compatible, but use the Complete/Freestyle version for this: the hit dice and other information will be closer to other systems than WhiteBox.

Last 5 Hours of the GM Sale at RPGNow

Five hours left in RPGNow's GMDay sale. If you were holding off on any purchases, now is the time ;)

One Square Equals Five Feet Equals Awesome!

I just received the latest issue of Christian's One Square Equals Five Feet zine.  It's actually one paper (red in the case of issue #5).

Christian could probably consider me a stalker at this point, as I've been reading his stuff since ScrollWorks and Iron Rations.  (I do believe I am the longest continuous subscriber) Oh, and Iridia.  Damn, the man can write.

The latest mailing also includes Issue #1 of Qwellian's Journal.  This sheet would make for a really good and quick intro adventure if converted to Fantasy Grounds... not large at all and system agnostic, so it can work with anything from Swords & Wizardry to Tunnels & Trolls.  Possibly even 4e... I wouldn't know ;)

See, some things do work better in print, even to a PDF lover like me... heh

Weekend Streamed Movies Quick Reviews

I watched 3 movies I streamed via Netflix over the weekend. I mentioned them all over the weekend, but here's the recap and final verdicts:

1990: The Bronx - So bad its almost good. If you played an over the top post apocalypse RPG some of the gangs from this movie might actually make a good fit.

G.I. Joe - Not great, not horrible, its the kind of movie you can leave for some bathroom reading and just come back to the action. If you read comics of any sort, the plot fits. If you don't like comic books, the plot is very comic bookish - you've been warned. Plot threads leave it open for Joe 2.

- Legion - This must have been a blast to watch in the theater, as fear is contagious. This is the only one of the 3 movies my girl actually stayed awake for. Heck, the movie even scared her dog. The parts that had me jumping also had me laughing immediately after. The best of the three. Fun to watch, and one I didn't want to miss a minute of it.

Oubliette Issue 5 (for Labyrinth Lord) Free Until the End of March

Oubliette is a magazine for LL fans and gamers, but as usual, much of the articles can be easily used with your OSR rules of choice.

Issue 5 is the latest issue, and it is free for a limited time.  If you haven't checked it out yet, here's your perfect opportunity.

From the blurb:


OUBLIETTE - A magazine for old school fantasy roleplayers.
48 jam-packed pages including: 36 Page Magazine, 8 Pages of Cleric Spell Cards for Labyrinth Lord, and more...
Written for Labyrinth Lord, but also ideal for use with any Basic/Expert/Advanced original or clone, with little or no adjustment required.

Full Contents:
• Tales from Hell - Words of Wisdom from the Soothsayer
• Monster Club #8 - The Monstermark System for Labyrinth Lord
• The Vampire - 12 Pages of Alternative Rules for Creating Labyrinth Lord Vampires
• Good Shop/Bad Shop - Mad Varto's
• What's on the Battlemat? - Dungeon in a Box
• PC for PCs - A Very un-PC Approach to Dealing with Paladins
• What's in the Oubliette? - A Selection of Gaming and Other Reviews
• Mouse Watch - Our Heroes Enter a Storytelling Contest
• The Song of Sithakk - Part 5 of our Serialized Story
• Plus Bonus Material comprising: Cleric Spell Cards for Labyrinth Lord, Blank Vampire Record Sheet, and a blank template for Dungeon in a Box

Note: This issue is available for free download until the end of March 2011.  Thereafter it will revert to its normal price of $2.50.  In the small preview below, some tables and artwork don't display at the reduced size. In the full-size PDF they are all displayed correctly.

Warning! Oubliette may contain content that is suitable for adult audiences only. Persons 18+ only.

Movie Nite at the Tavern

Tonight appears to be movie nite at the Tavern.  Just watched GI Joe and now we are watching Legion.

I have high hopes for gaming relevance for Legion ;)

1990: The Bronx Warriors - Make the Pain Stop!

Amazon Prime now offers thousands of free to stream movies and tv show episodes.  While flipping thru last nite, I saw 1990: The Bronx Warriors.  I never heard of it, but figured "It's the Bronx, its gotta be cool!"

Let's see... it's an Italian produced movie from 1983, filmed in NYC with Italian and American actors... so yes, there's lots of dubbing of voices.  I can handle that.  What I can't handle is the actual film locations.

You can't (well, couldn't) see the World Trade Center from the Bronx, but I guess they thought it would make for a good scene, so they filmed shots on the Queens and Brooklyn sides of the East River... you get to see the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge... you get the idea, no where near the Bronx.

