Mini Review - Far Away Land ("Adventure Time" Styled Fantasy heartbreaker)

Sometimes when you check out the most recent free releases on RPGNow, you start a journey that leads you to an awesome not free release. Such is my story when it comes to Far Away Land.

You see, when I stubbled across Far Away Land RPG Adventures: Journey Into the White I was intrigued by the cover
art. It seemed old school D&Dish with quirky as hell art. As it was PWYW, I was able to peek for free. And peek i did. And it was good. Short, but good. It also seemed to be sandboxie, which I like.

In for a penny, in for a pound. I almost bought the core book in print with PDF for $25, but then I saw the Tome of Awesome, which is core plus 3 expansions, was $35. Damn it! Yes, I'm in.

So, what is the system like? It reminds me a bit of a hybrid of Old School D&D, Tunnels & Trolls, Adventure Time and a bit of crazy. It is a D6 system where you roll a pool of dice and just keep the highest roll. Fairly simple. Pools are based on one of three Stats - BRT (Strength / Con), DEX (er, dex) and WIT (Int / Wis / Cha rolled into one) and Boons (think skills like melee for combat, arcane for spell casting, subterfuge for picking locks and dealing with traps - you get the idea) and Flaws (narrowly defined disadvantages.) Armor absorbed damage (much like T&T), there are hit points, levels and spell levels (the spell list certainly hues close to D&D.)


The art is simply amazing to my eyes. You'll either love it or hate it. I love it. It captures the quirkiness of the system and the setting (from the little I've read of the setting.) I've only read the actual core rules thus far - there is so much more to dig through.

The PDF looks nice on my tablet, but I'l be waiting for my print copy before digging to0 deep. Still, really enjoying whatI've read so far.

There are 4 mini adventures available for Far Away Land priced at PWYW as well as a print and play Pawn Pack. This may be one of the rare times I'll use minis while running a game via Roll20.

I'll do a follow up review once I read thru the setting material.

Free OSR - The Sandbox #1 - (Sine Nomine)

Do you enjoy the various Sine Nomine / +Kevin Crawford games, such as Stars Without Number, Scarlet Heroes and all the rest?

Do you like sandboxes?

Do you like free RPG supplements?

The Sandbox #1 is for you.

From the blurb:

Welcome to The Sandbox, a free irregular journal from Kevin Crawford and Sine Nomine Publishing. Sine Nomine fans have noticed the regular flow of freebie material I've produced, such as the Mandate Archive series for Stars Without Number, Black Streams for the Red Tide setting, and other free releases for other systems and particulars. The Sandbox is meant to be an umbrella for these free resources, packed with the short articles, quick-roll tables, and GM helps that others have found so useful. 

In this thirteen-page issue of The Sandbox, you'll find... 

The Last Prince, a new class for Scarlet Heroes. The final scion of a doomed people? Use this class to bear the grim scars of your past and avenge the memory of your vanished kind. 

Kickstarter Production Guidelines, where I lay out the exact production sequence I use for Sine Nomine Kickstarters, providing step-by-step instructions on how to manage the workflow and execution of a successful RPG Kickstarter. Learn how to manage project scope, plan layout, handle art completion with art control sheets, and sidestep Fulfillment Hell with at-cost codes and shipping specifics. Find the gritty details of execution here that are all too often neglected by creators. 

A Quick Backwater Starport is a one-roll generator for swiftly brewing up a backwater world's main starport. Roll one of each die and find out just what the problems are to be found in this scraggly outpost of starfaring civilization. 

What's That Abandoned Structure? will help a GM quickly determine the details of an abandoned building. Whether a long-lost relic consumed by an unfriendly wilderness or a gutted husk in a forgotten alien city, this quick-rol 

l table gives the GM the answers they need to provide playable content at the table.
So go ahead and grab this inaugural issue of The Sandbox. Keep an eye peeled for additional issues as the year progresses, each one packed with short material to help other indie publishers, support other Sine Nomine games, or just help you make good sandbox fun for your own favorite system.

The price is so right :)

Heck, worth the read for the Kickstarter info alone.

Mini Review - Brave the Labyrinth - Issue #5 (OSR / PWYW)

The latest Brave the Labyrinth released this weekend and as always it's filled to the brim with OSR goodness (Labyrinth Lord is the particular flavor.)

I'm a big fan of +Pete Spahn and if somehow you haven't grabbed a copy of the Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay, click the preceding link and do so. It is "Pay What You Want" and it's a great example of a crowdfunded project giving back to the community. Heck, the Tavern even makes an appearance.

Back on target. Brave the Labyrinth Issue #5. See the cover art above? That's part of a multilevel castle for you to use and drop into your campaign, including a dungeon level. Nothing is state out. All the rooms are yours to fill as you see fit. Fun :)

This issue also has an article about a demon lord, which is like serendipity, as we just talked about demons on The Brainstorm podcast. Seriously, the episode dropped yesterday.

