Myrkálfr / Murk Elves Class for Lamentations of the Flame Princess (LotFP)

Myrkálfr (or murk elves) are the masters of stone and they dwell far beneath the surface of the world in places long forgotten or otherwise unexplored by humankind. They are also known as the Mörkalver. It is thought that they are an elf/gnome hybrid conjured by some ancient wizard but they refute that claim. Perhaps they have always been here... and wished they had never been found. Their myths talk of emerging from a hallowed deep sping at the dawn of time.

They prefer to be left alone and rarely interact with other beings, often greeting strangers with violence. Those however that choose a life of adventuring are different as they did not quite fit in with their reclusive kind. Those that flee their sheltered subterranean homelands are often ornery, mischievous, and reckless.

Myrkálfr settlements tend to be near to underground lakes and rivers. They revere water (elevating it as a deity) and love to immerse themselves in it. They use it in all manner of cultural rituals. They are known to drown those who are seriously ill or who are close to death as a form of mercy killing. At times they need to be thwarted from giving "The Kiss of Water" as they will try to kill those who will recover.

Murk elf limbs are long, thin, and spindly but they are as tough as ancient roots covered in a naturally tough skin (granting a +1 armor class bonus). Their feet and hands are broad and strong which gives them a 2-in-6 climbing ability which improves at higher levels. Their hair is often auburn, black, or red. Their mucus dripping eyes are oddly large without any pupil, and they rarely blink. They also gain skills at a reduced rate, and have the sneak attack ability like a specialist does.

Myrkálfr have an innate ability to destroy stone in all of its many shapes and varieties. While Dwarves craft exquisite tunnels murk elves dig crude utilitatian ones but at a brisk pace (they can excavate 6 plus strength modifier cubic feet of earth per hour with proper equipment). They have a +2 attack bonus to hit stone creatures in combat. Also, statues and stone creatures always take maximum damage when hit by a Myrkálfr.

Murk Elves have their own unique spell list of arcane and divine spells but they can only cast up to 4th level spells.

*Note that Myrkálfr do not get the combat maneuvers that a regular Elf has.

									MU	Spells	Per	Lvl
Lvl	XP	HP	Par	Pois	Brth	Dev	Mag	Skills	1	2	3	4	Climb
0	-	1D6	10	14	15	14	14	-	-	-	-	-	-
1	0	1D6	8	12	13	14	14	2	1	-	-	-	2-in-6
2	3200	+1D6	6	12	10	14	14	+1	1	-	-	-	2-in-6
3	6400	+1D6	6	12	10	14	14	+1	2	1	-	-	2-in-6
4	12800	+1D6	4	10	7	14	14	+1	2	1	-	-	3-in-6
5	25600	+1D6	4	10	7	13	14	+1	3	2	1	-	3-in-6
6	56200	+1D6	2	10	4	12	12	+1	3	2	1	-	3-in-6
7	112400	+1D6	2	8	4	12	12	+1	3	3	2	1	4-in-6
8	224800	+1D6	2	8	2	12	12	+1	4	3	2	1	4-in-6
9	449600	+1D6	2	8	2	11	12	+1	4	3	3	2	4-in-6
10	674400	+1	2	6	2	11	8	+1	4	4	3	2	5-in-6
11	876720	+1	2	6	2	7	8	+1	5	4	3	3	5-in-6
12	986310	+1	2	4	2	7	8	+1	5	4	4	3	5-in-6
13	1152000	+1	2	4	2	7	8	+1	5	5	4	3	5-in-6
14	+236800 / lvl	+1	2	2	2	5	6	+1	6	5	4	4	6-in-6

Myrkálfr Spell List

First Level
1. Bestow Elf Curse
2. Comprehend Languages
3. Cure Light Wounds
4. Detect Magic
5. Featherfall
6. Hold Portal
7. Identify
8. Light
9. Purify Food & Drink
10. Spiderclimb
11. Stone Shape (Lesser)
12. Transmute Rock to Mud

Second Level
1. Audible Glamour
2. Barrier
3. Change Self
4. Delay Poison
5. Force of Forbidment
6. Forget
7. Knock
8. Levitate
9. Phantasmal Force
10. Silence 15' Radius
11. Stone to Flesh (Lesser)
12. Transmute Rock to Bleeding Flesh

Third Level
1. Army of One
2. Dispel Magic
3. Gaseous Form
4. Hold Person
5. Magic Vestment
6. Protection from Normal Missiles
7. Remove Curse
8. Speak with Dead
9. Strange Waters II
10. Telekinesis (Lesser)
11. Water Walk
12. Water Breathing

Fourth Level
1. Airy Water (Lesser)
2. Charm Monster
3. Confusion
4. Creation, Minor
5. Cure Serious Wounds
6. Dig
7. Move Earth (Lesser)
8. Neutralize Poison
9. Protection from Normal Weapons
10. Spell Immunity
11. Wall of Ice
12. Wall of Rock


Beginning Spells

A murk elf begins play with Read Magic and 2 of the new spells found below in their spellbook.


New Myrkálfr Spells

AIRY WATER (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 4
Duration: 1 Turn/level
Range: 0
The caster of this spell creates a bubble of altered water in a body of water (or water-based medium). Within this bubble there is a breathable atmosphere. The bubble sinks in water; the center of the bubble is on the caster and moves with him. The area of effect is either a 15' radius globe, or a 30' radius hemisphere, caster’s choice. Aquatic creatures cannot swim while in this bubble, as it is only slightly denser than air. Likewise, water breathing
creatures cannot breathe within the area of affect. Intelligent aquatic creatures will not enter the area of effect by mistake.

BESTOW ELF CURSE
Myrkálfr Level 1
Duration: Instantaneous
Range: Touch
This spell can bring about any number of unfortunate effects upon a being, determined by the caster and Referee. Some limits of effect must be enforced. Typical possibilities are limited to no more than a –1 penalty to saving throws or –2 to hit. These effects can have any number of creative symptoms. The victim can avoid being affected by this spell with a successful saving throw versus Magic. Non-mechanical curses might be something like: bleeding from the eyes and ears, excessive hair growth, passing gas every minute, swelling or pain in a part of the body, vomiting blood or other substances, and urinating black liquid.

MOVE EARTH (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 4
Duration: Instantaneous
Range: 100'
A 20' cube of loose soil can be moved per Turn within the spell’s range. Solid stone cannot be moved.

STONE SHAPE (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 1
Duration: Instantaneous
Range: Touch
This spell can form an existing piece of stone into any shape that suits the caster’s purpose, to a total volume of 2" cubed per level. While it is possible to make small crude amulets, cups, dice, holy symbols and so forth with stone shape, fine detail is not possible.

STONE TO FLESH (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 2
Duration: Instantaneous
Range: Touch
This spell returns a petrified creature to its normal state, restoring both life and goods. Only petrified creatures of human size or smaller, can be restored.

TELEKINESIS (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 3
Duration: 1 Round/level
Range: 60'
By concentrating on nothing else and taking no other actions, the caster can move objects or creatures by concentrating on them. A total of 10 pounds per caster level can be moved 10' per Round. Living beings can also be moved, but they are allowed a saving throw versus Magic to resist being moved by the spell.

TRANSMUTE ROCK TO BLEEDING FLESH
Myrkálfr Level 2
Duration: Permanent
Range: 60'
This spell turns 15 square feet of rock 10' deep into edible blood-soaked flesh for 1 day. To pass through this flesh it will need to be cut or hacked by weapons, which will reduce movement by 50%. This flesh vaporizes 1 day after it is created, and all those who ate the transmuted flesh will be nauseated for 1D4 days (-2 penalty to all rolls).

TRANSMUTE ROCK TO MUD (LESSER)
Myrkálfr Level 1
Duration: Permanent
Range: 60'
This spell turns 30 square feet of rock 10' deep into mud for 1 day. Any beings passing through the mud have their movement reduced by 90%. This mud can easily be removed and is often used by Myrkálfr to aid them in tunneling through solid stone.