But ya see, Da Bronx is No Man's Land.... it's just gangs (except for the scenes with kids playing basketball in a park, or traffic and truck deliveries in the background).  Ah, but the gangs... we get a Biker gang with Glowing Skulls (one skull must have had problems -  it wouldnt stay lit), a NYC Pimp gang, we get a Roller Hockey gang complete with hockey sticks and really bad uniforms, we have a Tap Dancing Gang with black canes and metallic makeup... we even have a Neanderthal gang (no idea how they survive).

I'd try to explain the plot, but why?  I'd ruin the surprise for you.  You need to see for yourself just how bad this movie is.  My girl fell asleep 15 minutes into it... I needed to see how it wrapped up (it really didn't).  Apparently it spawned a sequel... I may just have to search it out, just for shits and giggles ;)

Mini Review - Curse of the Khan (Castles & Crusades)

Castles & Crusades is the game that drew me back to RPGs, so I always look forward to each release (except Crusader - here's hoping the improves).  Curse of the Khan is the latest adventure (in PDF) from the Troll Lords, and it's a whopper.  It clocks in at around 70 pages.  (If you bought a PDF copy of the CKG before the GM Week sale, you should have an email from the Trolls telling you how to get this adventure for free)

The adventure is more like 3 linked adventures, so expect to get at least 3 sessions of gaming out of it.  It covers levels 6-11 (although you can scale it lower / higher slightly if need) and it assumes that each of the 4 core adventuring roles will be filled.

You'll have to set  your backstory up, or rather flesh out the one that is given, to get the players where they need to be.  Not a big deal, but I felt it should be noted.

In addition to the 3 fairly distinct adventures sections, we also get a new PC usable race, 8 new magic items and 15 new monsters.  Oh, and maps.  13 levels of maps.  Did I say it's pretty well loaded?

From the blurb:

In days long gone, the Crawling Queen, a creature of the abyss, lorded over the lands of man, elf and dwarf. Her reign was terrible and the lamentations of the suffering people carried into the heavens! In time a dwarven prophet, St. Canor, came to their aid and, leading a bold group of heroes, he overcame the Queen and bound her in a temple. He set the bodies of his fallen comrades to guard her and placed wards upon them to imprison her. Over their tombs and her cell, he built a great temple. And there she lay for many eons.

But time passes and all things decay. So it was with the temple. Falling into the ruins came a host of her minions, they threatened to break the wards and bring the Crawling Queen back to the world. Such a horror must be prevented.

But the dangers are far greater than the Temple, for in her tomb beneath the ruins lies horrors unimagined and dangers to pry the skin from mortal men's flesh; and, deeper still, lie the dungeons where the darkness is complete and the horror long buried is come to life.

All this and much more await those willing to accept the challenges offered in The Curse of the Khan. The Curse of the Khan combines fast paced action with challenging role play and mind boggling puzzles at every turn. Including four brand new monsters and a plethora of new magical items, The Curse of the Khan is designed to keep your players on their toes, providing hours of dungeon crawling mind mangling fun!

Sale At Lulu - 20% Off

Enter coupon code GIANT305 at checkout and receive 20% off your book order. The code is good thru 3/7/11.

Its kinda like they knew it was GM Week ;)

When the Game Ends...

Fourteen years ago, I graduated from the Police Academy. It was a great moment, as it marked the true beginning of a great career, but it also marked the end of an era - the end of my gaming group, at least as far as gaming went.

For the first time, I was not going to be off on Sundays (our normal gaming day). Heck, I wasn't going to be off on Saturdays - my new weekend was Wednesday / Thursday. Working steady evenings, there was no way I could game. As my house was the weekly gaming location, a group that had been gaming regularly since high school, over 12 years... ended. I'm not sure we realized it at the time tho'. The campaign was never wrapped up properly.

Thankfully, the group has still remained close friends, even if we don't roll the dice anymore. MMORPGs with voice chat allow us to continue some of the social aspects of our old game sessions, but I do miss my time behind the DM screen. Oh, and filling Ring Dings with canned cheese... those reactions were priceless ;)

Mini Review - Knockspell #5 (Swords & Wizardry)

It's aways nice to have another issue of Knockspell to read.  Issue # 5 is no exception.

Nicely filled with an assortment of gaming goodness, it hits a sweet spot between adventures and articles.