We are introduced to two new elf subraces - the Phase Elf and the Void Elf. The first has it's roots in inter-dimensional space while the second subrace was formerly star-faring. Both make elves something "not of this world" and make for interesting twists and assumptions.

+James Spahn (no relation to Pete, James is known for Barrel Rider Games) has an article on the patron saints for the church of law and order.. If you are using Small Niche Games Amerth setting they would drop right in.

Next up is an article for mundane and magical items to assist those with dishonest (or thieving) tendencies. I like it. I'm going to steal much of this for my Swords & Wizardry campaign.

Werewulfs and Familiars is more of a niche article - well written but only applicable to certain campaigns, but definitely mineable for ideas.

Ampulex the Emerald Jeweler is full of ideas and plot hooks.

Beetlemirth (cartoons), a review of The Caves of Ortok and an excerpt from Time of the Dying Stars rounds out the issue.

At 39 pages, Pete is not fooling around. Well done and packed to the gills.

Wayward Kickstarter - Pencil Dice (So long as all you need is a D6)

What can I say about Pencil Dice?

- Need weighted dice? Shave one side down just a wee bit more.

- Need dice AND a stabbing instrument? We've got you covered!

- Like to constantly sharpen your pencil? This is the pencil for you. Broken points guaranteed!

- Grab 3 dozen Pencil Dice and you too can play Tunnels & Trolls, Hero, Open D6 or GURPS. Please make sure your eyesight is up for the chore (note - other systems not supported - D20 Entertainment is hard at work designing a D20 Eraser.)

- You can threaten to break your Pencil Dice if they under perform. Can you make the same claim with regular dice?

- These Pencils come with an ERASER! My God man, what will they think of next?

- 10 bucks get's you 12 pencils. Why pay bulk prices for pencils when you can overpay for pencils whose points will constantly break when you throw them on the table.

- The next Movie / TV Series / Web Series produced by D20 Entertainment will star Pencil Dice. For the right pledge, your pencil die can have a starring role.

- Watch where you roll that. You'll poke an eye out!

- Pencil. Dice. It's like a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup from some Chthonian alternate universe. Just wait until it gets stuck in the back of your throat.

- There a sucker born every minute. You can quote me and write it down with your pencil dice.

- At the $16k mark we get RAINBOW PENCILS! Yeah, somehow I find it less than exciting and what a PITA to try and read the pips.

Kickstarter - TROPES: Zombie Edition (Small Niche Games)

I am not "All OSR, All the Time" even if I am heavily weighted towards the OSR. Then again, even some of the more prolific small press OSR publishers aren't "All OSR, All the Time." Variety is good.

edit - it would help if i refreshed the page over the last day or so - it is now funded and closed ;)

TROPES: Zombie Edition is a light RPG about the Zombie Apocalypse by +Pete Spahn under his Small Niche Games label (which is fairly well know for publisher OSR / LL compatible adventures and setting material.) So yeah, it's an OSR guy doing a non-OSR game that is made to play quickly and pull out for a change of pace or when some members of the group can't show but y'all still wish to play.

It's funding goal is low ($500 and it's already met) and there are about 3 days left in it's funding period. Pete is know for putting out his Kickstarters on time and I expect nothing different this time around.

Here's some more info from the Kickstarter page:

Ever wanted to play a game that explores the deep personal horror of the zombie apocalypse? Where the choices you make in times of crisis define who you are? Where zombies are only a backdrop and humans are responsible for the true evils in the world? 

Well, go find another game! This game is about killing zombies, so you can forget all that touchy feely crap! 

TROPES: Zombie Edition (TZE) is a game of post-apocalyptic zombie survival horror. TZE is about surviving the zombie apocalypse for one more night. It is designed for one-shot play and should be cinematic and action packed! 

Picture this: You're minding your own business on your way to work or school. You've had your nose buried in Facebook all morning, so you don't really know what's going on in the real world outside of who woke up on the wrong side of the bed, what type of coffee your friends are drinking, and who got the highest score on Candy Crush last night. The light turns green, but traffic is gridlocked and no one is moving. Suddenly, there's a commotion up ahead and a bunch of people start screaming and running towards you. Close behind them, you see a mob of freshly risen zombies shambling in your direction. What do you do? 

That's the start of a typical zombie Outbreak in TROPES: Zombie Edition (TZE). TZE is the culmination of many years of gameplay and "rules light" game design. The system is easy to learn and fast in play. Task Resolution uses a d6 dice pool which counts successes, making it a breeze to teach newcomers. Veteran gamers will appreciate not having to learn a whole new set of complex rules just for a one-off game. TZE is especially great for when players cancel at the last minute, you've been too busy with "real world" stuff to prepare for your next adventure, or you just need a change of pace from your weekly campaign. 

