Tenkar's Tavern

Thursday, September 14, 2023

Kickstarter - Fantasy Sidequest & NPC Decks (Inkwell Designs)

I've been a fan of Inkwell Designs since the early days of Kickstarter when I backed the stock art project he had organized. Later, I found his Dungeonmorph Dice, and before I knew it I was grabbing every deck he put on the market.

Joe's latest Kickstarter is Fantasy Sidequest & NPC Decks. Another useful resource for the DM who likes to improv or run their sessions with minimal prep. More decks, I'm collecting them like dice at this point ;)

How Do These Decks Help GMs?
Improvise: Did a player take an off-hand NPC comment as a real plot hook? Tell your group to take a snack break, skim a few Sidequests cards that have summaries at the top, pick one, read the short outline, and play! Or do the players want to chat with some NPCs you don't have prepared? Glance at a few NPC cards, pick one, and be ready to go!
Create an Adventure: Read some of the Sidequest card summaries and find one that fits the current situation, start with the given outline and flesh it out (add and detail your campaign's locations and NPCs), and you're ready for your next session or two. Don't have enough NPCs in your campaign? Pick an NPC Portraits Deck and you've got 50+ more characters ready to go complete with portraits, personalities, backgrounds, quirks and more!
Plan a Campaign: Pick the Sidequest deck that best fits your campaign's genre and setting, then skim the summaries of many of the cards. Choose several cards that will be possible adventures for your party. Set their locations in your campaign's starting area. Then brainstorm a rumor or two for each to feed your player characters. See which they are most interested in and play! Use the matching NPC Portraits Deck for well-developed NPCs with personalities, secrets, needs, and histories.
More About Sidequest Decks
Whether you're a seasoned GM or just starting out, Sidequest Decks are a tremendous resource helping you guide your players through captivating mini-adventures that add depth, excitement, and surprise to your campaigns.
Each deck has 54+ poker-sized cards. Each card has a map on one side and a system neutral mini-adventure outline on the other side. The outline starts with a short overview for the GM. (Skim these to find an adventure that fits the circumstances.) Choose between a couple of story hooks to get the adventure started. Next several encounter ideas move the game along. Customize them depending on what your players do (drop some, change them to fit the circumstances). Finally most cards wrap up with one or two follow-up adventure ideas. The sample card above is from our Mini-Lairs deck, which has more detail in the Encounter Key, but no follow-up ideas.
More About NPC Portraits Decks
Each NPC Portraits Deck also has 54+ poker sized cards. Each card is a character, with a portrait on one side and suggestions for playing the NPC on the other. The portrait on the front of the card can inspire the GM and spark the imagination of the players. Top-notch writing on the back details the character's personality and background with story hooks sprinkled throughout.

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DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern. You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

Bundle of Holding - KotDT Trouble 5

I'm a huge fan of Knights of the Dinner Table, going back to the days of Shadis Magazine. There's always something that reminds me of my own group from back in the 80s and 90s within those pages.

As I type this, KotDT Trouble 5 Bundle is live on Bundle of Holding for 24.95.

This Bundle includes KoDT Bundles of Trouble V41-50, which in turn includes content from KoDT issues #139-178 (2008-2011). Maybe it's just me, but I greatly prefer reading my comic books on my iPad these days. It is simply easier on my eyes ;)

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Supers on Sale at DTRPG - As Much as 80% Certain Titles

Truth in advertising - I am NOT a huge Supers fan when it comes to RPGs. Love the movies and the series, enjoyed the comics back in the day. It's just that the Supers Bug in RPGs never quite bit me.

Well, this week there is a Supers Sales at DTRPG, (titles above are 80% off) and if you ARE bitten by the bug, I'm quite sure you'll find a title or three that is right up your alley.

Monday, September 11, 2023

Bundle of Holding - Hostile (Cepheus Engine/Traveller Horror RPG)

If you are going to push a horror RPG, September is the month to do it as we ramp up to celebrating Halloween at the end of October. Humble Bundle has Trail of Cthulhu and Bundle of Holding already has a bundle or two up for Delta Green. So, we have 1930-era horror and modern-day espionage horror, but where is the sci-fi horror? Well, Bundle of Holding has it with Hostile, a stand-alone sci-fi horror RPG built on the Cepheus Engine (itself built off the Mongoose Traveller SRD).