Actually, the article on how to create adventures using Scrabble tiles as aids still has me scratching my head -  the concept works, I just don't understand how anyone thought up the concept... heh

There's a lot of stuff to read in this issue, to be used in S&W, LL or your clone of choice.

Lets see, here's the table of contents for this issue:

 2   Editor’s Note, Matt Finch

 2   Adventuring at Conventions, Tim Kask

 3   Teach Your Children, Bill Webb

 6   Out of the Bag: Generating Encounters with Scrabble Tiles, Jim Pacek

 9     Dark Gods, Al Krombach

 12   WhiteBox Weaponry, Richard Lionheart

 18   Where Dwells the Mountain God, Bill Silvey

 28   Operation Unfathomable, Jason Sholtis

 49   Weird Watery Magic of Vats and Pools,  Richard Hart

 53   Five Portable Rooms, Andrew Trent

 56   Magic Items of the High Seas, James E. Bobb and Kim Nicholson

 57   ‘Don’t Touch Anything ’: Traps in Swords &  Wizardry  WhiteBox Edition, Scott A. Murray

 59   Sorcerous Servitors, Jason Sholtis

 61   NPCs of Note, Rob Hewlett

 62   The Bestiary, Matt Finch

 62   Legal

63   Forthcoming Publications

You might recognize some of these names from other OSR type blogs.  

Good stuff.  

Only $4.95.

see?  OSR goes to the top of the review pile ;)

Are Your PCs Rock Stars?

Charlie Sheen is a bit over the top lately, especially with his own self-importance (understatement), but how far is he from long term PCs in some campaigns?

Yes, I know the difference between reality and gaming, but think about it. When your PCs hit name level in AD&D, they are living on the edge. They could retire and live off their found treasures for a lifetime, but instead they continue to adventure, face danger, gain even more fame - they must have tiger blood or something ;)

Of course, you can't "win" in AD&D (another recent Sheenism).

Yeah, I'm rambling, but not as bad as Charlie. I'm watching the train wreck, and it seems to be in slow motion... it really is occupying too much of my brain these days ;)

Looking For GM Week Purchase Suggestions

As I mentioned earlier this week, there is a crap load of stuff on sale during GM Week over at RPGNow. What I'm looking for is suggestions for purchases - I get access to a decent amount of comps, but there is still great stuff that I don't catch right away (I don't get notified of all new products to hit RPGNow).

The next few days is my chance to fill in some holes in my OSR collection. Give me some ideas of what I may be missing (if I didn't review it, and its OSR, I probably don't have it).

Thanks in advance.

I Have Soul(s)

As I mentioned before, I've been playing the latest MMORPG - Rift. Don't ask me if it's a WoW killer, I have no idea. I do like it tho. I has the usual 4 man class branches - warrior, cleric, rogue and mage, but strangely enough, the sub classes (referred to in game as "souls") don't necessarily mean that your warrior is a tank, or that your mage can't be a healer. As each character can have 3 souls active from its main class (and swap out others at later levels), you can truly customize your character.

When it comes to Tabletop RPGs, much of that customization comes from the actual roleplaying, which is generally not at the forefront of a MMORPG, even on servers that are Role Play tagged.

Even if every Fighting Man in 0e is pretty damn close on paper, they play different due to player interactions. It is the very nature of the game. 3e gave us feats and skills, and allowed us to further customize our PCs, but it is still the role-play that defines the memories and highlights.

All that being said, I am enjoying Rift. I've found 2 character combinations that work well both solo and in group, so I should be able to keep on around my son's level (and that of my gaming group).

Now I am left wondering if anyone ever tried to convert a MMORPG class pet using class like Necromancer to Tunnels & Trolls, or some other RPG. Damn, I may need to dig out the Everquest RPG (that was OGL based if I recall) and borrow some ideas from there. If only I knew where I stored it.

Looking For an Old Advenure

With all the stuff going on in great state of Wisconsin, my memory has been partially prodded. I seem to recall an adventure in the pre-3e days, where the theme was the unionization of a bunch of overworked workers. I doubt it was in a stand alone adventure, so it was probably in Dungeon Magazine.

Anyone else have a better recollection? Or is my middle aged addled mind doing things to me again?

Crap, it could have been a Paranoia mission...