WALL OF ROCK
Myrkálfr Level 4
Duration: Permanent
Range: 60'
The caster brings a rock wall into being that can be any form that the caster desires, to a maximum of 800 cubic feet. This wall is permanent unless otherwise destroyed or a Dispel Magic spell is cast upon it. The wall cannot be evoked so that it occupies the
same space as a creature or another object, and it must rest on a solid surface.

Thanks go to the following people who helped me make this class better: Andrew Knapp, Ian Christiansen, Jeff Cape, and Jeff Rients.

Sin-eater / Corpsegrinder Class for Lamentations of the Flame Princess (LotFP)

THE DEAD ARE CORRUPT AND THE STOMACHS OF SIN-EATERS PURIFY THEIR ROTTING FLESH. The ghastly life of the poor sods who end up devouring the dead is never chosen, rather it is often a form of punishment handed down by fate.

Theologians have debated about the qualities of these unfortunate souls who seem to be holiness garbed in disgusting wretchedness. Are they malign beings warped by arcane chaos, do they belong to a cursed bloodline, or are they touched by some cruel god? Are they even human or are they some hybrid form of life? Many believe that their souls are eternally damned as the cost for forgiving those they eat. When a sin-eater dies their bodies are salted and burned and their remains are not allowed to be buried in the hallowed ground of most cemeteries.

If society has a caste system, sin-eaters are always considered to be the lowest of the low, but they are believed to be a spiritual necessity to cleanse those who's evil deeds weigh on them. From the lowliest peasant, to the grandest King, many call for their skills ere the final end so that they might peace in the hereafter.

Some cults and churches in backwoods areas elevate their dead upon lofty external biers to let the carrion birds eat the holy meat and take it to paradise. The parts that are refused by them are considered to be sinful, and it is the grisly task of these "corpsegrinders" to finish the rest of the remains (including gristle, joints, and bones). It is believed that those who die with the taint of dark sin will rise eventually as the Undead.

Their skin is greasy, pockmarked, and sickly looking and their thick warped limbs are malformed. They require armor to be specially made or modified (150-200% of normal cost) to fit their unusual bodies. Due to their horrid appearance they have a -2 penalty for all interactions that use the Reaction Roll table.

Sometimes sin-eaters acquire memories and temporary abilities from those they devour (1-in-6 chance to start; results are left up to the referee). They often file and sharpen their ever-growing teeth which grant them a savage bite attack which increases in effectiveness at higher levels. Their bite is an extra attack that can be used in addition to other normal attacks, so for example a sin-eater could swing with a weapon and attempt to bite a foe in close range in the same round.

Sin-eaters gain half as many skills as a specialist. Once per level per day they can appear to be a rancid corpse for as long as they remain completely motionless and prone. When they play dead they can surprise foes with a 3-in-6 chance. Unless they are attacked by the sin-eater Undead will attack other targets and completely ignore them.

Alchemists have bottled their highly caustic stomach acid and it seems to be quite efficacious against Undead. This typically costs 50 silver pieces and deals 1D8 damage but with a duration of 1D4 rounds.

*Optional Ability* Referees who want this class to be a bit more over-the-top could grant a ranged vomit attack that damages Undead within a 10' range (1D8 dmg for 1D4 rounds). This ability could also replace the bite attack and damage.

Level	Bite Dmg	XP	Hit Points	Paralyze	Poison	Breath	Device	Magic	Skills	Abilities Memories
0	1D2	-	1D6	10	10	16	14	16	-	-
1	1D2	0	1D8	8	8	16	12	15	2	1-in-6
2	1D4	2200	+1D8	8	6	16	12	15	+1	1-in-6
3	1D4	4400	+1D8	8	6	16	12	15	+1	1-in-6
4	1D6	8800	+1D8	6	4	16	10	15	+1	1-in-6
5	1D6	17600	+1D8	6	4	16	10	12	+1	2-in-6
6	1D8	35200	+1D8	6	2	14	10	12	+1	2-in-6
7	1D8	70400	+1D8	4	2	14	8	12	+1	2-in-6
8	1D10	140800	+1D8	4	2	14	8	12	+1	3-in-6
9	1D10	281600	+1D8	4	2	14	8	9	+1	3-in-6
10	2D6	422400	+2	2	2	12	6	9	+1	4-in-6
11	2D6	563200	+2	2	2	12	6	9	+1	4-in-6
12+	2D8	+140800 /lvl	+2	2	2	10	4	8	+1	5-in-6

Thanks to the following people who helped me tweak this class: Andrew Knapp, Gregorious21778, Ian Christiansen, Ignacio Bergkamp, Jeff Cape, Jeff Rients, John Scheib, and Ronnie Ortiz.

This was submitted for use in an upcoming issue of the Flame Princess Cult 'zine from Jeff Rients. It is an unofficial 'zine for Lamentations of the Flame Princess.

Knocking the Dust Off of YouTube (RPG Videos)

I had some downtime this week so I managed to film some RPG videos.

Here's a quick video about The Sword of Cepheus (Fantasy Traveller).

https://youtu.be/HcQMWZ9jca4


This one is about a collaborative world building project where the setting is designed one statement at a time with the goal of getting to 100 statements.

https://youtu.be/MFe55s_f4to


My son wanted to film a video about some things that happened in the little games I run for him so here it is.

https://youtu.be/tekfANTzccQ


I've been reading the Malazan Book of the Fallen series, and it's really inspired me to build a new world.

https://youtu.be/_GCHyPKGQwY

Character Generation pt. 3 for The Sword of Cepheus (Fantasy Traveller)

Let's try to whip up another character. It's rather fun to just sit down and try to crank out several characters as character creation really is a neat little solo mini-game. Will they survive?!

Step 1 - Characteristics

Again I'm using a 3D6 drop the lowest straight down the line method of generating stats.

I get: Str 8 (+0), Dex 10 (+1), End 4 (-1), Int 6 (+0), Edu 10 (+1), and Soc 11 (+1).

Step 2 - Background Skills

I choose Savage Hinterlands so I get:
Athletics-1, Recon-1, Survival-1.

Step 3 - Careers

I try to go for Pirate but I fail the Qualification throw. So I pick Noble as a backup since I can get right in there with my Soc of 11. Otherwise I could have picked Peasant or Vagabond.

For the Noble's Basic Training I get the six service skills at level zero:
Riding-0, Carousing-0, Rulership-0, Leadership-0, Melee Combat-0, and Archery-0.

Survival throw... I just make it. I suspect that this was a poison attempt by a rival noble and I just got sick and survived. It's fun to add some fluff to these results. It stirs the imagination.

It's the first time through the career so I roll twice for skills and since my Edu is high I roll on the Advanced table and get Religion twice so it adds up to Religion-2.

The Advancement throw is successful so I go up one Rank in Noble.

??? So is this when I get the Rank 0 Noble benefits??? 

I just started there because I was not sure. So rank 0 Noble. So I get Carousing-1.

My Event is Hunting so my Survival-1 goes up to Sourvival-2.

I re-inlist successfully.

I got Religion again so it's up to Religion-3. Holy cow! :D

I succeed on the Advancement so he's a Rank 1 Tribune. No benefits for that.

For the Event it was Politics so I choose Deception-1.

I re-inlist again.

The Survival roll is a success so I think it must have been a botched assassination attempt.

No Advancement.

He gets Elevated thanks to an Event and goes up to a Rank 2 Noble (Quaestor).

I re-inlist again but die with the Survival roll. I should have mustered out after the last 4 years of service. Oh well. Rest in peace dead noble character that never got to play. :D

Character Generation pt. 2 for The Sword of Cepheus (Fantasy Traveller)

It was suggested that I blog about making a character to see if I'm messing up. I think that should help get me more familiar with the process so here we go.

Step 1 - Characteristics

I'm using a modified version of one of the optional generation methods. I'm rolling 3 dice and dropping the lowest and then placing them in right down the line from Str to Soc.