You can get the Starter Bundle of Hostile for 9.95, or for a hair over 20 bucks, you can get it all in the Bonus Collection.

Adventurer! Name notwithstanding, this Hostile Bundle, resurrected from April 2022, is a friendly offer of the tabletop science-fiction roleplaying game of deep-space alien horror, HOSTILE from Zozer Games. Based on the Cepheus Engine rules (closely modeled on Classic Traveller), HOSTILE is a gritty retro-future setting inspired by movies like Outland, Blade Runner, and Alien – a universe of harsh planets and toxic atmospheres – claustrophobic space freighters and brutal industrial colonies – ancient horrors entombed on icy moons – killer ETs, perfectly evolved to survive at any cost. Whether you're a combat-weary veteran or a miner on a grungy corporate star tug deep in the Extraction Zones, HOSTILE pits you against deadly hazards in an unforgiving void where no one can hear you scream.
This revived April 2022 offer gives you a new chance to get much of the HOSTILE line for an unbeatable bargain price – an obviously generous and well-meaning gesture. For just US$9.95 you get all five titles in this revived offer's Starter Collection (retail value $48) as DRM-free ebooks, including the complete standalone HOSTILE Rules and Setting core books, the Gunlocker weapons guide (it'll come in handy, trust us), the Cepheus Handouts, and the Referee's Screen.
And if you pay more than the threshold price of $20.04, you'll level up and also get this revival's entire Bonus Collection with eight supplements worth an additional $56 that let you build out your pitiless universe:
Three guides to survival on bad worlds that don't want you: Explorers, Dirtside, and Colony Builder
Two bestiaries about entities that really, really do want you: Alien Breeds and Synthetics
Two hardware and vehicle guides: Gunboats & Shuttles and Marine Corps Handbook 2215
A campaign framework well described by its title: Crew Expendable

Sunday, September 10, 2023

New FLGS: TableTop Game and Hobby in Overland Park (Kansas City)

Today I really feel like phoning it in.....

....I had a bunch of use-or-lose vacation that expired on the 8th. I went to the family farm in Iowa to do mostly nothing. I've got some health issues that make the 12 hour drive problematic, but 6 hours is very doable (actually I can do 12, if I take a good 16 hours to do it!). Luckily for me, Kansas City is s little over halfway to the farm and that's potentially good for my gaming.

Kansas City has a Micro Center and this time around I got a whole slew of new computer parts to do a massive upgrade to my file server. It is long overdue and since I store my RPG files on there, along with my 3D printing files, having that work...better, is always good. Among my upgrades though is a 8GB video card (I was getting along fine with an old 2GB card...) so now that same computer can also run my old computer game emulators.

When I'm not able to sling dice, playing some old-school MAME or PC games.....well, at least it's a game.

I'm not conceited enough to think any readers here at the Tavern could care that much about my vacation or the potential (some assembly required) new computer, except Steve (Shout to Steve...Hi Steve!). Something that might be of interest though, especially if you get the chance to stop in Kansas City, is the most excellent TableTop Game and Hobby. It's a large, eat-off-the-floor clean place with a wide selection of board games, RPGs, and war gaming. It's connected to the Cardboard Corner Cafe which is a cool coffee shop where you can game.

Honestly it is one of the nicest game stores I've ever seen. I travel a lot for work (past & present) and I've seen a metric butt-ton of game stores and TableTop Game and Hobby is the nicest I've seen. There have been some other pretty good ones, but nothing comes so close as this shop. If you're passing through I suggest scheduling a break/stop to check it out.

Saturday, September 9, 2023

Far West RPG Releases Nearly 12 Years After Promised Release Date

I will give credit where credit is due. Gareth Skarka, nearly 12 years after the promised delivery date, has finally released Far West - in PDF. Don't hold your breath for print copies any time soon.

Years ago, when Gareth felt he was being unfairly forced to offer refunds, refunds for print books were offered at full price less 10 bucks - as that was the assumed price of the PDF. Instead, Far West is currently on sale for 29.95 at DTRPG for a 278-page PDF. I can't speak for the gaming content, as I haven't read it yet and likely won't get to it for a while (after 12 years, what's the actual rush, right?), but I will offer some samples of the included art - art that was likely paid for by individual backers, like myself (59 of us), to be included in the book. You be the judge of whether or not THESE specific backers got / will get, their money's worth.

