IndieGogo - For the Love of Valentine (S&W, 5e, PF1e)

Frog God Games releases its limited run, softcover adventures through IndieGogo. Their latest is For the Love of Valentine, which comes in Swords & Wizardry, 5e, and Pathfinder 1e flavors. 6 bucks in PDF, 20 bucks for the Print plus PDF. You may occasionally find some of these releases at various conventions the Frogs attend. Otherwise, your only guaranteed opportunity is when they seek funding on IndieGogo.

Will Love triumph?  

A chance encounter connects your party with a charismatic prophet on the lam, and the woman who loves him. Congratulations, you’ve stumbled into an epic clash of religions, and you may or may not be on the winning side of that conflict. Sure, you have Love on your side. But they have soldiers, power, and maybe something more. Delivering your guy to safety means winding your way through a crowded city celebrating a raucous festival of fertility, and a race through the countryside, where all is not as it seems.  

For the Love of Valentine takes your 1st-3rd level characters and their NPC charges through a land in turmoil, while being hunted by the law. And perhaps, something darker…? Inspired by the tales of St. Valentine and the ancient legends of Lupercalia, your players will ultimately have to answer the question: Will Love triumph?  

The setting in this scenario drew heavily on the politics and rituals of the Roman Empire for inspiration. Interested readers are encouraged to learn more about the Lupercalia Festival, the legends of St. Valentine, and the god Faunus. 

We have placed the adventure in the coastal city of Freegate, an independent city in the Western Akados region of the Lost Lands. Additional information can be found in the City of Brass adventure and the Gazetteer of the Lost Lands, both by Frog God Games. 

You are, of course, free to place this adventure in a small- to mid-sized city on a river. If you wish a more Roman feel to the adventure, replace Freegate with the city of Terni, the Talamerin river with the Nera, and mention the power and authority of Rome, a mere four-days’ march to the south.

Death Notice - Christopher Tolkien (JRR Tolkien's Son)

The news of Christopher Tolkien's Death (JRR Tolkien's Son) made the rounds of social media yesterday. He was 95 years at the time of his passing.

From Wikipedia:

Christopher John Reuel Tolkien (21 November 1924 – 15 January 2020) was an English editor and academic. He was the son of author J. R. R. Tolkien and the editor of much of his father's posthumously published work. Tolkien drew the original maps for his father's The Lord of the Rings.

I knew he edited much of his father's posthumous work but had no idea he drew the original maps for the Lord of the Rings.

It was easy to overlook the influence he had on Middle Earth. The number of his father's work he edited is stunning:

Tolkien, J. R. R. (1977). ——— (ed.). The Silmarillion. , with Guy Gavriel Kay
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1979). ——— (ed.). Pictures by J. R. R. Tolkien.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1980). ——— (ed.). Unfinished Tales.
Carpenter, Humphrey; ———, eds. (1981). The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien. , as an assisting editor
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1983). ——— (ed.). The Monsters and the Critics, and Other Essays.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1983–2002). ——— (ed.). The History of Middle-earth. , 12 volumes
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1983). ——— (ed.). The Book of Lost Tales, part 1. 1.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1984). ——— (ed.). The Book of Lost Tales, part 2. 2.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1985). ——— (ed.). The Lays of Beleriand. 3.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1986). ——— (ed.). The Shaping of Middle-earth. 4.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1987). ——— (ed.). The Lost Road and Other Writings. 5.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1988). ——— (ed.). The Return of the Shadow. 6.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1989). ——— (ed.). The Treason of Isengard. 7.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1990). ——— (ed.). The War of the Ring. 8.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1992). ——— (ed.). Sauron Defeated. 9.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1993). ——— (ed.). Morgoth's Ring. 10.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1994). ——— (ed.). The War of the Jewels. 11.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1996). ——— (ed.). The Peoples of Middle-earth. 12.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2002). ——— (ed.). The History of Middle-earth Index.
Also The History of The Lord of the Rings comprising volumes 6, 7, 8, and 9 (volume 9 re-titled The End of the Third Age, some paperback editions truncated to only relevant chapters)
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2007). ——— (ed.). The Children of Húrin.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2009). ——— (ed.). The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2013). ——— (ed.). The Fall of Arthur.
———, ed. (2014). Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary. Translated by Tolkien, J. R. R.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2017). ——— (ed.). Beren and Lúthien.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2018). ——— (ed.). The Fall of Gondolin.