Here are the results:
Str 10 (+1), Dex 10 (+1), End 11 (+1), Int 12 (+2), Edu 11 (+1), and Soc 9 (+1).


Step 2 - Background Skill

I chose the Rural Village background and I got the following skills:

Animals-1, Riding-1, and Watercraft-1.

*Note that these are NOT a negative one. That's just how Traveller (and Cepheus Engine games) mark their skills.

Step 3 - Careers

You start at age 14 and each term of service for your career adds 4 years to that.

1. Choose a Career

I pick Priest.

For the Qualification roll I need to roll 2D6 and I got a 7 when I added in the Int modifier. I needed Int 6+ so that is a success.

2. Basic Training

This part confused me at first but now it's clear. You get 6 skills at zero level. These are the 6 Service skills listed for your career.

So I get:

Religion-0, Liason-0, Leadership-0, Rulership-0, Streetwise-0, and Art-0.

3. Resolve your term of service.

I roll the survival roll listed for priest with 2D6 and get a 7. I survive... barely as I needed a 6. This aspect of character creation is evocative to me. It maked me think of a mishap with rival neophytes of the faith that could have ended in my death.

This is the first term, so I roll twice for skills and get 2 of them. Since my Edu is higher than 8 I can roll on the Advanced table.

I get:

Deception-1, and Medicine-1.

??? I have no idea if I can roll on the Specialist table so I've not done that... ???

Advancement roll fails (I rolled a 3) so I don't get an additional skill.

I roll for Events and I get Purge. I get an enemy and get the following skills:

Stealth-1 and Recon-1.

I'm going to say it was a Ratfolk Purge so one particular Ratfolk wants me dead.

I choose to reinlist so I roll a 6 and barely succeed (I needed a 5).

When you reinlist you start over with the steps again.

For Survival I roll a 3 and DIE in character creation at age 18. Hehe.

Looks like I need to start over.

*Some GMs might opt to have the character have some calamity befall or that they get hurt or maimed and survive however.

I'll try to post more characters in future posts.

Character Generation pt. 1 for The Sword of Cepheus (Fantasy Traveller)

My one gripe with The Sword of Cepheus is that while it seems great for those who are familiar with Traveller it probably is less so for brand new players that are unfamiliar with how it all works.

I want to emphasize that I love the randomness of a lifepath character creation.

I have only ran a few one-shots of Classic Traveller so I put myself into that newbie category.  The tables used for character creation are efficient but a bit jam-packed with info. It leaves me wondering if I'm creating characters correctly or giving them too many bells and whistles (too many skill ranks for instance).

I'm having fun exploring the system with my son however. I need to make some spellcasters to see what the magic system is like as we've only used a Barbarian and a Thief so far.

P.S. Are there any good links out there to helps those new to Traveller and The Sword of Cepheus grok it all?  Thanks.

The Sword of Cepheus (Fantasy Traveller): First Session

I ran a one-shot of The Sword of Cepheus for my son today. He managed to defeat some bandits (via ambushing them), and followed their trail to their secret hideout. 

He had a challenging encounter with a Lizardfolk who had summoned a Fire Elemental. His Theif retainer got unwillingly sacrificed to The Voice in the Flames but that sealed a pact where the bandits were defeated in one fell swoop via an avalanche. 

My son seemed shocked by the turn of events, but in a good way. :D. I hope to run more little sessions for him in the future.

I enjoyed running a fantasy game with Traveller mechanics.

Fantasy Calendar, Mythology, and Zodiac

Here is a fantasy calendar/zodiac (and a basic mythogy to go with it) from a few MeWe posts that I made earlier today. Phew.

Thanks Jens and Gregorious for your help.


Calendar/Zodiac in days (365 total)
1 to 4, Xoltoff 
5 to 10, MwerKef 
11 to 13, Aenur 
14 to 18, Muureshta 
19 to 20, Geurn 
21 to 27, Wurnalla 
28 to 30, Frenn 
31 to 33, Vuul 
34 to 40, Othsna 
41 to 44, Kaenosh 
45 to 50, Culn 
51 to 65, Thrunn 
66, Ithna 
67 to 76, Zinthra 
77 to 82, Hruur 
83 to 90, Aenur 
91 to 100, Geurn 
101 to 112, Culn 
113 to 117, Pahvan 
118 to 126, Blunn 
127 to 130, Mhurrgh 
131 to 136, Slixan 
137 to 156, Thoolba 
170 to 174, Pahvan 
175 to 182, Ashunth 
183 to 195, Thoolba 
196 to 199, Thrunn 
200 to 212, MwerKef 
213 to 217, Muureshta 
218 to 222, Wurnalla 
223 to 231, Blunn 
232 to 240, Zinthra 
241 to 247, Kthalt 
248 to 252, Phulthan 
253 to 260, Lontash 
261 to 270, Slixan 
271 to 279, Ferrwu 
280 to 284, Frenn 
285 to 291, Grysh 
292 to 297, Kantusm 
298 to 299, Negu 
300 to 310, Xoltoff 
311 to 313, Kaenosh 
314 to 320, Negu 
321 to 325, Kantusm 
326 to 331, Grysh 
332 to 334, Ferrwu 
335 to 338, Lontash 
339 to 341, Phulthan 
342 to 349, Kthalt 
350 to 360, Vuul 
361, Othsna 
362 to 363, Ithna 
364, Mhurrgh 
365, Ashunth

Exceptions:

Cron 
Calendar Dates I [1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 33, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97, 101, 103, 107, 109, 113, 127, 131, 137, 139, 149, and 151]

Calendar Dates II [157, 163, 167, 173, 179, 181,191,193, 197, 199, 211, 223, 227, 229, 233, 239, 241, 251, 257, 263, 269, 271, 277, 281, 283, 293, 307, 311, 313, 317, 331, 337, 347, 349, 353, and 359]

Hruur 
The first day after the first continual snowfall.


God Details and Holidays


Aenur (Candles, Light, Sunrise)

Calendar Dates I [11 to 13] (Fasting until sunrise)

Calendar Dates II [83 to 90] (Lighting a candle at sunrise and letting it burn all day or until it extinguishes)


Ashunth (Demons, Spirits, Summoning)

Calendar Dates I [175 to 182] (Summoning of fallen enemies to curse them)

Calendar Dates II [365] (Summoning of deceased loved ones to comfort them in the afterlife)


Blunn (Coin, Merchants, Travel)

Calendar Dates I [118 to 126] (Makeshift merchant shanty towns are set up outside of cities to sell their wares)

Calendar Dates II [223 to 231] (Makeshift merchant shanty towns are set up outside of cities to sell their wares)


Cron (Intelligence, Magic, Math)

Calendar Dates I [1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 33, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97, 101, 103, 107, 109, 113, 127, 131, 137, 139, 149, and 151] (Meditation for a few minutes)

Calendar Dates II [157, 163, 167, 173, 179, 181,191,193, 197, 199, 211, 223, 227, 229, 233, 239, 241, 251, 257, 263, 269, 271, 277, 281, 283, 293, 307, 311, 313, 317, 331, 337, 347, 349, 353, and 359] (Turning toward the sun with one's eyes closed for a few minutes)


Cuhl (Predators, Wolves)

Calendar Dates I [45 to 50] (Painting doors with animal blood and leaving small meat offerings nearby)

Calendar Dates II [101 to 112] (Archery contests, and hunting for more dangerous and sacred animals is only allowed this time of year)


Ferrwu (Dusk, Sunset, Twilight)

Calendar Dates I [271 to 279] (Gifts are exchanged as the sun sets)

Calendar Dates II [332 to 334] (Metal is hung in trees to scare away hungry creatures in the woods)


Frenn (Construction, Rocks, Stone)

Calendar Dates I [28 to 30] (Starting some sort of new construction like a wall or building)

Calendar Dates II [280 to 284] (Ritual of destuction, leveling buildings and reusing the building materials)


Geurn (Athletic Games, Exercise, Strength)

Calendar Dates I [19 to 20] (Running a two day marathon)

Calendar Dates II [91 to 100] (Athletic events, violent games, duels to the death)


Grysh (Fury, Hatred, Rivals)

Calendar Dates I [285 to 291] (Effigies of your foes are destroyed with ceremonial tools)

Calendar Dates II [326 to 331] (Curses against your enemies are written down and tied to stones with your own hair before being cast in deep water)


Hhuur (Winter; the cold, snow and subjugation of life associated with a harsh winter)

"Hhuur´s Coming"; The day after the first day of continual snowfall in the region (different every year); observed by gathering around a ritual fire in the community and singing  "songs without words" in grudging recognition of Hhuur´s reign for the time to come.