RPGNow GM Sale is Live Thru March 7th

RPGNow and a host of publishers are running a GM Sale from now thru March 7th (next Monday).  There's a boatload of stuff marked down 25%, and a good portion is from some the great OSR publishers.  In no particular order of preference:

Brave Halfling Publishing - Castles & Crusades modules, Labyrinth Lord supplements and more

Goblinoid Games - Labyrinth Lord and a whole lot more

Fiery Dragon - Get your Tunnels & Trolls 7.5e rules at a reduced price

GM Games - Knowledge Illuminates on sale

NBOS Software -  Great mapping programs, amongst other goodies

Troll Lord Games - Finally, the Castle Keeper's Guide at a more reasonable price

White Haired Man - If you run games via Fantasy Grounds, this is a no brainer

Necromancer - Swords & Wizardry Complete and on sale.  Need I say more?

Goodman Games - The Grandaddy of Old School

Looking for Thoughts on RPG Campaign Wiki Website... Thingies

I know of two Campaign Wiki Websites: Obsidian Portal and Epic Worlds.

Do any of you use these for your RPG campaigns? Do you use the free versions or the upgraded versions?

Are there other Campaign Wiki Website thingamawops out there besides these two?

inquiring minds want to know ;)

The Trollish Taproom - The British Invasion

Over the weekend I received my first copy of the Tunnels & Trolls 1st UK Edition.  This took forever to ship from across the pond, but as it came with Buffalo Castle and Uncle Ugly's Underground, in beautiful condition, and from the same run as the T&T UK edition, so it makes a really nice set and was worth the wait.

Today I received my 2nd copy of the T&T 1st UK Edition rules - I was bidding on it as the price was right, and this made it to me in a week.  Woot!

Of course, this means my reprint copy of the T&T 1st UK Edition is now a bit obsolete.  I may have to run a contest to give it away.  I'm open to suggestions ;)

Back to the Grindstone

Today was "Back to Work Day" after my nice Staycation. It's also the first day of the work week, the last day of the month, and the day before a new month - so paperwork galore was awaiting my return. I really appreciated every single moment I could steal to read the latest posts on the gaming blogs I follow.

I also was hit with the realization that I still have a crap load of stuff I want to review, or at least pick over, as I didn't dig thru the pending review pile nearly as much as I would have like. Then again, OSR stuff goes right to the top of the pile when I get them, and it was a good week for OSR releases.

I'm also enjoying a MMORPG for the first time in 2 years or so... time to see if Rift has staying power. It is, most certainly, stealing time from me that would otherwise be spent reading blogs and forums ;)

What the Heck is "Old School Hack"?

I stumbled across this when I read my latest email from the fine folks at Kobold Quarterly just a few minutes ago... what exactly is the Old School Hack RPG?

I downloaded it, skimmed thru it, and can't figure out if it's an RPG, a quasi-board game... I'm kinda  confused as you can tell.  You seem to roll characters, but no more then one player per class - which is heavy handed in an rpg, but fine in a board game.

You can check it out here for free.  I need to look at this more.  Presentation is nice, just not 100% sure what is being presented ;)

Watching the Real Life Ranger

I spent last nite and part of this afternoon watching Survivor Man.  Les Stroud is a modern day ranger.  Less of a showman then Bear Grylls, he spends a week in the wilderness each episode, with just a handful of equipment and no camera crew.

His knowledge of edible plants is amazing, and I enjoy watching him build shelters and fires, and watch him set snares and traps for game.

Just taking a few choice bits and pieces from watching the show should add some nice realism to any wilderness trek in your choice of RPG, and give real flavor to any ranger's skills.

Watching on Netflix on Demand.  God, I love my Netflix ;)

Coming Distractions

As my vacation runs towards its end, I am looking at my upcoming time sinks.

The most immediate time sink is going to be Rift, the latest MMORPG.  The main reason this is going to steal away a nice sized chunk of time is the pure joy in jawing with my circle of friends on a fairly regular basis.  Would that I could coral them for some real RPGing via a VTT, but it's hard to get everyone on a set schedule.  The easy of dropping into and out of a MMORPG session with Teamspeak running does an end run around most needs to set a time / day.

Of course, work is a damn time sink - I need to win lotto or something.  Then I could take over the world!  Heh, or buy an RPG Company for a real money sink ;)

As an aside, just received my set of Tunnel & Trolls UK 1e, Buffalo Castle (UK) and Uncle Ugly's Underground (UK).  I was surprised to see the layout of the T&T UK1e and it's reprint are slightly different, as is the size.  The whole set is in great condition.  Nice addition to the collection.

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe... Pick a Clone By the Toe

The next RPG I plan to run is Tunnels & Trolls, but if I were to run one of the D&D clone / simulacrum that are available today, I'd probably opt for Swords & Wizardry (Complete).  It seems to cover all the bases that I want in a clone, and at the same time is very easy to house rule without breaking anything.