Deal of the Day - Old School Essentials Classic Fantasy: Rules Tome

We've been using the Old School Essentials rules in Tim Short's Monday Night game for the past year or so. Well laid out, beautifully edited, you aren't going to be surprised by anything new. Instead, they will fit like a pair of well-worn gloves coming right out of the box.

Today's Deal of the Day happens to be those same rues -  the Old School Essentials Classic Fantasy: Rules Tome. Normally 20 bucks in PDF, until tomorrow morning you can snag them for a mere 10 bucks.

Old-School Essentials is an adventure role-playing game of exploration, danger, monsters, and magic. The game is intentionally rules-light, putting the focus of play on imagination, improvisation, and fun. The rules are optimised for ease of use at the table, with meticulous attention to wording and layout clarity. What's more, Old-School Essentials is 100% compatible with the classic Basic/Expert game from 1981, meaning that decades of adventure are at your fingertips! 

A Complete Game All in One Book 

Old-School Essentials is a modular game where the core rules of the game are extended by additional "rules modules" which add content for different genres of fantastic adventure. The Old-School Essentials Rules Tome is a compilation of the core rules plus four rules modules, forming a complete game for Classic Fantasy adventures: 

• Core Rules: Rules for character creation and advancement, adventuring in dungeons, the wilderness, and at sea, magic and combat.
• Classic Fantasy: Genre Rules: Seven classic classes (cleric, dwarf, elf, fighter, halfling, magic-user, thief), complete lists of weapons and adventuring gear, extensive lists of vehicles, mounts, and vessels, mercenaries and specialists for hire, rules for stronghold construction.
• Classic Fantasy: Cleric and Magic-User Spells: The complete set of 34 cleric spells (from 1st to 5th level) and 72 magic-user spells (from 1st to 6th level), for use by players or cleric, elf, and magic-user characters.
• Classic Fantasy: Monsters: A selection of over 200 classic monsters to challenge adventurers of all levels.
• Classic Fantasy: Treasures: A hoard of over 150 wondrous magic items.

The material in this book forms a complete clone of the classic Basic/Expert game, including all rules, classes, spells, monsters, and magic items.

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Deal of the Day - Gathox Vertical Slum: Quake Alley Mayhem (Swords & Wizardry)

If I'd been feeling better I would have gotten this post up earlier, but I'm sick as a dog - whatever that actually means.

Today's Deal of the Day at DriveThruRPG is Gathox Vertical Slum: Quake Alley Mayhem. It is an adventure for Swords & Wizardry characters of levels 1 to 3. Normally 6.99 in PDF, until tomorrow morning it is reduced to 4.19 in PDF.

Enter a seedy underworld of alien hyper-capitalists and wondrous ancient artifacts with Quake Alley Mayhem!  

This murderous, misshapen module foists a host of traps, puzzles, and environmental hazards upon unsuspecting players in a race against time. Structured for both tournament and campaign play, Quake Alley Mayhem! includes pregenerated characters, supplements to track the party's progress and impending doom, and hooks to fit the adventure into a larger campaign. 

Yep, that is an affiliate link above. Keep your sick bartender knocked out with Nyquil and antibiotics by using The Tavern's affiliate links.

Kickstarter - FantaSOAP Tears of Unicorn, Sputum of Troll & Chant of Dryad

A collectable series of magic potions, filled in awesome flasks containing RPG dice and creamy soaps inspired to fantasy creatures!!!

Yep, it's another Soap-n-Dice Kickstarter. What makes FantaSOAP Tears of Unicorn, Sputum of Troll & Chant of Dryad Kickstarter different?

So, what makes this one different? Liquid soap and potentially glass bottles.

Everyone knows how much Role Playing game players like their dice. They are a little treasure for all of us. We want to create special items designed to RPG, boardgames and tabletop games lovers, the perfect gift for your lovely master or for those who dream of dice just closing their eyes... :)

Ah, a nice bottle of Scotch!