"Hhuur´s Expulsion;  [Day 77 to Day 82]; ending "Hhuur´s Reign" by marching around the home or community with torches in hand while howling, screaming and/or roaring; sometimes includes the ritual burning of a wicker man at the end of the procession on the final day.


Ithna 
(Chance, Chaos, Dice, Gambling)

Calendar Dates I [66] (Playing dice and board games)

Calendar Days II [362 to 363] (Blessings of dice and other implements of chance)


Kaenosh (Dancing, Fire, Romance)

Calendar Dates I [41 to 44] (Nobles hold extravagant balls while the peasantry have raucous parties)

Calendar Dates II [311 to 313] (Solo dancing and a belief that they are dancing with deceased loved ones)


Kantuzm (Justice, Torture)

Calendar Dates I [292 to 297] (Prisoners of high crimes are tried in "courts" in public squares)

Calendar Dates II [321 to 325] (Those found guilty by Kantusm's priests are executed)


Kthalt (Darkness, Monsters, The Void)

Calendar Dates I [241 to 247] (People go to bed at sunset and stay indoors to allow the creatures of the night to enter civilization freely)

Calendar Dates II [342 to 349] (Families of those who lost a loved one leave tokens out and then they act as a talisman against that type pf creature)


Lontash (Healing, Medicine, Surgery)

Calendar Dates I [253 to 260] (The sick are housed in temples and all those with any skill in healing are expected to help them)

Calendar Dates II [335 to 338] (Those with skills in healing go on pilgrimages to small towns and heal their sick)


Mhurrgh (Clouds, Fog, Poison Gas, Smoke)

Calendar Dates I [127 to 130] (Deaths occur at a much higher rate than normal, and victims are found in their beds poisoned or strangled, and the mornings are also very foggy)

Calendar Dates II [364] (A large ritual is performed that involves repeatedly breathing out forcefully and making a guttural sound that is said to drive Mhurrgh away for the next year)


Muureshta (Decay, Disease, Illness, Rotting)

Calendar Dates I [14 to 18] (Smearing rotting leaves on the bottoms of your feet and walking on a path covered in old fire coals)

Calendar Dates II [213 to 217] (Making mushroom dolls, drowning them in rancid water, and then burying them near an old tree)


MwerKef (Ancestors, Honorable Dead, Preservation of Corpses and Graves)

Calendar Dates I [Day 5 to Day 10] (Clearing and maintaining graves)

Calendar Dates II [Day 200 to Day 212] (Making effigies of loved ones who have passed and burning them at sunset)


Negu (Commitment, Love, Marriage)

Calendar Dates I [298 to 299] (Lovers propose marriage)

Calendar Dates II [314 to 320] (Marriages and wedding feasts)

Othsna (Drowning, Getting Lost, Storms, Thunder)

Calendar Dates I [34 to 40] (Season of storms, sailors carve boat amulets to wear to appease the angry god)

Calendar Dates II [361] (Rain and storm dances after sundown)


Pahvan (Childbirth, Pain, Suffering, Wisdom)

Calendar Dates I [113 to 117] (Priests and the devout publicly torment themselves and fast for the whole duration of the holiday)

Calendar Dates II [170 to 174] (Births during this time are blessedly free of pain, and their children are said to be destined for greatness)


Phulthan (Crafts, Innovation, Technology)

Calendar Dates I [248 to 252] (New inventions are presented to Lords and merchants to invest in and purchase)

Calendar Dates II [339 to 341] (Items are forged in naturally hot places and the items presented to the poor)


Slixan 
(Books, Languages, Lore, Scrolls)

Calendar Dates I [131 to 136] (Teaching the illiterate how to read)

Calendar Dates [261 to 270] (Binding and rewriting books)


Thoolba 
(Soldiers, Strategy, War)

Calendar Dates I [137 to 156] (Families of soldiers will make stick soldiers and paint them a new color each day)

Calendar Dates II [183 to 195] (The painted stick soldiers from earlier in the year are given an animal bone each day beneath their feet)


Thrunn 
(Catastrophes, Destruction, Fire)

Calendar Dates I [51 to 66] (Bonfires are lit every night and criminals/prisoners are burned alive)

Calendar Dates II [196 to 199] (Old and unwanted items are burned)


Vuul (Blood, Combat, Violent Death)

Calendar Dates I [31 to 33] (Sacrificing 3 birds)

Calendar Dates II [350 to 360] (Putting criminals to death via gladatorial games, the last remaining criminal is set free)


Wurnalla (Bees, Blossoms, Crops, Flowers, Small Plants)

Calendar Dates I [21 to 27] (The planting of crops and the blessing of fields with dried plants from last year's harvest time)

Calendar Dates II [218 to 222] (Harvest festivals and feasts)


Xoltoff (Fish, Fishing, Rivers)

Calendar Dates I [Day 1 to Day 4] (Ritual meals of eating a purified fish)

Calendar Dates II [Day 300 to Day 310] (Catching and releasing a fish once, and then carving a wooden fish and throwing it into a river or stream)


Zinthra (Trees)

Calendar Dates I [67 to 76] (Planting trees)

Calendar Dates II [232 to 240] (Burning fallen trees)

Fantasy South America Map

I hope to slowly go continent by continent and doodle up some fantasy versions of the real world using Paint.  Yes... Paint.  :)  This was my take on South America.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HB2hR5N1bsLfCqaQKPxqBfcHZUFcQmDz/view?usp=sharing

Fantasy Age: Yeti Homebrew Race

Fantasy Age: Yeti Homebrew Race

* +1 Str
* Sturdy (Big Oaf, Knock Prone and Skirmish Stunts used on you need +1SP).
* Pick One: Con (Stamina), or Str (Climbing).
* Speed 10 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
*  Yeti, and Wolfen languages.
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Perception
3) Armored (Natural Fur: +2 Armor Rating).
4) Focus: Str (Might)
5) Focus: Perception (Tracking)
6) +1 Fighting
7) Focus: Fighting (Bite) [1D6 + Str]
8) Focus: Str (Intimidation)
9) Focus: Fighting (Claws) [1D6 + Str]
10) Focus: Perception (Smelling)
11) Focus: Communication (Animal Handling)
12) +1 Con

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Wolfen Homebrew Race

Fantasy Age: Wolfen Homebrew Race

* +1 Perception

* Pick One: Accuracy (Brawling), or Perception (Smelling).

* Pick One: Dex (Stealth), or Int (Natural Lore).

* Speed 14 + Dex (minus armor pen.).

* Wolfen, Elven, and Yeti languages.