And Then There Were Eight - The D&D 5e Team Loses Two Editors

The Dragon giveth, The Dragon taketh away

I saw the news yesterday via Twitter and ENWorld, but now even ICv2 has an article about WotC letting go two editors for the Dungeons & Dragon line - Chris Sims and Jennifer Clarke Wilkes.

WotC used to do a Christmas purge on a yearly basis, although I think they mostly skipped 2013 and it looked like 2014 was another pass. Guess they were just a month late this time.

The ICv2 article goes on to mention there are just 8 members left of the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop team. How large a staff does Paizo have working on Pathfinder?

I guess WotC could always freelance their future releases, but I'm beginning to suspect those releases will be few and far between

Free OSR - Enhanced Petty Gods Preview: Tsathoggua

I'm really looking forward to the full Enhanced Petty Gods release.

In the meaning, New Big Dragon Games presents Tsathoggua as a free preview. Grab it and grab it now. The only disappointment is that there isn't more available yet :(

Thanks to +James Mishler for reminding me this was out.

Frog God puts forth a January Rune Quests (solve the riddle for large discount)

I love treasure hunts and riddles. I suck at them (just ask my family) but I do love them. Frog God has put together one that has to be solved by January 31st, 2015. There isn't much time so go hoping ;)

Here's the link to the home page.

Am I Just Collecting 5e at This Point?

I have the 3 D&D 5e Core Books.

I have the Starter Set.

I have the Basic Rules in an early printed format.

I have the Dragonspear Castle and Hoard of the Dragon Queen.

I have the new DM Shield, still in shrink wrap, it went immediately on the shelf with the rest.

Sadly, I hear mostly good stuff about 5e but have had little time to do more than browse the pages of the books I have. Little free time to spend learning a system that isnt going to be played by my regular group anytime soon.

I literally feel I'm just a collector at this point.

Is it just me? Are others doing the same?

Troll Lord Games Entire Catalogue 60% Off at RPGNow Thru Sunday

Every once in a while Troll Lord Games runs a sale over at OBS (DriveThruRPG and RPGNow.) This is one of their better sales. 60% off is no joke.

Castles & Crusades is what brought me back to gaming and reminds me of AD&D 1e / 2e in many ways. A houseruled AD&D but still D&D to me.

The adventures are easily portable to other OSR games and the price is certainly right. I think I'll be shopping while running tonight's Tavern Chat session ;)

Alright, the links above won't work for you, so click here ;)

Free Baba Yaga's Hut (Fat Dragon Games)

I've always wanted to put together some of the Fat Dragon Games print and fold models and terrain.

Baba Yaga's Hut looks amazing and is free as I post this (it won't be free forever)

I can just imagine plopping this down at the gaming table as a DM ;)

Kickstarter - Conan (Board Game) - Minis and More oh My!

Have I mentioned that I'm counting down the days until I can retire, because only then will I find the time to play all the amazing board games I've found via Kickstarter AND paint all of the miniatures I've accumulated. Sigh.

Conan is a gorgeous looking game, and I don't say that lightly. It's a GM vs player(s) game, and I expect some light roleplay will sneak in with the right groups.

If my count is right, the basic box comes with 74 figures without counting the ones added by the stretch goals met thus far. Stretch goals add another 62 figures, plus furniture, skull piles, a poster map, a dice bag, extra dice and an extra double sided game board. Thus far.

14 days to go.

Over 8,000 backers.

A goal of $80k is now at over $1,275,000 in pledges.

Am I in?

Yes I am.

Look! I counted right!

I Found a Snowman to Match My Winter Mood

I'm in such a foul winter mood with this "blizzard of the century" that is taking it's damn sweet time to be a blizzard here in NYC.

So what do I do?

I search the net for evil snowmen.

I found the above by Zeeksie over over at DeviantArt. This is my kind of evil snowman. He must have some magical ability to turn folks into mini-mees, which he then toys with before destroying.

I could easily stat this out as a Tunnels & Trolls monster. OSR tho? Hmmmm.

Maybe an exercise for tomorrow...

(holy crap but Zeeksie has some good pieces)

Winter is Coming - NYC Style

Found this at syracuse.com.

NYC is closing down the subway system at 11 PM. It has never completely shut down the system for snow before (the subways did close for the last 2 hurricanes.)

Getting to work tomorrow should be... interesting.

Events like this always make me think of weather events in RPGs.

I've TPK'ed a party with a random winter storm from hell in my early days (thanks Dragon Magazine) of gaming. It's got me thinking about some divine weather events that could involve the party, but it shouldn't be directly. Town folks would be in need of protection or some such.

Let's see what happens tomorrow and if I get snowed in...