In this first phase of the FantaSOAP campaign we want to create awesome flasks, with the aspect of a magic potion, inspired to fantasy creatures, spells, mith and folklore, filled with special customized creamy soap, enriched with special related soap flakes. After using the soap you'll find a special set of RPG Dice hidden in it. We will attach to each flask a scroll with a special spell, related to the "magic potion". 

The Flasks: We will send to you cute ampoules in glass or plastic, with a paper scroll attached on it. Flask's models will be sent randomly, according to availability. 

The Soap: We will fill flasks with HQ creamy soap, enriched with HQ soap flakes. A specialized company will create it for us, according to our requests. Soap will not be HOMEMADE, but professionally produced. We consider it a good warranty. Scent and soap will be related to the subject of the model, please see specific description below. 

The Dice: You'll find a special set of RPG dice into the soap. Dice will be professional crafted and HQ. Colors will be related to the fantasy "setting" of the magic potion.

Fuck, not Scotch!

Wait, I can't choose between glass and plastic? I don't want glass and slippery liquid soap in my bathtub.

It's Been a While Since I've Dropped in on Dragonsfoot

I know I've told this story elsewhere, but at my first NTRPG Con back in 2014, I had an in-person Dragonsfoot sighting, kinda sorta ;)

The Wednesday night before the convention we (Rach and I) arrived at our hotel. Not knowing ANYONE we decided to use the hotel pool. One other was using the pool at the time, a male probably in his late 30s.

Rach decided to introduce us because she figured he must be here for the convention too, and EVERYONE read Tenkar's Tavern. She couldn't have been more wrong. Heh. My proud wife dropped my name and the other swimmer had no clue who I was (and he was there for the convention). Rach was confused. How could this be?

I asked him if he read blogs. The answer was no. Then I asked which forum he frequented? Dragonsfoot. There was my answer :)

It's been my experience that the audiences for blogs and forums, while they do overlap to some extent, certainly favor one over the other depending on the individual in question.

The thing is, not going to Dragonsfoot can mean missing out on some damn good stuff. Free stuff. I'm not even talking about the message boards. No, I'm talking about the AD&D 1e, BFRPG, C&C, and so much more downloads section. If you want access to high quality and abundant material for your OSR campaign, you can do your one-stop shopping at Dragonsfoot.

Link to adventures

Link to settings

Kickstarter - Make 100: MeepleCraft Mini Maps (Leather Maps)

"Handmade postcard-sized leather maps for display or use in RPGs!"

I love maps. I have little ability to do so myself, which is probably why I like them so much ;)

The Make 100: MeepleCraft Mini Maps Kickstarter brings those maps to 4"x 6" leather pieces. Yes, maps on leather. I'm not sure if I need one, but I want one. At 30 bucks a pop, I think I can afford it too.

Each map will be roughly 4" x 6" in size and backers will have the option of keeping them rectangular or having the edges scalloped in a way that resembles the style of maps seen in fantasy settings.  As we get more maps made I will update here with more photos showing examples of the types of maps you may expect with the different tiers.   

The Mini Maps project will hopefully be the beginning of future cartography projects for me.  While this project isn't about making custom maps (backers will receive a random map of our design from the tier they selected), I can see this as great practice for making larger, custom maps that will enhance an RPG setting.  Backing this project will help me learn more skills and build experience (basically - I'm hoping to level up) in order to bring forth something bigger in the future.

Deal of the Day - Woodfall (System Neutral Setting)

I'm surprised I don't already own this. This is something right up my alley. Woodfall is a  DTRPG Best Gold selling system-neutral setting, suitable for OSR play. Normally 12 bucks, recently 9 bucks and now $7.20 in PDF until tomorrow morning.

Woodfall is a system neutral dark fantasy mini setting.

Explore a dark fairytale setting, wade through a misty swamp, get caught up in the fighting between warring monster clans, discover a strange town of witches and thieves, and search for forgotten treasure. 

Woodfall is a swamp belonging to a king where witches, thieves and outlaws are squatting. They have built a town on top of the swamp and have resisted several evictions. The town is a hub for black market activity and magical folk.  

The surrounding forest and swamp is a hexcrawl filled with various monster factions.