* Roll Twice: (2D6)

2) +1 Str

3) Focus: Dex (Acrobatics)

4) Focus: Perception (Hearing)

5) Focus: Str (Jumping)

6) Focus: Int (Navigation)

7) +1 Dex

8) Focus: Int (Cultural Lore)

9) Focus: Perception (Tracking)

10) Focus: Perception (Seeing)

11) +1 Fighting

12) +1 Con

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Blood Elf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Blood Elf

* +1 Dex
* Pick One: Dex (Crafting), or Perception (Hearing).
* Pick One: Int (Natural Lore), or Perception (Tracking).
* Speed 12 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Elven, Wolfen, and Common Tongue
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Perception
3) Focus: Int (Navigation)
4) Focus: Perception (Seeing)
5) Focus: Dex (Riding)
6) +1 Accuracy
7) Weapon Group: Bows
8) +1 Fighting
9) Focus: Willpower (Courage)
10) Focus: Perception (Smelling)
11) Focus: Int (Cultural Lore)
12) +1 Str

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Twilight Elf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Twilight Elf

* +1 Int
* Pick One: Int (Arcane Lore), or Willpower (Morale).
* Novice Level in Fate Arcana (2 spells).
* Speed is 10 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Elven, Dwarven, and Common Tongue.
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Communication
3) Novice level in Divination Arcana (2 spells).
4) Focus: Communication (Etiquette).
5) Focus: Dex (Calligraphy)
6) Focus: Int (Research)
7) Focus: Int (Natural Lore)
8) Focus: Int (Musical Lore)
9) Focus: Perception (Empathy)
10) Focus: Communication (Leadership)
11) Novice level Healing Arcana (2 spells).
12) +1 Perception

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Shadow Elf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Shadow Elf

* +1 Con
* Pick One: Dex (Acrobatics), or Con (Stamina).
* Novice Level in Shadow Arcana (2 spells)
* Speed 12 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Elven & Common Tongue
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Int
3) Focus: Communication (Deception)
4) Focus: Int (Healing)
5) Focus: Dex (Riding)
6) Weapon Group: Bows
7) Focus: Dex (Stealth)
8) +1 Accuracy
9) Weapon Group: Light Blades
10) Focus: Int (Brewing) [Poisons]
11) Focus: Perception (Tracking)
12) +1 Dex

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Ice Dwarf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Ice Dwarf

* +1 Con
* Pick One: Con (Stamina), or Strength (Climbing)
* Pick One: Dex (Stealth), or Willpower (Self-discipline)
* Dwarven & Common Tongue
* Speed 8 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Dex
3) Focus: Perception (Hearing)
4) Focus: Dex (Initiative)
5) Weapon Group: Bows
6) Accuracy +1
7) Fighting +1
8) Focus: Int (Natural Lore)
9) Weapon Group: Axes
10) Novice Level in either Air or Water Arcana.
11) Focus: Con (Swimming)
12) +1 Con

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Fire Dwarf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Fire Dwarf

* +1 Intelligence
* Pick One: Perception (Searching), or Willpower (Faith).
* Novice Level in the Fire Arcana Talent (2 spells).
* Dwarven & Common Tongue
* Speed 8 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Willpower
3) Focus: Int (Nature Lore)
4) Focus: Int (Healing)
5) Focus: Dex (Initiative)
6) Focus: Per (Seeing)
7) Weapon Group: Light Blades
8) +1 Accuracy
9) Focus: Int (Arcane Lore)
10) Focus: Int (Religious Lore)
11) Focus: Willpower (Morale)
12) +1 Perception

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Mountain Dwarf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Mountain Dwarf

* +1 Con
* Pick One: Communication (Bargain), or Strength (Climbing)
* Pick One: Con (Drinking), or Willpower (Self-discipline)
* Dwarven & Common
* Speed 8 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Communication
3) Focus: Int (Historical Lore)
4) Focus: Dex (Crafting)
5) Focus: Accuracy (Brawling)
6) Con (Stamina)
7) Fighting +1
8) Weapon Group: Axes
9) Focus: Dex (Stealth)
10) Focus: Dex (Lock Picking)
11) Focus: Str (Smithing)
12) +1 Str

#FantasyAge

Fantasy Age: Deep Dwarf Homebrewed Race

Fantasy Age: Deep Dwarf

* +1 Str
* Pick One: Int (Brewing), or Accuracy (Brawling)
* Pick One: Str (Might), or Per (Secret Doors)
* Dwarven & Common
* Speed 8 + Dex (minus armor pen.).
* Roll Twice (2D6)
2) +1 Con
3) Focus: Str (Jumping)
4) Focus: Dex (Traps)
5) Focus: Str (Intimidation)
6) Weapon Group: Spears
7) Focus: Str (Smithing)
8) Fighting +1
9) Weapon Group: Bludgeons
10) Focus: Dex (Lock Picking)
11) Focus: Willpower (Courage)
12) +1 Dexterity


I modified the format a bit of the races in the core Fantasy Age book.  I added some more random results and removed Dark Sight (I am going to push for torch and lantern use as well as bring in more of the fear of the dark).

#FantasyAge

#100StatementSetting

#100StatementSetting

This worldbuilding idea just popped into my head a few days ago.  Feel free to share this idea to make other new settings.

Reply below with a statement that describes a new setting. It cannot undue or contradict any of the previous statements submitted by others. The setting will be entirely described in 100 statements about it.

-----

I posted that on: MeWe, and in 3 Facebook tabletop groups.  Surprisingly the only one that got to 100 was on MeWe.

If I can get on my laptop soon (and have some time off work) I'll post up some of the results in another blogpost and video on YouTube maybe).

Random 1D10 Table: What's In Its Guts? (RPG Brigade Community Project)

A few of us old timers who've had RPG YouTube channels for awhile are trying to get people in that group of people to be more active.  Here is a random table to add to a recent idea posted there.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/RPGBrigade/?ref=share

What's In Its Guts?

1. An ancient game played bt a forgotton local culture comprised of 1D100 intricately carved alabaster pieces.  The creature ate it along with the game's owner.

2. 1D4 Gems that pulsate along with the notes to a silent song trapped within them.  If these gems are broken the closest intelligent being will be able to perform the song (singing and playing instruments) perfectly for the rest of their life.

3. A moderately sized ball of half-digested hair that will animate to grapple and protect the creature that last touched it.

4. A magical sword that can be folded 20 times in on itself to make it very small (the size of a penny).

5. A complex holy symbol that took a master craftsman 100 years to make.  Inside a forgotten trapped god waits to be released.

6. A pair of match8ng blood-stained bracelets with five attached twisted nails.  If nailed into two people they can speak telepathically with each other up to one mile away.  Once a month the users must save vs. diseases or contract an illness that will wither that hand.

7. A bottle filled with a weak poison that refills itself once a week.

8. Bones of a squirrel that once was a potent wizard's familiar.  Once freed from the stomach it will befriend and assist the closest magic-user for 1D100 days.

9. 2D12 arrows that will reform after they are broken, burned, melted, etc.  The arrow heads deal much more damage when the arrows are removed from a creature (critical hit).

10. Roll again.  The item that you roll has 1D4 copies instead of just one of them.

Solo Role-playing: The Lost City of Barakus Part 4 (Reflections / A Form of GM Prep)

I could be playing another session of this solo campaign right now, but I find myself just pondering the basic concept of solo role-playing instead and some possible other benefits of doing it.

In many ways I think this form of solitaire is actually a great method for GM prep.  You get to experience an adventure first-hand as a player, and see what you enjoyed about it and what you really didn't like at all.  You can use those experiences to better run the game for players in a more traditional session later on down the road.  Playing through an adventure is an experience unlike just READING over everything and taking notes, and really... it's more fun too.  It feels like you are crawling around in the guts and bowels of an adventure and not just looking down on it from some lofty vantage point.  It feels more personal, and the elements of the adventure are sticking in my mind more so than via other methods that I've used to memorize adventures.

I have run some adventures multiple times for multiple groups, such as The People of Pembrooktonshire from Lamentations of the Flame Princess (LotFP), and while that helped me learn it, there is just something different (perhaps even better) about being a player inside an adventure that helps me remember things in more detail.  I tend to learn by doing, and in this case, by playing rather than just skimming over things. 

When you play, you don't go through the encounters in the adventure in an orderly fashion either (or at least I don't).  Often players will: skip encounters, bypass interesting NPCs (or kill them before they utter a word), and meander around in a chaotic fashion that the adventure designer could never anticipate.  Again, this is a different way of interacting with the adventure than just reading it over in an orderly fashion.