My Blizzard Reading Collection - Breachworld, Sword of Air and Stoneheart Valley

If I somehow am not held over at work tomorrow, I will either be stuck at work in all likelihood Tuesday thru Wednesday (assuming I can get to work with the blizzard currently being predicted for NYC) or stuck at home. In either case, I'm preparing reading material.

Breachworld - the "not Rifts RPG." Seriously, it's not, even if it does borrow some of the basic tropes. It's built off of the Mini Six system (which in turn is a variation of the Open D6 System which has it's roots in the old WEG's Star Wars D6) we have a chance to see something Rifts-like with a system that work. Heck, I suspect with minimal work one could run a Rifts campaign using these rules and Rifts Sourcebooks - because we know we didn't use the game system as written anyway.) Yes, I've had a love / hate relationship with Rifts for over 20 years.

Stoneheart Valley - I'll start by saying I am not impressed by The Wizard's Amulet. It's a railroad with an (DM)NPC as the driving force behind a newly formed party and scenes that tell you the PCs actions. Admittedly, the railroad is a short one and easily fixed, but a railroad none the less. The Crucible of Freya is much less railroady and next on my list to finish reading. The trilogy ends with large - dare I say "Mega?" - Dungeon. Lets see how far I get.

Sword of Air - currently only in PDF, so I'm bringing my tablet. I'll bounce back and forth between this and Stoneheart and see how well it all weaves together on it's own. I'm really enjoying what I've read of this sandbox setting / adventure thus far.

Hopefully I can get far enough along to get a review or three out of my forthcoming reading marathon ;)

Looking To Change Up The Tavern's Blog Header - With a Semi-Regular Rotation of Artists

I've been using +Scott Ackerman 's amazing blog header over 2 years and it still entertains me to no end. I do, however, feel there should be more.

And not more in the way of the old blog headers, which served their purpose but lacked that certain magic that Scott brought to The Tavern.

I'd like to have a stable of blog headers, rotating weekly or so and showcasing new and emerging artists in our hobby (or even established ones, if they are so interested ;) I'm really excited to see different takes on The Tavern's header.

Here's what I'm thinking.

Open call for Headers for Tenkar's Tavern Blog.

I'll pay $20 for each header that I use (Paypal or RPGNow Credit - artist's choice.)

Artist keeps the copyright to the work, I get the right to use it on the blog until I no longer blog ;)

I get the right to put the art on beer steins and other stupid stuff, because I like a collection of coolness. Anything sold for profit, profit gets split between the artist and myself. The artist can use said art however they wish without sharing profit with me (they own the work.)

First time a header is used, a post will announce the new header, showcase the artist's other art and point readers in a direction to find more of their work.

There will be a "banner collection" on the right hand side of the blog, showcasing the headers in rotation and linking to the artists' sites.

If this sounds good to you, email me at tenkarsDOTtavernATgmailDOTcom. Put "Tavern Banner" in the subject. I do get a shit ton of mail ;)

edit: "Tenkar's Tavern" has to be on the header / banner itself as part of the art :)

Holding Off on Day 11 of OSR Christmas Until AFTER Snowmegeddon 2015 ;)

The latest update for Blizzard Juno is 20-30" in NYC with wind gusts of up to 65 MPH at the height of it.

The odds of me being stuck at work for an extended period of time time (24-48+ hrs straight) is significant.

I'm sure I'll squeeze in time to post, but I'd rather not post something I need to keep tabs on until after this "major snow event."

I DO have something I'd like to post, perhaps later today, not a contest but something that certainly would desire entries. It would also be open for a while.

Found a Use for My OGRE Oversized Tote Bag - Winter Storm Juno "Go Bag"

If tomorrow's blizzard predictions hold true, I may be stuck at work tomorrow night (or held over preemptively to stand in for those that can't make it in.) If I do go home tomorrow night, assuming trains are running Tuesday morning I may get held over until Wednesday.

Yeah, I expect lots of not much fun over the next few days.

So, in the bag I have:

- a light sleeping bag

- a cheesy pillow

- a towel

- a change of underwear

- a pair of clean dry socks

- 6 single serve mac and cheese bowls

- 6 single serve instant oatmeal bowls

- 4 single serve trail mix

- books for reading

And here I was wondering if I'd ever get any use out of the bag.

For Gold & Glory - Free PDF (2e Clone)

I was surprised to see that For Gold & Glory was no longer hosted on it's old site. The reason for that apparently is that it is no longer a work in progress but a full release (or at least a true beta).

It's now hosted on Lulu, where it can be grabbed for free in PDF.

No print option as far as I can tell.

I've read thru the rules, but has anyone actually taken them for a spin? I'd love to hear about it if you have.

Swords & Wizardry and Slumber Tsar Coloring Books - Download Free in PDF

Bouncing around the Frog God web store I noticed that the Swords & Wizardry and Slumbering Tsar Coloring Books were available for free download in PDF.