Tonight on Gamers' Health, Rach & I have a Special Guest, Author Daniel Hand. Daniel recently released Role-Playing Games in Psychotherapy: A Practitioner's Guide. Needless to say, Rach is taking the lead tonight 😉

Friday, September 8, 2023

Humble Bundle - Trail of Cthulhu RPG

It's pretty good timing to release Trail of Cthulhu on Humble Bundle in September, just as stores are gearing up for Halloween. I always find that horror RPGs play out better in the fall, the atmosphere just seems to fit well.

Trail of Cthulhu brings The Cthulhu Mythos to the Gumshoe System. I have ZERO experience with the Gumshoe System, but I've been curious about the Trail of Cthulhu RPG for years, and this seems to be a low-risk opportunity to check it out.

With the Trail of Cthulhu Bundle, 18 bucks get you the core rules, adventures, a GM screen, audio, fiction, and more.

Explore the sublime, horrifying worlds of H.P. Lovecraft at your gaming table with this Trail of Cthulhu bundle from Pelgrane Press. Utilizing the GUMSHOE RPG system to foreground the investigative elements of the Cthulhu mythos stories, this award-winning RPG delivers an experience that makes clue-finding engrossing and interactive for players, while amplifying the cosmic dread. Get the Trail of Cthulhu rulebook plus more than 20 other sourcebooks, adventures, and more to fuel uncountable campaigns’ worth of unfathomable eldritch horror, and support Cancer Research UK with your purchase!

Thursday, September 7, 2023

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

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

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

The new espionage role-playing game from Merle M. Rasmussen, creator of the first espionage role-playing game.
The time: now. The place: everywhere.
Your mission: preserve peace and stability in a world rife with conflict, mistrust, duplicity, and shadowy organizations.
You are an agent of ICON: The International Covert Operatives Network. You have been recruited from your former life, trained in the ways of tradecraft, and sent into the field to handle the missions that other agencies cannot, or will not handle.
One player is the Administrator, describing and controlling the game world, while the other players take on the role of international spies, working behind the scenes where governments won’t go.
Tense negotiations, dangerous combat, thrilling car chases, tradecraft, surveillance, intrigue, and subterfuge are all at hand with the roll of the dice.
Top Secret: New World Order is a tabletop role-playing game recommended for 2–8 players.

Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Deal of the Day - Holy Mountain Shaker (OSE pointcrawl adventure for 5th to 6th)

I really enjoy Old School Essentials and the adventures they release. Even if I don't run them directly under OSE, they convert easily enough to the OSR system of your choice.

Holy Mountain Shaker for OSE is today's Deal of the Day at DTRPG. Normally 7.50 in PDF, but until tomorrow morning Holy Mountain Shaker is on sale for $3.

Thunder and quake have come to the old town. Towers crumble, homes tumble, the quick become the dead. What omen could be more obvious? The Pharaoh Fish under the mountain is displeased. This God must be propitiated. Brave heroes must venture to buy the city's salvation. At the very least, the Town Council needs to appear in control and send some 'expert adventurers' into the depths.
A fantasy pointcrawl adventure for characters of 5th to 6th level.
Local town, 17 pointcrawl regions, dungeon inside the Pharaoh Fish.
Pointcrawl mechanics for Old-School Essentials.
Keyed in a quick-reference, bullet point format.
Statted for Old-School Essentials (B/X), usable with any vintage adventure game.
Unlabelled map included for VTT use.

Tuesday, September 5, 2023

Castle Zagyg is Back - The Town of Yggsburgh is the First Available in PDF (and Print)

It was announced near the end of August that many of Gary Gygax's works that were released (and later pulled from distribution) well over a decade ago were returning to distribution.

Castles & Crusades Castle Zagyg Yggsburgh is the first of those releases. It can be grabbed in Print plus PDF at the Troll Lords Store ($65), and in PDF from DTRPG (19.99 - 5 bucks cheaper than the TLG store).