The Setting has many political themes, influenced mostly from 15th-16th century European history but also includes contemporary political themes and satire. Woodfall village depicts anti-authoritarian peasants in revolt against a kingdom. Elements of influence are taken from :the German peasants war, the anabaptist's, the diggers (of the 1600's), the free miners in the forest of Dean, the history of the witch trails in Europe and history of squatting in the middle ages in Europe ( Tŷ unnos ). Woodfall village is thus a strange village that players might not have encountered much before in fantasy games. 

About the Book 

- 6 x 9 digest size 

- Designed to be easy to drop into your game or run as a stand alone 

- 92 Pagew

PDF Includes : 

- Bookmarks 

- Hyperlinked table of contents and village map 

- Extra A4 PDF with 2 maps to print and hand out to players 

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There's "OSR Community Content" at DriveThruRPG - What?

When I think OSR, I think D&D retro-clones, or at the very least, systems that are open license - OGL. The OGL is pretty much the reason OSR retro-clones even exist.

So, if OSR rule systems are OGL, why would one need to produce content under a more restrictive Community Content License over on DriveThruRPG?

When that OSR ruleset is is Zweihander, a clone of the Warhammer Fantasy RPG.

By virtue of the fact that Zweihander is a "closed rule system", one can not simply publish compatible material for it. Thus the Zweihander Community Content.

All of the Hottest Community OSR shown in the screenshot above is for Zweihander.

Is Zweihander gaming the system? Is it OSR merely to own the hottest list?

I truly don't know but look forward to your thoughts...

Above is an affiliate link. Affiliate links keep the beers cold and the taps flowing.

Certificate in Tabletop Gaming - Spalding University (May 22-31 in Louisville, Kentucky)

Earlier today I was sent an email by Dirk Stanley, perhaps best known for his FarAway Lands RPG. Apparently, Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky, will be offering a Certificate in Tabletop Gaming this Spring (May 22-31, 2020).

It is very tempting. Don't think I can spend a week and a half away from my family, but tempting indeed.

BTW, Dirk created the program and curriculum.

Are you a writer? Are you into playing tabletop games? Have you long wanted to create your own game? What if you could get feedback and direction on your game while simultaneously pursuing a graduate certificate in writing with a focus on Tabletop Gaming at an accredited university?

Level-up your career and pursue your passion simultaneously at Spalding University’s School of Creative and Professional Writing. The low-residency certificate program fuses writing and tabletop game design, focusing on board game, card game, and role-playing game writing and creation.

The certificate program begins with a ten-day residency on Spalding’s campus, where you will participate in a residency workshop/seminar with other game writers, honing your craft to a fine edge. Afterward, you’ll return home to complete an independent study, working one-on-one with a mentor as you explore the mechanics, setting, and writing of your game. You will be introduced to crowdfunding strategies and techniques along with methods and resources related to tabletop game design. And you will receive focused feedback on your work designed to take your creativity to the next level.

For students who decide to continue their studies, certificate credits can be used to fulfill first-semester requirements toward earning an advanced creative writing degree: the two-semester Master of Arts in Writing (MAW) or the four-semester Master of Fine Arts in Writing (MFA).

The residency takes place May 22-31 on Spalding’s campus in Louisville, Kentucky. The early-placement application deadline of February 1 guarantees a slot to those admitted to the program, though later applications will also be considered. Financial aid is available. To inquire about special application requirements for the certificate, email SchoolofWriting@spalding.edu.  

News - Fantasy Flight Games Closes Interactive and RPG Divisions

The following was shared on Facebook:

Then there was this yesterday:

Cubicle 7 drops its Middle Earth License and now Fantasy Flight Games is apparently ending its Star Wars RPG. Could it be that the licensed properties of this magnitude leave little margin for profit?

edit - this was sent to me from someone who's insight I respect:

You pay your RPG staff 40k a year.

They had 4-5 staff people.

That's 200k a year just in salary.

Plus freelancers.

Sell a book for 40

Costs say... 7 dollars to print and ship en mass, per book.

The retailer buys it for half retail.

So you're making 12 a book.

What MOST other large companies do (C7 did this) is have ONE guy who runs each IP and everyone else is on freelance or short term contract.

It's what WotC does.

So most likely, FFG is gonna install a head of their RPG department, cancel RPGs that aren't cost-effective, and then have one manager for those that remain that are.