Besides, the S&W Complete book is a beauty to behold.  If I were to join a new group (via VTT or face to face), I'd be looking for a T&T or S&W game preferably.

Which reminds me, my next Castles & Crusades session is a week from Saturday.  I'm sure the pricing of the CKG PDF will come up.  Should be interesting.

Rift (the latest MMORPG) went live yesterday for pre-orders.  With Teamspeak  connecting us all, about the only thing missing from our old D&D sessions was the sound of the dice... oh, and a DM directing everything.  Still, we had a blast, even with the ungodly queues to log in.  I went and had dinner during my wait ;)

Mini Review - The Sun Fury Gazette: The Rising Dark Supplement I (Swords & Wizardry)

The Rising Dark was just released a few days ago, and we already have the first release in a line of supplements for it.  The Sun Fury Gazette is 8 pages of free (the price is right) additional information for use a Rising Dark campaign, but it's all ripe for stealing for use in your own campaign world.

The writing is good, but the use of classic (read old) clipart distracts a bit, at least for me.  There is a decent amount of clipart available at sources like RPGNow for fairly cheap that made for products like this.  Just my 2 cents on it.  Again, the price is right, the articles are good... the art distracts.

From the Blurb:


The Sun Fury Gazette: The Rising Dark Supplement I is the first issue of a series of resources for the Rising Dark campaign setting, written specifically for use with Swords & Wizardry and other old school game systems. This first issue is free, and features:

Three new spells presented for use with original edition mechanics

monster stat-block presentations of all the new player character races

additional data on the deities for the world of Agraphar as well as the god of vermin

an article on the kobolds of Agraphar

Future issues will feature more content as well as scenarios for use with The Rising Dark. Enjoy!

Staycation Update - With Norm McDonald

Alright, Norm McDonald is not doing the update - but it sounded good ;)

Anyhow, as the Staycation winds down, I'm looking at what I did, and did not, accomplish so far.

Cleaning?  Check, but much more is needed.  I accumulate way too much junk.

Gaming?  Check, but not as much as I would have liked (only ran one solo so far, but it was a blast).  Still, I have accomplished game related reading.

Adding new time waster to the mix?  Check - Rift (a new MMORPG, not to be confused with Rifts) opens with it's pre-release head start later today.  My old gaming group (and later MMORPG group) is going to see if this is the game that sticks.  My son and I will join them.

I'd rather corrupt my son with real gaming (tabletop RPGs), which may happen sooner then later, as he is definitely paying attention (and ribbing me) when I play my monthly C&C game via Fantasy Grounds.

Ah well, off to babysit my 2 month old niece today.  First time running solo.  Pray for me.  I'd like to avoid the really messy poops ;)

New Zealand Red Cross Earthquake Relief - RPG Bundle (OneBookShelf)

OneBookShelf (aka RPGNow and DriveThruRPG) is offering a bundle of RPG products for $20 (current value $338.91) to raise money for the New Zealand Red Cross Earthquake Relief.

OBS has done this before, and the bundles have always been well worth the donation, and of course, the donation is for a good cause.

If $20 isn't within your range, you can make a $5 donation (no bundle).


Some of my picks from the bundle:


CthulhuTeck Core Book

Mecha-RPG

RPGPundit's Gnome Murdered RPG

Tegal Manor - Revised and Expanded Edition

Tales From the Floating Vagabond

Supernatural Role Playing Game

(these are the ones that really stick out for me)

Mini Review - The Rising Dark: An Introduction to Agraphar (Swords & Wizardry)

I'm always a sucker for a new campaign setting.  Even if I never use it as written, there are always ideas for me to steal.  As far as resources go, they are more valuable and flexible then an adventure.

The Rising Dark: An Introduction to Agraphar is a campaign setting for Swords & Wizardry (but usable with you OSR ruleset of choice with little issue).  It is sandboxie in nature, which is always a plus in my book.

So, what do we get for our investment?  5 new races, 27 gods (some of which give their clerics special abilities - which is nice to keep things unique), magic use that can be detrimental depending on the roll (referred to in the rules as Corruption), maps, a breakdown of localities, an adventure, lots of adventure hooks.  All in all, theres a lot packed into 48 pages.  Not bad at all for $2.99.