Beneath the shadows of the ancient, dreaded Castle Zagyg stands the fortified town of Yggsburgh. Its stout walls and cobbled ways give ample refuge to those bold and worthy adventurers who come to the Four Tors to plunder the dungeon deeps of the Mad Mage. Beyond the protective covering of the town’s walls and the deep waters of the Urt and Nemo Rivers, lie a vast rolling countryside from the Glittering Knobs,the Uplands to the Lonely Valley.
Enter the environs of that most dread of magi, test your mettle and make ready for the heroes forge that is Castle Zagyg!
The book you hold in your hands is the Setting for the famed Castle Zagyg, the monstrous dungeons of legend.
More than a Campaign Setting!
This book consists of the town of Yggsburgh and its Environs, which include the town of Garham and 60 different geographic locales, each with their own peculiarities and adventures. The map charts over 1500 square miles of adventuring terrain, allowing the inclusion of Yggsburgh and Environs into almost any fantasy campaign setting. Each geographic locale has one or more adventures associated with it, offering hundreds of different plots, themes and escapades, players can take their characters on.
What to Expect!
1 Full Color, fold-out, 24" x 30" Map of the Environs of Yggsburgh
1 Full Color, fold-out, 24" x 30" Map of the Town of Yggsburgh
Nine Interior Maps of Points of Interest
600+ Non‑Players Characters
30+ Random Encounter and Event Tables
50+ Random Encounters, offering hundreds of adventure venues
Orders of Battle for everything from Goblins to Knights
New, Monsters, Magic Items & Spells for the Castles & Crusades® Role Playing Game
Crime and Punishment for Yggsburgh
Over 1000 Adventures and Adventure ideas!

Monday, September 4, 2023

Bundle of Holding - Delta Green Mega (Cthulhu Espionage)

I remember coming across Delta Green shortly after it was released in 1997 (actually, I think I first saw it earlier in the zine Unspeakable Oath) as a supplement for the Call of Cthulhu RPG. Now, it is a stand-alone RPG. I've yet to run it or play in a session, but the rules read really well and I long for the day I can do so.

With the Delta Green Mega Bundle at Bundle of Holding, you get the Delta Green Agent's Handbook, The Complex, and Agent Dossiers for 7.95.

For about 38 bucks, you get the above and add the following: the Delta Green Handler's Guide and the recent major supplements The Conspiracy and The Labyrinth (plus its Evidence Kit), the full-length campaigns Iconoclasts and Impossible Landscapes (plus its STATIC Protocol expansion), the item collection ARCHINT, and the DG Handler's Screen. Phew!

Sunday, September 3, 2023

A Rambling Thought About A Bit of American History that can be Introduced to a Campaign World.

The other day I was reviewing some....interesting demographic data about the rural community I grew up in. This data was from just before the American Civil War, right about the time that the state was created from the territory (keeping it vague deliberately). The house I kind of grew up in was built by the 1st Doctor in the county and at one time my little town was the biggest in the area because it had an early rail-line stop in it.

Anyway, that roughly two-decade time period always fascinated me a bit because, like many of us, I'm at least a little bit of a history nerd, and in some ways I can mentally equate that time period to the typical OSR campaign setting.

Hear me out here.......clearly there isn't a direct connection, but I'm thinking the edge of civilization with plenty of open/wild lands around. You don't have to go too far to find danger. There is an increased level of technology and industrialization, but it isn't ever-present. In a land where there is one Doctor for the county, no paved roads, but there is a single narrow gauge railroad. There are still plenty of predators/wild animals about and mankind basically has small carved-out enclaves throughout the area (I think the county had 9 tiny townships).....this isn't too far off from the typical medieval fantasy world. Just replace the "technology" with "magic".

This rural county would be akin to a borderland state. There's a number of small churches, but only one Priest of middling level that can Cure or Heal. People live in small towns that are pretty much a half-day's ride away across minor trails. You can get some wonderous magic from the trader that comes into town once or twice a week, but there really isn't much more than a hedge-wizard around. People largely work the land, keep an eye out for danger from the woods, and are pretty insular when it comes to "others".

Now I'm not advocating for trying to game in an Age of Expansion America, but I am saying that there might be some value in seeing how people lived back then and using that info to influence the game world of your own campaign. I think for a lot of us that history might be a lot more approachable than say, picking up a book like Life in a Medieval Village. Of course that book might help to understand feudalism, but in a world of magic (both divine and arcane) I'm not sure how feudal we can go....of course, you do you.