RPGs made for all of 9% of FFG's revenues back in 2016 I think. Then they expanded heavily.

Star Wars has a solid fanbase of buyers, but the fandom as a whole is pissed.

L5R happened and no one really cared.

So they went to Genesys to cut external costs.

Genesys can still make money for them because it has a core book, player's guide, and the Foundry where fans can make content and THEY make money.

IndieGogo - The Folio: Black Label #3 (1e & 5e)

The Folio Black Label releases have been a nice option for fans for The Folio for more edgy releases. I've always been happy with the quality of the various Folio releases I've backed. The Folio: Black Label #3:White Witch and Black Stone is the latest release in the series.

The Folio: Black Label series are fantasy adventure modules that are compatible with BOTH classic Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and 5th Edition D&D formats.  Each adventure combines what I enjoyed most from the heady days of of the late 1970s and the 1980s swords & sorcery storytelling.  

The Folio: Black Label #3 continues in the same locations as Black Label's #1 & #2, and is going to have even more adult edge than is found in the standard Folio, and yes, there might be some nudity, and maybe some horror, and maybe a twisted quality here or there, but at the base its really just about the unfettered fun of hacking and slashing your way through a pulp style adventure with blatant evil doers, magical treasures, and exposed flesh.   

So, I'm throwing out the playbook for 2019, and turning the flux capacitor back to the early days of gaming.  I hope some of you will join me. 

Kickstarter - The Hero's Journey 2e

I've been waiting for The Hero's Journey 2e Kickstarter to launch for a while now. I've known about it, I've gotten sneak peeks and I'm truly amped up.

Full disclosure - James Spahn is probably the closest I've come to having a brother. We've both been there for the other at the drop of a dime. I can't think of a truer friend.

I also can't think of a more skilled, talented and prolific write of RPG material. Name the property - The One Ring, Star Wars, OSRIC, Swords & Wizardry - fuck it, here's a more complete listing: https://rpggeek.com/rpgdesigner/34854/james-spahn

The Hero's Journey 2ed is James' baby, perhaps nearly as much as his daughter Trixie. We've spoken about his passion for the project, and it shows. Trust me - I've read much of it ;)

The Hero’s Journey Fantasy Roleplaying, Second Edition is a fantasy roleplaying game that blends classic tradition and modern game design to bring you an experience where players take up the mantle of heroes in a world of danger and magic inspired by classic fairy stories and timeless fantasy literature. 

Whether you’re taking a Knight clad in shining armor astride your grand steed, a cunning Burglar hoping to use your silver tongue to flatter a terrifying Elder Wyrm while your friends slip away, or a dedicated Yeoman who has given your heart and soul to defend the good and true people of the world from the strange dangers of Fairie and beyond, The Hero’s Journey, Second Edition creates a gaming experience firmly rooted traditional western folklore where the player characters are more than just sword-swinging mercenaries looking to kick in the door, kill the monster, and claim the loot. In The Hero’s Journey, Second Edition, they are all that stands between civilization and the unimaginable dangers just beyond the wild…

The game is written, the art is done, the editing is finished and layout is done! The PDF has already been uploaded to DriveThruRPG, and proof copies ordered! 

This game is ready to go. We just need your help to get the word out about it, and help make sure everyone gets paid!  Gallant Knight Games has already paid for the art, layout, and editing, but making games is more expensive than that.  

The long term success of a game can often depend on retail stores, gaming groups and more. The goal of our project is to run a focused, tight campaign that will allow us to make a high-quality offset print run of the corebook in both softcover and hardcover. We believe James has created a work of art here, and we want to show case that with the best print run we can do.  

The day the funds are delivered to Gallant Knight Games you'll get your PDF and we'll put the game to print. This will be a very fast turn around and a very tightly focused project. We're producing one book, and everything else is digital.  

I'll be grabbing James for a Fireside Chat in the next few days :)

In the meantime:

OSR Christmas - Awarding the Day 3 Gifts - Come and Get Them!

edit - Ack - I posted too quickly. Today we are awarding the last of the OSR Christmas Gifts - and remind folks there are still unclaimed gifts from Dys 1 and 2.