From the blurb:

The world of Agraphar...a young land, center of an eternal conflict between chaos and order. Will you join with the forces of Ymaltar, the Sun Fury who stood strong against the darkness and created the world, or side with the darkness, trumpeting Dymachas and the lords of chaos in their quest to extinguish the creation of the Lord of Order?

A complete adventure setting compatible with the Swords & Wizardry rule system and sufficiently mechanics-lite to be easily adapted to other fantasy RPGs
Designed for the GM who is interested in a new setting that provides a sandbox setting for adventures, but doesn't overwhelm with detail.

Features:27 new gods
Corrupting magic
Aasimar, satyr, tiefling, gnome and faerie character races
A Gazetteer of northwestern Tariach
Hand-rendered maps
A detailed adventure location in "The Doom of Zeramath"
New monsters
Plot ideas and advice

The Trollish Taproom - A Closer Look at Spite Damage

Spite Damage as a concept is great.  Each 6 rolled on a d6 is damage that makes it thru, even against the side that wins.  In a Tunnels & Trolls game with a GM and a full party, it adds to the drama and the tactics of the party.  It also makes the Poor Baby spell even more valuable then it was before.

In Solo Play, spite sucks.  Big time.  Unless you are willing to declare it is a player ability only, and deny it to the monster side of things, it makes the solo adventures unplayable.

Look at it this way.  Each encounter a player survives, he carries over his spite damage to the next encounter.  The next adversary will be fresh.  Spite was added to prevent the endless combats of evenly matched and armor opponents, but instead it whittles the player down to nothing as the adventure goes on.

This problem goes is worse with the 7e rules of T&T - monsters no longer lose attack dice as their MR goes down, just Combat Adds.  So yes, even more potential spite damage.

Pretty much every T&T solo published by FBI is pre-T&T 5.5e - pre-spite in other words.  They are not balanced for spite, and they are not balanced for monster's not losing combat dice as their MR gets whittled down.

This was all pretty obvious as I sat down to game last nite.

So, if you are going to run any of your 7.5e characters thru an earlier solo, these are my recommendations:

- Only your PC's attacks generate spite.  It won't make much of a difference, but every little bit helps.

- Damage to a monster's MR results in a loss of CA and Combat Dice (if appropriate)

- As long as you CA are appropriate for the adventure, you wont need to worry about adjusting monster MRs - 7.5e characters tend to be more powerful then earlier editions, but solos are balance against CA, so it all works.

Taking a Look at Chivalry & Sorcery

I never had a copy of Chivalry & Sorcery.  I had heard about it when I picked up roleplaying back in the early 80's, but no one in my group owned a copy.  Heck, no one in my group had seen a copy outside of a game store.  I do remember the ads in Dragon Magazine.  The ads seemed to me to infer the game was damn complicated.  The ads were probably right.

So, here we are, nearly 30 years later, and I am the proud owner of a previously owned copy of Chivalry & Sorcery.  It's a beat up copy, that appears to be well used, but I question how well read it actually was.  It seems that a previous owner underlined and otherwise marked up the first 10 1/2 pages and then just stopped.  Which I can understand, as this looks like a textbook, and the font is damn tiny.

Unlike Tunnels & Trolls,  this is not a line I'll be looking to complete, but I did need to actually see what all the fuss was about.

I'm not sure if I'll ever read thru this whole thing myself, but if I do, it will be in very small chunks ;)

The Trollish Taproom - More Thoughts on the Frankentroll

I figure I'm on vacation for a week, a Staycation if you will, so besides cleaning and gaming, I need to think about how I want to run my upcoming Tunnels & Trolls campaign.

Definitely gonna run with the stable of 10 characters fro each player to choose from, using the keep 3 of 4d6 method, with TARO.  I want my players to be above average... they are heroes.  Death will still come easy... it is Tunnels & Trolls after all.

Thinking of using the total AP earned for level determination from 5.5e, but stat gain as per 7.5e - assuming it doesnt get too confusing.

Stats as per 7.5e

SR as per 7.5e

Missile combat as per... I don't friggn know.  It get's changed more often then my 8 week old niece's diapers.  There has to be a workable method.  This requires some thinking.

Classes and talents as per 7.5e

Actually, if in doubt, using 7.5e I think.

Warriors will gain CA as per my chart from an earlier post.  Paragons do not get the bonus, so it should be a decent boost to warriors.

See?  I'm thinking...

Heh ;)

The Trollish Taproom - I Survived The Dark Temple and All I Got Was This Pair of Ogre Gloves!