I just think when you add in murderhobos, the magic, and the fantasy elements, this more American-history model makes a bit more sense than a strictly feudal setting.....

...anyway, this has been a long, rambling segue from my initial findings to something I think would add a lot to a typical campaign: "secret" societies. I was pretty much astonished by the numbers of these "secret" (it seemed like more than a few weren't actually secret, just pretended to be) organizations. Many were just fraternal organizations and if the numbers were to believed, most men belonged to at least two organizations, if not three.

It seemed like these organizations were anything from simple drinking clubs and mutual-aid societies to bonafide charities. There were some that overlap of members and others that by design had no overlap. Basically these were communities within-communities and served to connect people that might otherwise be separated (like Catholics and Protestants in highly religious communities). These groups would have regular meetings, special events, and would definitely form bonds between outwardly appearing disparate groups.

I like to think there could be a ton of role-play potential by using secret societies to connect the NPCs of your game world. The PCs could tick off one merchant and find out that a week later the fishmonger will no longer sell the party Mage that Giant Octopus Ink he needs for his scrolls. Why? Well those two are in the Fraternal Order of the Owlbear and that group decided "Eff those murderhoboes". There normally isn't too much of a goblin problem in the area, but lately there have been a periodic rash of break-ins and thefts attributed to the creature...

....Well there is this secret society that holds ritualistic goblin hunts and they have had to import goblins, set them loose, and then track them down for the hunt. The goblins are trying to do resource grabs so they can flee. It's a bit of a mess, but those guys throw one mean party every other month or so....

Those are just two quick ideas, but when I start up a new campaign or introduce a new town I like to think that the world doesn't revolve around the PCs and adding bits of lore that clearly exists without PC input makes that work better. This is why I like to have an established game calendar. I can set certain events, like normal society meetings or special events and if the party is in the right place at the right time, good for them. If not, well maybe that fishmonger and merchant have something cool from last night's event to be talking about...

Saturday, September 2, 2023

Kickstarter - Combat Banes and Boons, Unforgettable Crits in Fantasy RPGs

What is that you say? A new Kickstarter from Phil Reed? Impossible! Heh. Phil is back with his Combat Banes and Boons, Unforgettable Crits in Fantasy RPGs Kickstarter.

Combat Banes and Combat Boons are critical failure and critical success results designed to make your skirmishes a tad more . . . interesting. Presented as a print-on-demand book or as print-on-demand cards, created by Lex Morgan and Philip Reed, these critical results may cause the heroes trouble (Banes) or might give the adventurers an unexpected benefit (Boons).
NOTE: The project was originally conceived as two 50-card decks. We created the collected book edition for those gamemasters who prefer to use books over cards. Or, if you wish, you could hand the card decks to the players and use the book as a reference.

These rules were created for use with most editions and variants of the classic ampersand fantasy roleplaying game. (You know, the one that includes both the dungeons as well as the many dragons.) Gamemasters will need to apply their best judgment to resolving each entry, and clever GMs can no doubt use these ideas in almost any fantasy game of their choosing.

Friday, September 1, 2023

Free OSR - Cities Without Number: Free Version

I'm a huge fan of Sine Nomine Publishing. Kevin Crawford's work, Starting with Stars Without Numbers, and the rest of his releases over the years, have been nothing short of inspiring and extremely useful, especially to the sandbox and improv-style GMs.

Kevin is also extremely generous, issuing Free versions of his various "Without Number" rulesets that are complete and extremely playable. These aren't quickstarts or light versions of the rules, they are complete without some of the extras supplied in the pay version.

So, what is Kevin's latest release, Cities Without Number: Free Version?