2 - Moon Wizard OSR Patchs by Thad Moore
imredave
optimizer

1 - James Mishler Games "One of Everything" in PDF
       (19 titles in all)
RhinoDino1973

From MonkeyBlood / Glynn Seal
 1 - The City of Great Lunden hardback plus Map Sets and Pregen
Character Cards (Print - Ships Worldwide)
Adam Ness

1 - HandyMaps Towns & Villages (Print - Ships World Wide)
Red Dice Diaries
Peter D

1 - Midderlands PDF
Starglow

 1 - The City of Great Lunden PDF
ReekyMarut

From Genius Loci Games

1 - Pyramid of the Lost King (at cost Print on Demand)
TheRealEpi

2 - New Class Options (PDF)
Marc Plourde

From Roan Studios

Full Roan Studio (pdf) collection on Drive Thru RPG (15 titles) 
ALSO - an 8.5 x 11 (A4) custom map or character illustration (value $150 US) 
FrDave

1 - Far Realms and Sea of Stars (PDF) Harbinger Games
Toren

From BRW Games

1 bundle - Hard Copy & PDF of Castle of the Mad Archmage, plus the expansions; Level 3 East, Musicland, and Bitterbark's Circus. (note - ships US Only)
Sherlock

SherlockFrom Tenkar's Tavern / The Tavern Chat Podcast

2 - $10 DrivethruRPG Gift Certificates
GMJasonGURPS
Dan Delgado

Please confirm your gifts ASAP by emailing tenkars.tavern at gmail.com. Put "OSR Christmas Gift Day X" in the subject (X being the day your gift was awarded). There are still unclaimed gifts from Days 1 and 2. Go back to the prior days and check to see if you missed a gift. I'd hate to have to repick unclaimed gifts. We'll give until January 12th to claim gifts, then they go back in the pot.

Yes, there are affiliate links above. Affiliate links keep the taps flowing and the lights on at The Tavern. As always, I thank you.

Huge thanks to all the donors. You folks rock!

Spitballing a Weekly Video OSR Review Show - Looking for Feedback

As I've mentioned on the podcast side of things, I'm looking to start a weekly video review show. Most of the feedback I've gotten is steering me towards recent OSR releases, but I want some additional feedback, thus this post.

Here's where I'm at in my mind right now:

- 15 to 20 minutes per episode

- 1 to 2 releases per episode - DCC Lankmar would be solo, but might cover 2 adventures per video

- once a week - release on Wednesdays perhaps

- occasional deep tracks reviews, perhaps digging a game out of storage

- probably Youtube, but I'm open to other options

- would love to have a second host drop-in, but I don't see Hangouts as an option anymore.

If you have thoughts/critiques I'm all ears :)

Alright, today was a rough one sciatica-wise. Time to watch football from bed and drug up...

State of The Tavern & The Tavern Master - A Look Back at 2019

Yep, we're in a New Year! Woot!

So, what did 2019 bring to all things Tavern?

Well, for the Tenkar's Tavern Discord Server (insert invite here) we are currently at 2283 members. The Common Room is active 24/7. Sunday mornings and Friday Nights we have roundtable podcasts that are recorded weekly with live audiences (RPG Breakfast Club and RPG Coast to Coast). We also have live weekly voice hangouts Tuesday Nights (Frog Chat) and Thursday Nights (Tavern Chat - yes, we are sticking with the change of night for 2020).

The Tenkar's Tavern Facebook Group has hit 2540 members. It is a lively place to hang out.  I never would have expected such numbers.  Thank you all.

The Tenkar's Tavern MeWe Group is chugging along with 575 members :)

The Tavern Chat Podcast had 365 episodes in 365 days (missed one day and double up the next day - ah well). Over 187k total plays since the podcast launched in the Spring of 2018.

The Tenkar's Tavern Blog hit an All-Time High in traffic in the Summer of 2019. Holy shit! Although I had planned to migrate to a new hosting service, that was put on hold for now. Still in the planning stage.

I also had an all-time high convention attendance in 2019. Total Con, Gary Con, NTRPG Con, Shire Con, and GameHole Con. Phew.

On a personal note, I ended the year with some minor but annoying health issues. Still fighting them (and HUGE sciatica flare-up today) but they are merely annoyances compared to what others are battling.

Again, thank you all for your support. Your support is the fuel that keeps me going strong.