Pretty freaking cool! Just print out the pages you want to use.

The art isn't half bad either.

Thoughts on a Sword of Air Sandbox Campaign (Swords & Wizardry)

I think I've mentioned before that I've been way behind on basic things like "reading email" and "reading Google + messages." I just realized today that earlier this month Frog God released the PDF to the backers of the Sword of Air Kickstarter. Yeah, I'm not even catching up with the emails that are giving me stuff.

So, earlier today I grabbed the Sword of Air PDF an accompanying map (small snippet above - 50 mile hexes) and quickly found the Stoneheart Valley. The Stoneheart Valley is a nice trilogy of low level adventures (one of which, The Tomb of Abysthor, is a manageable sized mega-dungeon.) This gives me a nice place to kick off a Sword of Air Campaign before the party starts exploring in full sandbox mode.

I was surprised that The Lost City of Barakus wasn't to be found on the map, but I figure Freegate can stand in for Endhome and the Lost City finds a new home.

Yep, apparently there isn't enough adventure in the 428 pages of the Sword of Air Campaign Book that I need to add nearly another 300 pages ;)

Actually, what I'd like to do is run two groups in the campaign setting, both working towards the same ultimate goal but from different areas initially. Logistically it's impossible for me to pull off right now, but perhaps in 2016. If I can steal enough time to prep this, maybe come the spring of this year, when I get back behind the virtual DM screen, I can kick off the initial group.

Come to think of it, with the amount of stuff going on in the setting, I may need those months just to get all of the rumor tables prepped.

Did I mention what I've read so far of The Sword of Air looks damn fine? I need to take notes tho...

Amazing Archery - Using a Simple Bow (Video Nirvana)

Jeff Carpenter of the Peril and Plunder blog sent me a link to the above video. It's less than six minutes long and it is an eye opener. The feats of skill done with a simple bow are nothing less than amazing and simply reinforces anecdotal information I had read in the past - ancient bowmen were deadly, even against armor. They also fired much faster than the D&D default.

Does it make me rethink the speed of bows in the typical OSR game? Not at all. But if one were to design a game where the bowman took center stage, there are some great ideas to be found above.

Trust me when I tell you the video will be done before you are ready for it to end...

Tome of Horrors 4 - Free with Purchase of TOH Complete or 1/2 Off on It's Own - Print

I should have passed this on earlier, but I'm behind in reading my emails:

Very good deal, whether you play Swords & Wizardry (or other old school RPGs) or gods forbid - Pathfinder.

I love my Tome of Horrors Complete for S&W - almost worth it for the adventure seeds alone.

The Frog God website can be found at this link.

Sale ends tomorrow.

Another WTF Kickstarter - Batman Legacy (because with $3k I can convince DC to give me a license)

Another tip of the hat to the Kicksnarker Community over at G+.

How screwed up is "Batman Legacy?" Let us count the ways:

1 - "picture is not my design" - so, the art used to pitch the project? it's copyright DC.

2 - Another person that does not believe in using "."

3 - It's going to be a graphic novel or series of comics, but we don't get a sample of the artist's work. Hmmm, above would have been a good place to show that sample.

4 - After reading the above synopsis - no, I won't donate.

5 - "burbank?" Why is he going to fly to burbank (he has trouble with capitalization too it seems) when DC is headquarter in NYC?

6 - Why is he flying anywhere? DC can turn him down remotely for free.

7 - Getting DC's permission is not a "real challenge" as it would never happen, even if he were a "legit" artist.

8 - I suspect he just wants to vacation in Burbank.

On Multi-Classing in AD&D 1e (Learning Something New)

The latest episode of Roll For Initiative podcast covers Labyrinth Lord's Advanced Edition Characters and compares the LL AEC to AD&D 1e, which is a natural comparison. Now, they mention that weapon restrictions for multiclass characters weren't included in 1e, but they were. The restrictions are buried in the race definitions and actually vary per race:

Half-elven characters who choose the cleric as one of their multi-classes aren't limited by that class' proscriptions upon weapons usable, but they are quite restricted in level. Half-elven characters who choose the thief class as one of their multi-roles are limited to the weaponry and armor of that class when operating as a thief. All earned experience is always divided evenly between the classes of the multi-classed character, even though the character is no longer able to gain levels in one or more of the classes. (See CHARACTER CLASSES, and consult the various classes for more detailed information pertaining to half-elven characters operating within the stated classes.)

When playing a multi-classed character, the half-orc must abide by the restrictions of the least favorable class with regard only to armor.

In the latter case the character (halfling) is limited to the armor and weaponry of a thief whenever any such functions are to be performed during the course of an adventure.