Cities Without Number is a cyberpunk role-playing game built for sandbox adventures in a dystopia of polished chrome and bitter misery. It's both a full-fledged Sine Nomine toolkit for building a cyberpunk world of your own and an Old School Renaissance-inspired game system for playing out the reckless adventures of the desperate men and women who live in it. Whether polished metal or flesh and blood, your operators will risk their lives and more to seize those precious things a merciless world would keep from them.
In its pages, you'll find...
An old-school inspired game system that's fully compatible with the sci-fi Stars Without Number game and its fantasy sister-game Worlds Without Number
Cyberware and sophisticated high-tech gear suitable for chroming the most discriminating cyborg and equipping the most refined of street operators
Playability-focused hacking rules designed to give hacking-focused PCs useful and important things to do without forcing an entire separate mini-game on the GM
Gear rules for drones and vehicles, to better equip PCs who want to bring a little extra iron on their next mission
System-neutral Sine Nomine worldbuilding tools for helping a GM create their own custom cyberpunk world or elaborate the details of existing worlds and settings
Gang, corp, and city district creation tools for fleshing out your world with people and places that fit
Fifty Mission Tags for adventure creation, plus guidelines and step-by-step procedures for handling facility infiltrations, managing local heat, selling loot, and other activities beloved of corp-hating street scum everywhere
The default campaign setting of the City, a premade backdrop to help you get into the game as quickly as possible
And that's just in this free version of the game. In the deluxe edition of Cities Without Number, you'll also be getting...
Cyberware quirks and features for particular megacorp product lines
Variant gengineered human types for PCs who don't fit the baseline mold
Optional rules for the psychological strain of Cyber Alienation
Optional rules for cheap street cyber, for those campaign settings where every goon with a knife has some wire beneath his skin
Spellcasting, spirit summoning, and magical items for GMs who want to add a dash of magic into their cyberpunk world
For more than a decade, the Without Number games have given GMs and players the tools they need to forge their own sandbox worlds. Cities Without Number adds to that, so get it now and build a dystopia that's all your own.

Thursday, August 31, 2023

Bundle of Holding - Atomic Robo

It is no secret that I'm not a huge fan of the FATE system. Sure, I backed the Kickstarter and received oodles of support material, but the system itself just didn't do it for me.

The thing is, I AM a fan of graphic novels, and Atomic Robo looks like a fun one. I guess I can just ignore the included Atomic Robo RPG, or simply use it as a reference source.

Remain calm and trust in Science! We've resurrected our February 2021 Atomic Robo Bundle with nine complete .PDF graphic albums of the Eisner Award-nominated Atomic Robo comic series from Tesladyne LLC, plus the 2014 Atomic Robo RPG tabletop roleplaying game from Evil Hat Productions. In 1923 Nikola Tesla unveils a robot with automatic intelligence: Atomic Robo! Granted full American citizenship in 1938 after a secret military operation, Robo founds Tesladyne, a two-fisted think tank that explores the fringes of scientific inquiry. After decades of high-octane, full-contact hypothesis testing at the edge of human knowledge, Robo and the Action Scientists of Tesladyne are the go-to defense force against the unexplained.
Created in 2007 by Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener, Atomic Robo has been online since 2015 at atomic-robo.com. There's giant monsters, rogue agencies, underground cities, trans-dimensional vampires, one particularly annoying dinosaur, and explosions – lots of explosions. Atomic Robo reads like the Ghostbusters, Indiana Jones, Buckaroo Banzai, and Rocketeer movies crammed into a robot who wears pants. Jump in anywhere – each graphic album in this offer is a self-contained story, so you can read them in any order.

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

Crowdfunding - Unnatural Selection: A Supplement for use with Shadowdark

I didn't realize Backerkit was its own crowdfunding platform, but now I know :)

Unnatural Selection: A Supplement for use with Shadowdark is funding directly via Backerkit and is "a supplement of classes, ancestries, adventures and more for use with the Shadowdark RPG." Or, more precisely, "Unnatural Selection is a new digital and physical Supplement to the Shadowdark RPG. It introduces over 120 pages of new classes, ancestries, weapons, spells, untamed beasts, underworld oddities, magic items, adventures, and other enhancements while maintaining and expanding the core of the Old School Renaissance."

There's a ton of content under a single cover.

120+ pages in a concise, two-page spread layout
Rules for all new elements
6 New Ancestries
4 New Classes
70 familiar and brand new spells
65+ New Monsters, Animals, and Underworld Oddities
Backgrounds from the Underworld and Nature
Nature Spirits & Death Pantheon
New Support Spell Type
New Carousing
New Mishaps
New Treasure and Magic Items
Zero Level Gauntlet and Campaign Setting
Incredible hand drawn black-and-white art

Do I need it? Probably not. Do I want it? Definitely!

Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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