Solo role-playing in this light, as being a form of GM Prep, I think should help some people remove that stigma that is sometimes associated with this style of play.  I know I found myself thinking before trying it that playing through an adventure by myself was pathetic, or just seemed lonely, but I've been pleasantly surprised with this whole experiment.

Experimentation.  Sometimes you will be surprised when you try new things, as I have been via solo-role-playing.  I know I've been surprised in how vested I am in the player characters.  In each campaign I always try to do some new trick, or use a new technique that I heard about from some other role-player and this campaign is no different.  I love the interaction of the randomness of tables and dice blended with whatever just "makes sense" for a given encounter, and knowing the characters.

Another aspect is getting to know these characters in and more intimate way, and I suspect sole-roleplaying could help authors flesh out protagonists in unforeseen ways too.  I don't see myself every writing a true novel, but perhaps a short story about these characters might be in order. 

Just a few thoughts.  I hope everyone is having a decent day out there.

P.S. I miss the days of these blog entries automatically being posted to Google+.  Oh well.  It was fun while it lasted. 

Villains of the Undercity RPG Adventure Review (Maximum Mayhem Dungeons #3)

Villains of the Undercity was written by Mark Taormino of Dark Wizard Games, and it is meant for characters of first to third level.  It is statted up for OSRIC but as with most Old School Renaissance (OSR) adventures it would be easy to run this with another retro-clone or fantasy system of your choice.

https://www.darkwizardgames.com/

It should be noted that I was given these adventures by Mark free of charge, for which I am very grateful.  These all look like a blast, but for this review I'll focus on this specific adventure.

The PDF is black and white in a two column format which is pretty standard for OSR publications.

The adventure takes place in a coastal city, and a dungeon lurks beneath it.  It is a straight-forward setup that I have used in other campaigns (namely Empire of the Petal Throne).  I do love Undercities and dungeons beneath settled areas.  They remind me of the film As Above, So Below.  If you've never watched it, check it out.

The included dungeon maps are that nice nostalgic light blue and white, and while the layout of the dungeon isn't super complex or novel it is clean and easily read.  The map should be easily to map out on graph paper for the players.

 
Rumors can be easily heard about the Sinister One, and his bands of Bugbears, Lizard Men, and Orcs running a slave trade.  Townsfolk have gone missing in greater numbers as of late, prompting the need for desperate and reckless adventurers to explore the depths below to find those kidnapped by this nefarious organization.  This slave trade could lead the group to other locations if the GM wishes.  It would be easy to include wagons loaded with slaves that head off to other locations to be sold off to the highest bidder.

A rumors table, random tavern events, and random encounter tables are a nice old school touch that are useful and easy to read.  Some of the results are rather crass and humorous.  :)

The included art is black and white and it reminds me of the TSR Choose Your Own Adventure books from my youth.  I do appreciate good B&W art!

The stat blocks and NPC speaking lines are bold, as well as text that NPCs might utter to the players.

A sample stat block is included below:
(8) Skeletons (AC: 7, MV: 120 ft, HD: 1, HP: 8 each #AT: 1, D: 1d6, SZ: Man Sized, MR: Standard, SD: Immune to cold, sleep, charm, hold and other mental based attacks, AL: Neutral, Level/XP: 1/15 + 1/HP)

The hanging dead? troll encounter is a fun one.  I think I would have its appendages have a life of their own. (Evil GM Cackle)

Snoot's Rock n' Roll Pit Fight Arena is a bit silly, so you might want to modify this encounter.  I think some more standard bards could foot the bill here.

There are a good many NPCs included in the adventure and that is cool to see.  They are described well.

As with most adventures a GM will need to read through the adventure, make notes, emphasize parts of the text that need to stand out more, etc.  You know, standard GM prep work for running a published adventure.

The art for Cavern of the Snare Beast is really evocative.  Just look at that evil bastard!  Woah!

There is a good amount of treasure, and useful magic items littered here and there in the dungeon IF the player characters can manage to find them.

I love the My Giant and Me encounter.  I want a giant pet spider now!  The art is also very evocative with a Dwarf holding onto a chain leash that holds his eight-legged pet in tow.  The art is included over there. <---

While there isn't a ton of art included, almost every piece is impressive.  Some of the pieces are a bit too "cartoony" for my tastes, but I do like most of it. The pieces I am including here are my favorites.

This adventure looks like it will kick a party's ass if they are the types that just go toe-to-toe for every encounter.  They will need to use magic items, have a good amount of healing and offense, and a good amount of luck to get through it all I think.  Good luck, it looks like a fun challenge.

One of the rooms has chess pieces that animate and attack.  I love this idea.  It reminds me of battle at the end of Time Bandits and that one scene in one of the Harry Potter flicks.

Wendell Hobblefoot (an evil Halfling) literally rules the dungeon and I like that twist, but his art is a bit on the cartoony side as well.

New monster stats are included in an appendix, as well as pregenerated characters to use for the adventure.  I wish more adventures included those. 

While this adventure seems to be on the short side (at 36 pages) it is densely packed with encounters and what appears to be a lot of over-the-top fun.  If you want a more gonzo adventure this can cover you, and if you want to slightly tweak it for a more serious game that is easy to do as well.

It appears like this adventure could possible take up to 2 to 4 sessions to play it all out, but I'll need to playtest that.  Maybe I'll get to use this in my solo campaign, or at my local convention that I run games for twice a year.

I hope to review the rest of the Maximum Mayhem Dungeon adventures, and perhaps get a review up on my RPG YouTube channel as well.  Only time will tell though.  Have a good one.  -Tim

Solo Role-playing: The Lost City of Barakus Part 3 (LL) Dretches & Death Dogs

The party was still mucking and sloshing about in the sewers when they stumbled upon two hideous little Dretches (Demons) dumping soil in the sewer near a now opened secret door.

Giladrina went unconscious again after several bites and claws landed brutal hits.  The Dwarven Cleric saved her from death's door and she managed to cast a Burning Hands spell to take the demons out.

Further into the secret lair they were ambushed by twin Death Dogs and two of the characters were infected with Rotting Death (-1D6 Con).  A Sleep spell put them down but the party fled back to the city of Endhome to lick their wounds.

At Endhome the Priests of Freya cured their diseases and they rested at their rooms at The Lion's Side Inn.  They paid for back rent and two more weeks stay there (6gp per week each).

By this point the group has been adventuring for 12 days.  Some shopping and upkeep was in order.

I really need to improve my record keeping and I started using a group xp sheet, a wealth sheet, and a house rules sheet.  I'm taking notes as I go on college ruled paper in a three-ring binder and that seems to be working well.

My house rules so far are:
*0HP = Unconsciousness
*Sell items for 50% of value
*1gp = 1xp
*If shooting into melee a natural 1 = Friendly Fire

I also need to keep better track of food and expended torches but it's going well and I'm having fun.

Solo Role-playing: The Lost City of Barakus Part 2 (Labyrinth Lord)

I had some more time today than I expected so I got in a second solo RPG session.  It almost ended in a TPK but I'll get to that below.  I'm really enjoying rolling on random tables, going with "whatever makes the most sense," and just enjoying the various sections of The Lost City of Barakus as a player.  I tend to be the GM so it's a nice change of pace.

The characters were all 3rd level but I'm keeping track of individual XP as I go from here on out.  It's actually been awhile since I even worried about XP but for this it just seems to fit.

I'm using a variety of random tables but I need to get them all into physical format so I don't need to be checking my phone so often which comes with distractions.

The Party:
Driya is an Elf Fighter,
Giladrina is an Elf Fighter / Magic-user,
Marzul is a Half-orc Thief,
Tralina is an Elf Thief,
and Ulfgar is a Dwarf Cleric

I'm using some of the options from Advanced Labyrinth Lord aka the Advanced Edition Companion (AEC).

Randon Encounter: Upon leaving the city Ulfgar had his pockets picked my some wandering merchants.

The group then traveled and ambushed The Greentree Bandits but the tide of battle turned against our intrepid heroes (bad dice rolls).  The leaders actually went down easily but the bandit minions were bloodthirsty jerks haha.  Tralina went unconscious and the rest of the party only had a few hit points at the end.  It was interesting to see how invested I was in having the characters survive.