If the character (elf) is multi-clossed, the following restrictions and strictures apply: Although able to operate freely with the benefits of armor, weapons, and magical items available to the classes the character is operating in, any thieving is restricted to the armor and weaponry usable by the thief class.

(maximum of 9th level), a thief, or an assassin (maximum of 9th level). It is also possible for a dwarven character to opt to work simultaneously in the fighter and thief classes; in the latter event the dwarf will be limited to the armor permitted a thief when performing any functions of that class.

It is also possible for a gnome character to be two classes at the some time (a fighter/illusionist, fighter/thief, or an illusionist/thief, for example). In the latter case, the character is restricted to the wearing of leather armor, regardless of which class combination he or she has chosen, unless only fighting is performed by the character.

The rules were there, plain as day in the Player's Handbook, but I never realized the small variations the races had in their restrictions. I always thought any weapon could be used at all times by a character if they were multiclassed with a fighter, but it appears I was wrong. (they all have the same armor restrictions if they have a thief class as part of their multiclass)

Half-elves, halflings and elves were restricted to thieving weapons only when operating as thieves - so no backstabs with that battle axe or two handed sword. Or moving silently, hiding in shadows or the like.

Dwarves, gnomes and half-orcs can apparently use any weapon to backstab.

It appears I'm still learning my 1e rules ;)

Rant - Podcast Pet Peeves or How to Get You Podcast Off of my Regular Listening List

We don't care.

Really.

No matter how fucking cool and exciting your last gaming session was, if you can't turn that 7 and 1/2 minute meandering and boring tale into a 30 second highlight reel, we don't want to hear it. Yes, tell us about how you smuggled your gold plated blaster past security by secreting it in your anus. Don't tell us how how you landed your ship, got a deal on the fuel on planet, talked the dock master down in his fee had and all the other bullshit that puts us to sleep.

You might think all of the minutiae is interesting and exciting. Trust me when I tell you, we don't care. Get to the point or we may just stop listening all together.

Inside jokes.

Another thing that is interesting to you, the podcast host and your fellow hosts, but for the rest of us, we don't get the joke. It's worse than being boring, it's frustrating. Cut the shit out. Leave the inside jokes to the time you spend bullshitting with your other hosts before and after recording. This doesn't mean avoid telling jokes or funny stories, just avoid shit that needs insider knowledge. You want your podcast to be accessible, not exclusive.

Stop with the fucking belching.

You! Yes You! You know who you are. If you wouldn't do it in front of "the normals" and wouldn't do it at a gaming table at a con, don't do it on a podcast. You are no longer 16. You are probably 46. Fake the maturity if you somehow lack it.

Have some knowledge of the game systems you are talking about. 

If you don't know something, you are better off admitting it than making up an answer, because your listeners probably DO know the right answers. I really hate yelling at my car speakers when someone calls LotFP Weird Fantasy a AD&D 2e clone or has no idea how multiclassing works in AD&D.

Avoid scripts.

This shit get's painful. I'm not saying don't have a topic or even an outline, but when I hear folks reading from a script I want to mentally insert belches... and I hate belches.

Stop reading letters verbatim.

Nothing is more boring than listening to a letter being read on air that was poorly written in the first place. If you are going to read letters, edit them before hand to get to the meat of the discussion, otherwise you are just filling time that could be used for something else - like listening to a more interesting podcast.

All my ranting for now ;)

Missed a Day of Posting for the First Time in Over Two Years - Starting New Count ;)

Just got home a few minutes after midnite.

The delay was not work related. Or maybe it was. Rach and I met a recently retire Detective at our local pub and hit it off like long lost friends.

Folks in common. Lost brothers in arms in common. Even the same escape from city life in common.

Reinforced the idea that I'm leaving when I hit 20 years and not a day longer.

Heck, even delayed a rant I've had brewing all day - My Podcast Pet Peeves.

I guess it will have to wait till tomorrow.

1208 AM - so close ;)

If I Were to Wear One RPG Related Shirt...

it would be the one above.

This and other fine examples of +David Fisher 's work are on sale for $14 for another 2 days or so.

I might need one for NTRPGCon, if only to step away from the NYPD "Buff" Shirts.

Damn, this could work too...

Tonight - 830 PM EST - Tavern Talk Chat Room - Moderated by Vince Florio & Myself

Last week's inaugural Tavern Talk using The Tavern's Chat Box was an overwhelming success. We had many conversations going and many drop ins from across the spectrum of OSR creators and personalities.

Tonight we are doing it all again, and +Vincent Florio and I expect an even larger turn out.

Here's some ways to make tonight's experience less hectic and more pleasurable:

- in the built in chat box, there is the below icon in the right hand corner. Clicking this allows you to pop the char box out as it's own window.

- after popping out the chat box, drag the corner of the chat box page and make the page larger. Now, click the below icon in the now popped out and enlarged chat box - this will allow you to resize the chat box - larger and wider chat box should result in easier to follow conversations.