Well, not exactly.  I did get some other loot too, and some of it may be useful at a later point, but none of is was that overpowering type of loot the earlier solos were known for, like excessive combat dice weapons.

So, what did the Man With No Name (I forgot to name my new PC, so he will now be "Joe" from A Fist Full of Dollars) get for surviving these adventure?

A 4d6 Katar that can hit magical creatures as if it were magic

A pair of Ogre gloves that add +1d6 to unarmed combat

A potion of Curare

About 1700 gp, 487 sp and 11 gems of unknown (unrolled) quality

Oh, and about 2013 AP

This is how I ran the game:

PC creation was 4d6 (drop 1 die) with TARO (only the TARO get rolled over, not all 4), rolling up a stable of 10 PCs - Human Only - 7.5e Stats - I put the highest stat in CON - Figured longevity at its best.

With my 6th character I had 2 TAROs and all stats were 12 or over, so I went Paragon.  Woot!  Still, most adventures don't allow much, if any magic, but still fun to roll.

I used spite for the Player only - T&T solo combat is deadly enough without spite for the adversaries.

My single fudge was with the mental combat encounter - I don't think any non-pure caster could win as written, and no one would put a pure caster thru an adventure lacking a Spell Matrix.  So I made myself make a level 2 Saving Roll vs luck as per the T&T 5e rules to peel of 1 of the 3 mobs first.  Yeah, not quite within the rules of the solo, but something that may have worked with a GM.

The Dark Temple was a very entertaining solo to go thru.  Well written and fun.  Took me nearly 2 hrs from start to finish.

I did run it as a hodge-podge of 5e and 7.5e, but that worked okay.

I think I will treat level as total expo earned, but use the 7.5e method of spending AP to raise stats.  Need to pick an adventure for tomorrow now ;)

Mini Review - Kingmaker (An OSR Adventure)

Dungeon crawls are nice and all, but an adventure that is driven by roleplay and character interaction (along with some combat - can't forget that) is comparatively rare in fantasy roleplaying.

An adventure that can kick off a campaign for first level characters, that doesn't include a single map (although it does include generic tokens for combat if desired) is a wonder to behold.

Kingmaker is all this and more.  It has a plot full of intrigue and plot twists, but it is easy from the GM to follow.  As always, I look at these adventures in terms of both D&D and converting to Tunnels & Trolls - and this could probably be converted on the fly.

Nicely done with simple but evocative artwork.

From the blurb:

"Tragedy has fallen on the Kingdom of Ambarge-the King is dead; long live the King!  But the kingdom's woes have only just begun, for the crown prince, the King's sole heir, is nowhere to be found.  The fate of their kingdom rests on the deeds of a handful of wayward pilgrims that walk a solitary road in a remote land."

Kingmaker is a single session, first-level adventure, designed to drop into any campaign. But this is not your average kobold lair. Kingmaker is an intense standoff with high stakes and tremendous repercussions as it falls to a band of first level characters to decide the fate of thousands.

Mini Review - Battlemap - Dark Crypts (Chambers

I don't use battlemaps, but I do use maps for battles.  See, my gaming is over Virtual Table Tops.  So I need to either struggle to draw one on my own, using one of the many programs I own but don't fully understand - or I need to find one on the 'Net and make it work for me.

Today, I really envy those that can play on a regular table top.

Dark Crypts - Chambers is a collection of 4 battlemaps for use in your table top RPG settings.  They look damn good.  I'm sure there is a way to covert these to a format I an use with a VTT, but if I was running a face to face game I'd be building an adventure around these.  They are meant to be used.

Lord Zsezse Works also offers a free T-builder Lite, so you can work on building and printing out tiles of your own design.

PDFs and the Art of Art

Some folks love the art in their PDF game books, others just don't care.  For some publishers its a high priority, other's are happy to use clipart.

Here's where I fall in the scheme of things as a customer:

1 - The Cover is Where it's At - Since you can't flip thru a PDF like you might a book at the bookstore, your cover is the first impression.  Sometimes, its the only impression.  Make it count.

2 - Don't go Crazy on the Pages - Some publisher's like to make the page around, behind, below their text all supped up with background art and such- DON'T!  It can cause issues with certain e-readers (the Amazon Kindle / Kindle DX comes to mind, but it messes with others too).  It wastes my ink if I want to print out the pages.  Last, it can make some products a real pain to read.  This last part applies to print books too.

3 - Less is More - Remember, if I decide to print your product out, the art is going to kill my ink.  Black and white art is fine.  Less shading and filling is better.  Heck, if you can give me two versions (one for printing, one for on screen reading) so much the better.