The characters looted the corpses, stole the available wealth, and went back to Endhome to heal up at the inn while the magic-user spent a week doing magical research at the Wizard Academy to acquire a new spell.

The characters upgraded equipment and their armor and were attacked by a Shadow that drained some Strength from them before they could flee.

Next up was visiting the Temple of Freya and the priest sold some healing potions and gave them a new quest to find a missing priestess.  This was a hook to another adventure supplement so I just rolled up 3 random encounters: Giant Lizard (Gecko), Giant Ants, and an Albino Ape which were all from Labyrinth Lord.  Only the ape proved to be a little trouble by rolling two back to back critical hits. In the end they brought back the priestess to her temple.

The last encounter involved a diseased rat swarm that infected Giladrina thereby making her deaf for the near future.

Next up, more splashing around in raw sewage.

Solo Role-playing: The Lost City of Barakus Part 1 (Labyrinth Lord)

I had some downtime so I figured I would try to do some solo role-playing for the first time.  I'm used a variety of random tables, Labyrinth Lord, and The Lost City of Barakus as the adventure.

I'm surprised how much fun it was.  It reminded me of playing PC and NES games like The Bard's Tale and Wizardry. It's sure was better than just staring at a wall. Haha.

I added in a dose of common sense and I tried to flip back and forth from a player's POV and that of a GM.

I've never played or ran The Lost City of Barakus before and this seemed like a cool way to try out and learn the adventure before I run it for my friends or at a convention.

I also had to get over that internal self criticism about solo play.  It just sounded so lonely when I first heard about it.  For people like me though that work all the time it will help to pass the slow hours in an interesting way.

The characters had to fight their way into the city (killing 2 guards) and the Elf ended up doing some research at the magic academy.  The rest of the party got a room at an inn and got their first adventure hook (finding a lost husband in the dungeon).

There were some random encounters too pike thugs and helping a wounded man who gave the Dwarf Cleric a magic gem as a reward (it acts like an Identify spell).

So in closing, if you've never given it a try pull out some random tables and make up some characters and charge into a published adventure or randomly generate one on the fly.

Sea Magic aka Shell Spells

A friend posted about finding shells on the beach but my brain read his post as finding SPELLS on the beach.  That made me think about a shell-based system about a culture that harvests shells to cast sea-based magic.  Maybe they crush them, snort them, cut themselves with them, or inscribe spells onto them as a focus. 

Shell Spells... :D

Rolemaster Unified Stat Generation for Empire of the Petal Throne

Recently I watched a video by Bankbar Como on YouTube where he was generating a character for RMU from I.C.E. In that video he rolled 3D100 for each stat, dropped the lowest, used the next highest roll for the current stat, and the highest roll was used for the maximum Stat Potential (the highest that stat could ever be).

That stat generation method made me think of Empire of the Petal Throne.  As a house rule I always had the players roll 4D6, drop the lowest result, and then multiply the 3D6 total X 5 to get the final stat total.  Now I think I'm going to bolt on RMU's method.

EPT has random rolls at each new level to increase your stats.  I think I'll make that roll a bit easier but include the stat maximums.

Anyway, I thought I would share.

Here is Bankbar Como's YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqNR2CzK5eZDrqv2Cf2rQCw

Vs. Dragons RPG Review

#MiniRPGReview

There are only 2 Stats (Brains and Muscles) and that reminds me a bit of the Lasers & Feelings RPG.  You get to put 4/4, 5/3, or 3/5 in the Stats.

Core Mechanic: Draw cards = Stat.  If the highest card is equal to or greater than the set Target Number (7 average) success.

Classes provide only one special ability but it wouldn't be tough to add some free Gimmicks in the game to flesh them out more.  I like that they are simple.

Each hero (character) gets one good and one bad Gimmick of their choice.  Think of D&D Feats but more narrative.  These are like many Boons and Flaws in other games but more rules-lite.

Equipment is more on the "what makes sense" side of things as well.

Shields are awesome.  Hearts deflect hits, Diamonds or Clubs reduces damage, Spades reduces damage but shield is damaged.

Weaponds deal 1-4 damage depending on size.

Random Card Draw as an Oracle:

Hearts = Very Good,

Diamonds = Good,

Clubs = Bad,

Spades = Very Bad

Initiative is just clockwise around the table.

Actions are move and attack.

Melee Combat is a draw of # of cards = Muscle, if highest card is greater than or equal to target's Muscle hit.

Ranged Combat is a draw of # of cards = Brains, if highest card is greater than or equal to Range Value (based on distance) hit.

Toughness (Hit Points) is 10 or higher with Gimmicks.  At 5 -1 Pain mod, at 2 -2 Pain mod, at 0 -3 Pain mod, at -1 Unconscipus.  Any hit after -1 is death.

Natural Healing is 1/hour, or 5/4 hours.  First Aid/Medical Care is Heart it worked, Diamond or Club is. Nothing bad happened, and Spade is it failed and possible death.

The rest is optional rules, NPC and Monster stats, items, and spells.

Hero Rewards are via Stat increases, Bonus Cards, or new Hero Gimmicks.

Save vs. Moonlight or Lunar Influence

My friend is on a cruise and took this.  It made me think that I should tinker on a Saving Throw vs. Lunar Influence table. Feel free to chime in.

Save vs. Moonlight.  If you fail a Saving Throw roll on the table below.

1. Temporary loss of short-term memory.
2. You lose one item by setting it down and forgetting about it.
3. Your sense of smell increases three fold.
4. You gain low-light vision temporarily.
5. You gain darkvision temporarily.
6. You gain Infravision temporarily.
7. One random stat increases.
8. Two random stats increase.
9. One random stat decreases.
10. Two random stats decrease.
11. You and an ally gain telepathy with each other for the rest of the night.
12. Your hair turns white permanently.
13. Your pupils look like twin crescent moons for 1D6 days.
14. Any spilled blood looks like it glows for you.  The blood in living beings makes them glow a dull red too.
15. You know how to read, speak, and write one random language for the rest of the night.
16. The character can cast 1D4 divine spells based on the domain of one of the moon gods or goddesses.
17. The character grows long black fur all over their body.  It needs to be shaved off to remove it.
18. Your fingernails and toenails grow extra quickly (as if they had grown naturally for one year).
19. Your fingernails become sharp talons that can be used as natural weapons.
20. You transform into a violent predatory animal for 1D6 hours.

Google+ Apocalypse, the Rise of MeWe, the OSR, and Little Ole Me

Hello everyone.  How's life?  Things are super busy around these parts with work and family but I have been spending a good amount of time chatting about RPGs over on a new social network called MeWe.

Yeah... the name is weird but in the course of about a week most of the OSR role-players that I followed on Google+ migrated over.  

The site is pretty user friendly and the RPG groups are easy to find with a quick search.  If you want to add me feel free.

https://mewe.com/i/samwiseseven_rpg

Each group has a chat which I think really helps bring in that feeling of community.

When you are just getting started you are only allowed to add 50 new people a day but I understand that it is a spam prevention method.  Just be patient.  I've now gotten to the point where I don't max out every day. Hehe.

I hope to see you over there.  Come say hello.  Cya around.  *Internet High Five*

My Published Work: Murcanto's Lair RPG Adventure

I'm pretty awful at promoting my own little projects.  Just look at the way this blog post is written.  hehe.  ;)

Here is a link to a systemless dungeon crawl adventure I published a few years ago too.  It is behind the Adult Filter because I figured I'd better be safe than sorry.  It is a bit dark & horrific in places and the subject matter might offend some out there.