Kickstarter - A System-Neutral TTRPG Adventure Designed by Backers

I am a huge supporter of Thom Wilson / Throwi Games for years now, and Thom's latest, A System-Neutral TTRPG Adventure Designed by Backers Kickstarter looks to be really cool.

In this Make/100 Project, backers will be able to pick the theme, antagonists, and some of the monsters in the adventure that I will custom-create for 100 people. Additionally, backers can sponsor art (including a custom cover piece by one of the artists I call on often for work), add additional pages, or back the project for the end result: a PDF adventure!

This is a very inexpensive Kickstarter to back. You can get the PDF for as low as 3 bucks.

Fucked Up Far West Kickstarter - You Can't Even Register on the Far West Forums and Gareth Won't Communicate via Kickstarter

Ah, Far West. I hardly know you after waiting over 8 fucking years. Yes, today is January 1st, 2020 and Far West is now over 8 years late. You really should listen to the video on the Kickstarter page. I just did. What promise. What a windbag of bullshit. Gareth is one of those creators that simply CAN'T CREATE when paid upfront. You need to pay folks like Gareth upon delivery. Few even remember the preorders on the Buckaroo Bonzai RPG (you might have expected Gareth to remove that page - I know I expected that) that predates Far West.

Now to put it simply, back in July Gareth told backers he was no longer going to use Kickstarter to communicate - it was simply going to be used to update material and such. If you wanted to talk about Far West, you would need to go to the Far West Forums, presumably so Gareth would be able to control the narrative and keep negative comments in check.

I figured after 5 1/2 months Kickstarter silence I'd register for the forums with a burner email and ask some questions. I mean, the forums are dead and even Gareth hasn't commented there in years. To my surprise, you can't even register for the forums, as you can see below:

I'm not sure if this is on purpose or not, but it is certainly "fucked up". It does keep negative comments on the forums side "in check" though.

Did I mention he's still Twittering?

Deal of the Day - Defining A Galaxy (Historical look at WEG Star Wars RPG)

Holy shit! I can't believe I almost missed this Deal of the Day. Its a look at West End Games Star Wars RPG and the influence it has had on the Star Wars IP. Defining a Galaxy is on sale for 2.38, regularly 7.95 in PDF. Print is 9.99 if you want the PDF with it.

In the late 1980s, Star Wars was becoming a fading memory. The movie trilogy had concluded. The comic books and novels were winding down. The action figures had run their course. As the franchise celebrated its tenth anniversary, there was a new ride at Disneyland and … not much else. Not until a small hobby game company released Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game and The Star Wars Sourcebook. And suddenly the galaxy began to expand. 

This is the story of how a group of dedicated fans and gaming professionals helped pave the way for the Star Wars Expanded Universe — as told by one of the original architects! This book explains how material created for roleplaying games helped shape the Star Wars universe — and continues to influence it to the current day.

Yep, that is an affiliate link above. Affiliate links keep the taps flowing and the beer cold here at The Tavern.

Kickstarter - Holy Symbols Jewellery for your Fantasy RPG Campaign

I love it when a Kickstarter tells us which license they are operating under, and then when you go to the actual license, you see they are directly in violation.

Case in point - the Holy Symbols Jewellery for your Fantasy RPG Campaign Kickstarter. It uses gods directly from closed (not OGL) content from WotC.

DISCLAIMER
This KS is not sponsored by Wizards and is subject to the Fan Content Policy

So, where can one find the WotC Fan Content Policy? I'm glad you asked because here you go: https://company.wizards.com/fancontentpolicy

Let me find the relevant section:

That means we ask you follow these rules: 

• One word: F-R-E-E. You can use Wizards’ IP (except for the restrictions listed in #3) to make Fan Content that you share with the community for free. Free means FREE:

• You can’t require payments, surveys, downloads, subscriptions, or email registration to access your Fan Content;

• You can’t sell or license your Fan Content to any third parties for any type of compensation; and

• Your Fan Content must be free for others (including Wizards) to view, access, share, and use without paying you anything, obtaining your approval, or giving you credit.

But, you say, they are charging you on Kickstarter! That is correct. They are also offering a
subscription service.

But hey, it might not even fund. If it does, I'm guessing WotC will shut it down.

A fun way to close out 2019.