4 - No Art is Better Then Crap - If you aren't an artist, don't know one, can't afford one, use some of the great clipart that is available.  Or avoid the art altogether.  Trust me, no one wants to see bad art in an otherwise good product.

5 - Don't Forget the Tablets - As iPads and other tablets take off, more and more RPG PDFs (and other e-reader formats) are going to be read on electronic devices.  White Haired Man and Greg (He of Boundless Creativity) are already taking that into account, and I expect others to soon follow suit.

Just some of my thoughts.

The Trollish Taproom - From Yassa Massa! to Spirit Mastery

Troth asked earlier this week if 2nd level Spirit Mastery spell in the 7e Tunnels & Trolls rules had it's roots in the 2nd level Yassa-Massa! spell from earlier editions. So I opened up my copies of earlier editions to take a peek.

These are copied word for word, tense for tense, punctuation for punctuation, capital letter for capital letter, etc. So yes, earlier editions were a bit unclear...

T&T 1e: Yassa-Massa! To be used only on previously subdued monsters / foes. Total strengths I.Q. & Charisma. Will permanently enslave monsters with with ratings lower then the above total.

T&T 2e: Yassa-Massa! To be used only on previously subdued monsters / foes. Total strength, I.Q. & Charisma. Will permanently enslave monsters with with ratings lower then the above total.

T&T 3e (1st UK ed): Yassa-Massa! Previously subdued Monsters or foes are permanently enslaved if their Monster Ratings are lower then the combined Strength, I.Q. and Charisma of the caster. Monster must have surrendered or lost half his Constitution or M.R. for Spell to work.

T&T 4e: Yassa-Massa! To be used only on previously subdued monsters / foes. Total strength, I.Q. & Charisma. Will permanently enslave monsters with with ratings lower then the above total.

T&T 5e: Yassa-Massa To be cast on previously-subdued monsters / foes. Will permanently enslave if victim's ST, IQ and CHR are less then that of the wizard, or if the MR is less (and remains so).

T&T 7.5e: Spirit Mastery This spell enslaves its target to the caster"s will for as long as the total of the caster's INT, WIZ and CHR are greater than the combined total of those three attributes for the target. If the victim has a Monster Rating, it's MR must be less than the caster's total for INT, WIZ and CHR.


So, basically, in 1e the foe had to be subdued first. I'm no expert on the earlier T&T rules, so if there are subdual rules in in T&T 1e I can't find them. It's also poorly written and typo'ed, but it was a work in progress back then.


As for 2e, again with the subdued condition I can't find, but at least the spells power can be figured out now.


UK 1e makes sense, explains the condition the monster / foe must be in for the spell to work. I could use this spell


4e is the same as 2e - same problems.


5e is the same - how the heck do you do subdual damage in Tunnels and Trolls editions 1-5? Hey, found an answer dating back to 2001 from Tori Bergquist- I suspect this houserule was well in use, just never made it to the rules. 5.5e has info on "Pulling your punches", but it isn't what the Yassa-Massa spell needs to fulfill it's requirements.


7.5e changes the name and no longer needs the foe to be subdued, which is good, as I don't think 7e has the rules for it either (I'm too tired to check). Oh, and it replaces STR with WIZ in the spell power. Oh, and it may not be permanent - watch out if your WIZ drops during use.


So there you have it, the evolution of a Tunnels & Trolls spell from 1e to 7.5e.

QuickStart - Shadowrun

Shadowrun is one of those games that I picked up when it was first released, back in the Silver Age of RPGs.  I loved the ideas and setting, but was never able to ween my players off of AD&D at the time.  It's gone thru some changes and editions.  Now, Catalyst Games gives us the Shadowrun Quickstart rules for the 4th edition.

You get an adventure, pre-gens and a striped down version of the rules.  I haven't picked up Shadowrun since the first release, so I can't tell you how much they pare off from the latest edition, but they give you what you need to run a quick session.

Westerns Have a Good RPG Feel - An Afternoon of Watching Gunslingers

I started out by watching The Quick and the Dead, followed that with the original True Grit and wrapped it all with A Fist Full of Dollars. Very different movies but all had a similar theme of redemption.

Then again, westerns are American mythology, so I can understand the similarity in themes between westerns and RPG adventures: revenge, justice, gaining some gold, etc.

This could make for an interesting series of posts, if I ever get to all the other posts I want to get to ;)