Murcanto's Lair
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/159883/Murcantos-Lair

https://samwise7rpg.itch.io/murcantos-lair

I'm also in the LOOOOONNNNGGGGG process of writing up my next adventure called Suffering of the Moth Queen.  It is going to be aimed more at OSR play, but you might be able to use it with other systems with a bit of elbow grease.  It is proving to be my most ambitious project yet.  It is more like a sandboxy mini-setting than a typical adventure.  The text alone is up past 170 pages now and I like to include a lot of art, so I'm sure it will balloon up when a skilled layout gal or guy gives it some love.  This one will be a bit more risque than my other projects, so it might draw some unwanted attention.  The main themes in it will deal with physical and psychological abuse on top of a bunch of fantasy/horror tropes that I will twist until I like them.  Let's hope I finish it before I die of old age.  hehe.

Interacting with RPG People Online: the Tim Way

I wrote this over on Google+.  Figured I would share it here too.

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I don't like conflict, never have.  I also suck at standing up for myself, but I'm trying to work on that front.  Seeing friends of mine attacking each other is always disheartening.  I also avoid choosing sides and try to stay as far away from internet drama as possible.  I do prefer those that stick more to gaming chatter by in large.  

It seems that I have way more patience for dealing with problematic personalities that others find super annoying.  Some of us have undiagnosed personality disorders I think.  I have anxiety and depression issues, so I'm not above anyone.  I often find myself in the predicament of having two or more friends that despise each other, and yet, I still consider them all my friends.  I'll give you an example.

A younger much more naive version of myself got married when I was 20 (and somehow I'm still married at 38).  At that time I had a pretty decent sized pool of friends from various backgrounds, cliques, groups, etc.  I invited them all to my bachelor party in the mountains (we made dams in the creek, slid down a natural water/rock slide, ate lots of food, and drank generic soda pop).  Yes, I know, I had a boring party by many standards but for me it was mostly just what the doctor ordered.  That park is still my favorite place on Earth.  

Roughly one third of my friends left almost as soon as they arrived to this party.  Why did they do that?  They did that because they couldn't stand some of my other friends, and could not bear to hang out with me while they were there.  So their distaste for some of the guests was greater than wanting to hang out with me for one last night before I got married.  It pissed me off then, but I understand their reaction too to a certain degree.  That reaction just isn't one that I use much in my life.

How does this all apply to people that are into RPGs and interacting with them?

*Even if Friend X says Friend Y is awful, that doesn't mean you need to ditch Friend Y.  If Friend X can't handle that you are still friends with Friend Y that is their problem not yours.  This doesn't mean that you approve 100% with Friend Y's behavior either.

*I like to give people the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe they are acting like an asshat today.  There are probably reasons for that, and maybe they should have just stayed away from the keyboard while they were upset or felt like crap, etc.  I don't throw a friendship (or online interaction type person) away for a bad day.  People are people, and we all suck sometimes.  I think people need a bit of forgiveness and leeway.

*If a friend or acquaintance sucks donkey balls all the time, and they are a leech and the relationship with them is nothing but a one way street, sure, now it's time to dump their ass on the curb and move on.  Life is just too short for that kind of draining negativity.

*People have commented that I do respond to trolls and that I shouldn't feed them, yada yada.  Well, trolls are people too (albeit misguided ones that come in several varieties).  I think I've surprised some of them by being nice in response to some asinine nasty comment they made on a blog post or RPG video, or Facebook post or Google+ post.  I've even got a few to apologize (I know, a miracle right)?  Sometimes I'll even agree with them, but spin their comment a bit.  I also like self-deprecating humor, so there is that.

*I don't think I need to win every argument, and to me a friendship or relationship with a person online means more to me than winning.

*Maybe I'm just a dreamer (cue the Beatles) but I do kind of expect people to be nice to each other as a general rule.  My expectations are often not met however, haha.  Still, for myself I do aim to be nice to everyone if possible.  If not, there are blocking features, removing them from circles or friends' lists, etc.

*I know that my personality type / way of dealing with people can piss some people off too.  "Dammit man, get angry or something."  I'm sure it might be healthier to unleash on someone from time to time, but that just isn't my M.O.

If you want to stick around to hear my random thoughts, campaign ideas, opinions about games, etc.  I'll be bere.  If not, good luck to ya and have a good one.

-Tim

P.S. This was surprisingly hard to write, and I have a sneaking suspicion it is as clear as mud.  I hope you got something out of it.

My "Old School" Expectations & D&D Play-style

Dead Air, Filling the Silences: I have really been trying not to fill every silence that happens at the table, because I've realized that it is not my job to do so (it is the group's responsibility as a whole).  By letting that dead air just HANG there I have found that players tend to get more proactive and fill it themselves by engaging in dialogue with one another or doing something.

Dice Rolling & Randomness: I will only roll dice (or call for a dice roll) when I want a random result.  There will be times when I just say your character succeeds at an action without a roll.  Many times I include descriptive details that would be the result of a roll as well to cut down on the number of times dice are rolled.  IF the dice hit the table however we will be incorporating that outcome (I don't fudge dice).  There will be more randomness in character creation (namely rolling 4D6 dropping the lowest die straight down the stat line) to discourage min-maxing but the rest of character creation is a series of player choices.  

Emergent Narrative: While I will be using the rough draft of my Suffering of the Moth Queen adventure, it is more like a current situation and sandbox and I have NO idea how your characters will navigate its challenges or what will happen after they get involved in what is happening.  The story will emerge from play as the characters explore the environment and interact with creatures and NPCs.

Exploration and Interaction with the Environment: I think part of an old school game is exploring strange locations, mapping them out, and discovering what lies in those fuzzy un-mapped areas.  Every room will not have an encounter, and everything you encounter will not try to kill you.  Sure, other things WILL be trying to kill you but even then they will be interacting at the characters.  I don't think in-character role-playing needs to end when initiative is rolled.  As a general rule try to listen to the descriptions of things as there are often hints and clues sprinkled in there.

Heroic Characters, Not Superheroes: Some of the house rules will aim to reduce the power level of the characters so that a bit more realism is prevalent during play.  Characters will most likely die at some point during the course of the adventure, and that's okay (note that resurrection is an option).  I find that if death is a real possibility for the characters combats have more of an exciting edge to them.  Also, when fights are dangerous I find that players look for other options than just hitting things in the face with swords.  hehe.

In-character Role-playing, Not Social Skill Checks: I gutted Charisma and all of the social skills because I want to promote in-character role-playing.  You don't have to be an actor using accents and stuff however.  Just do your best.  It is evident when someone is trying and that is all I can ask for.  Plus, I find bantering back and forth in-character to be one of the things I really enjoy about RPGs.

Meaningful Character Decisions: I will not be using any "Quantum Ogres" as you go through the dungeon.  I want to make choice matter.

Pro-active Players and Risk Taking: Don't be afraid to think outside of the box to try something new.  All of the answers are not on your character sheet.  If you just sit there your characters won't do anything cool.  That being said, the world that the characters will be exploring is dangerous and being careful at the right moment might save your character's life.  Without risks there are no gains however.  

Rulings / Rules as Guidelines: The rules are guidelines and at the end of the day the GM will make a call for a situation where the rules are unclear or too unrealistic and move the game forward with a ruling.  I don't want to fight over the rules during a game session but afterward we can look up the rules that are in question.  The GM is the final arbiter and referee of the rules while the game is going on.  I will try to be fair, and I always like to get feedback so feel free to let me know.

Theater of the Mind: I mostly run games in a more theater of the mind approach (aka no miniatures or grids).  In the case of complex combats I might throw out some flat marbles, dice, etc. to represent things though.  

Unbalanced Encounters: Everything the characters face will NOT be of an appropriate challenge rating.  Sometimes the best choice is to run like Hell or hide or do some talky-talky.  There should be some clues in the room description to let you know that this thing that you are facing is deadly (like a mountain of skulls, or blood everywhere, or corpses hanging from walls).  

Weird & Wonderful: I hope to drench modified fantasy tropes with strange horrific details.  At times I can dip down into dark fantasy.  I look at megadungeons as strange supernatural mythic underworlds where reality's rules need not apply.  They aren't just piles of ruined mortar and stones in my mind.