- if you don't want to have the chat box automatically scroll to the last message (which at the height of last week's conversations was fast and furious) click on the below icon and then un-click "scroll to latest message"

Wayward Kickstarter - johnnyy's game store (wall of text warning)

This would certainly fall under the "Dont's" category.

Just think, all johnnyy wants to raise is $250k...

Two paragraphs. Three periods. Wow.

There is medication that can help I think I shot may need now Fireball whiskey.

Hat tip goes to +Matthew Koelling of the Kicksnarker community on G+.

Christmas is Still the Season - B/X Hardcover Arrived!

Sometimes I don't ask Santa how he does things. I just accept it on faith alone. The fact that Santa has a Scottish burr is a quirk that I'll gladly accept.

Thank you Scottish Santa!

The Gift Receivers of OSR Christmas 2014 Day 10 Are...

Today we are giving away four different Rob Kuntz adventures and supplements graciously donated by +Jon Hershberger and Black Blade Publishing. They will ship word wide.

Time to award the presents :)

- Rob Kuntz's The Original Bottle City adventure, reprinted by Black Blade this past summer goes to: Travelling Spellbook

- Rob Kuntz's Cairn of the Skeleton King adventure, originally published by Rob's Pied Piper Publishing imprint, now out of print goes to: Erik Talvola

- Rob Kuntz's Tower of Blood adventure, originally published by Rob's Pied Piper Publishing imprint, now out of print goes to:  +Matthew Skail 

- Rob Kuntz's and Eric Shook's Campaign Treasuries supplement, originally published by Rob's Pied Piper Publishing imprint, now out of print goes to +Dak Ultimak 

Congrats to all!

Here's the deal - the above 4 need to email me at tenkarsDOTtavern at that gmail thing with "OSR Day 10" in the email subject. We need your mailing address.

IF WE DON'T GET A RESPONSE BY JANUARY 27, 2015 1000AM EST THE GIFT WE BE AWARDED TO ANOTHER!

Therefore, if you know one of the 4 above, maybe you want to point out they have a gift waiting for them. Especially the first 2, as they aren't going to get a notification from G+.

Kickstarter Do's and Dont's - Part 2 - Cardboard Boobies and Endless Stretch Goals do Not Build Castles

Everyone has their favorite train wreck. 4thWar Equipment - Wargaming Table is mine. Where to start with the dont's?

Bad English - not just spoken but in the subtitles. At the very least get the subtitles right. Although the hot chick is adorable when she messes up the English words, which is just about every one.

While it's great to know that even your "chubbiest friends" won't break the cardboard tables or stools, it really doesn't sound like a selling point when put that way.

Also, unrealistic funding goals. They wanted $99,000 and hit $57,000. Wisely, when they rebooted, they asked for $13,000 and hit $35,000.

What about endless stretch goals? Appendix N Adventure Toolkits  fell victim to that. With a goal of just $1,000 for spanking new DCC RPG adventures, it hit nearly $19,000 on the back of numerous stretch goals. In the end, 5 extra adventures, a GM Screen and a gaming box were promised, with the projected completion date of July 2012. Now, 2 1/2 years later, most backers, even those that kicked in extra to help with shipping costs, have nothing but PDFs to show for it. Sure, it raised over $17k of extra funds, but the number of backers waiting on stuff and adventures promised, let along a box to put the goodies in, did not keep pace.

The other problem? Shipping costs. The longer a project takes to fulfill, the greater the shipping costs incurred. BTW, this is shipping in waves apparently, so multiple shipments to each backer. More money wasted.

Oh, and then there's the "retail avenues when backers still haven't gotten theirs." Always something that gets pushback.

Nystul. So much to say. So much has been said already.

Don't use a Kickstarter's funds to fulfill a previous Kickstarter's obligations.

Don't try and fund an Indiegogo Project (Nystul's Castle) to fund Kickstarter obligations.

Don't use your Kickstarters' funds to form a company and hire staff for projects that you haven't even started yet.

Don't blow your Kickstarter funds on an unrelated "Dwarf Con."

Don't promise add ons that you never intend to / or are incapable of delivering.

Don't piss on folks that are doing your work for free.

Shit, just do the very opposite of Mike and maybe you'll be OK.

You can read up on the Nystul Madness here at The Tavern and at Boardgame Geeks.

Kickstarter Do's and Dont's - Part 1 - Wear Shoes (I beg of you)

Kickstarter. It's potential for abuse was huge before they stopped policing themselves. Now it's left to consumers to sift out the scams and the like. This isn't about scams.

Today we are about presentation. You might have the best idea in the world, the greatest game, the most awesome heated sock and personal coffee brewer ever imagined, but if you can't bother to present it well, you might as well not present it as all.

Where should we start?

How about from the bottom and some Dont's.

Wear some fucking shoes.

Raised $5 of $12,500 goal

There is a mindset that you need a video for your Kickstarter to be successful. There is some truth to that, as the voice on listens to can make the project more personal and real. Imagining the smell of one's dirty socks does not make a project more appealing to me. Sometimes none is more than poor.

You also need to put your best foot forward right from the start. Every Kickstarter comes down to, at it's root, someone holding their hand out for your money with the promise to give something in return at a later date. Some ask for $100, others ask for $100,000. All want your

If this is a sample of what you are promising, you apparently don't really need the cash.

Raised $172 of $100 goal

Sometimes it's the simple things that are lacking - like coherence.

Soul Sword RPG is a Christian based rpg game the games theme is focused around the "Whole body armor of God" Ephesians 6 

18 year old Jack Rionhart a babe in Christ is called by Jehova to be the Spirit Leader unsure and fearful of the task before him he soon learns he must gain all of the lost pieces of the Body Armor of God and restore the fruits of a spiritually dead people of Larule. A growing evil from the land to the East threatens Jacks progress. Lord Cain Wants to destroy king Abel and take over Larule promising a life of pleasures and lust. The life blood of the kingdom a large natural crystal called the SEOUL purifies the fresh water for the people of larule. In Lord Cains lust for power he must kidnap the remaining descendants of the Founders to find out where the SEOUL is hidden so he can rule the entire land. Can Jack and his team of four restore the faith of Larule, find the Whole Body Armor of God and with the Sword of the Spirit destroy the Evil One who posses Lord Cain in time?

Add in the ceaseless rocking back and forth in the chair in the attached video - remember how I said above that sometimes no video is better than poor video - and you have a prefect example of what not to do when presenting your Kickstarter.

$42 raised of $1,000 goal

We've got more coming. Castles, cardboard, countless promises unfilled and lots of failures (even successes can be failures.)

A "What the F@ck?" Kickstarter - How to Game Master like a F@cking Boss

Yeah, I know that the real title of this Kickstarter doesn't use a @ in place of the letter "u" in the most versatile word in the English language. I do try to keep curse words out of the blog post titles as best I can, so @ it is.

In any case, Venger is back with a new Kickstarter - How to Game Master like a Fucking Boss.

Now, first rule of a successful Kickstarter is - have it written before putting your hand out. By his own words, Venger has only about a third of this done as he kicks off his request for funding.

I'm not impressed by the percentages mentioned above. Oh, and no cover art yet. Heck, no sample art at all.

edit: Cover art and artist name added to the Kickstarter page. Venger does listen to advice. Now if only the boiler plate could sound less like "get laid with Secrets of the Masters."

But there is this excellent example of wooden dice trays that Venger puts together by hand. Pledge $111 for one of these.

I know Venger has a high opinion of himself. More power to him. I would like to have the following explained (I know its hyperbole) - which "Game Mastering practices of yore" are "weighing our hobby down."

The time has come to set down what I've learned so that you, too, can wrestle the untamed crimson dragon that lurks in the shadows beyond the lowly Game Mastering practices of yore, weighing our hobby down.  To wrestle with the dragon and win... that is what I shall teach you!

Hey, we get the secrets of the "Hidden Masters!"

I'll be going over the entire Game Mastering process:  tips, tricks, techniques, outside the box practices of the Hidden Masters, state of mind, confidence, insecurities, combat to non-combat encounter ratio, improvisation, room for improvement, dos and don'ts, random tables, as well as, a number of other topics.  Everything you need in order to Game Master like a fucking boss!

Why the fuck do I feel like I've stumbled across some damn website trying to sell me "secrets" that will make me "a Fucking Boss", grow my penis, improve my memory, bring me untold wealth and help me lose 50 pounds in just 5 weeks?

Because it reads like the very same shit.

Want to improve your Game Mastering skills quickly and effectively and for free? Be a player in games run by different GMs. Take the bits and pieces that work for you and improve your skills. Most importantly? Have fun.

We Played Smart, Right Up Until We Didn't

Last night was another session of +Joe D 's Blood Island setting / house rules. It went well, right up until the end of the session.

On the outdoor trek to an "abandoned" tower, we either avoided or out thunk our wandering adversaries, including the well played use of a sleep spell and entanglement. I must say, entanglement is a damn powerful spell outdoors.

It was the door knocker at the tower that took the first and last casualty of the night.

"I raise the door knocker" are famous last words now. Not mine or my character's, but our one and only fighter's.

"It turns into a snake and bites you. Save vs poison or die."

One dead fighter.

There is a reason my magic-user doesn't like to touch too much. Unknown items lead to known death quite often ;)

Save or die is refreshing. All characters are immensely mortal.

Lets see who bites it next week :)