Lands of Cantona - Session 6

After the combat with the bandits the party heard noises and orders from the rooms beyond and got ready to keep fighting. Unknown to them the remaining bandits were springing a trap, taking advantage of the knowledge of the surface ruins layout, with some of them taking cover behind overturned tables while others quickly moved to catch the intruders from the rear.

A furious battle for survival ensued, with the party fighting two fronts at the same time! In the end, the party prevailed and managed to not only defeat the bandits but to also find some treasure. Most ended gravely wounded and Cesar the druid unconcious, but stable (negative HP).

While some were dealing with the newfound treasure and taking care of Cesar, Larry decided to explore further on his own. The dices didn't favered him; a random encounter with a giant spider and a 1 on the surprise die. The surviving party, noticing that time was passing and he was not returning decided to go looking for him. Leaving the druid under the care of the hirelings, Ragnar the elven fighter and Tak the human cleric went searching for their missing companion. They found some of Larry's belongings on the courtyard and a some webs' remains. With that they went back inside and climbed some wooded stairs of dubious stability to the upper story that had its roof crumbled inside. Amog the fallen rafters there were webs that they set on fire revealing a giant spider and some cocoons. They managed to kill the monster and rescue Larry's corpse. They decided to entrench in the treasure room to spend the night.

The next day Tak managed to cast Cure Light Wounds on Cesar (0 HP). Then, they made an inventory of the treasure, burnt the corpses of the dead bandits and also manged to built a makeshift cart, to carry the treasure and Larry's corpse back to town. They spent another night in the ruins and the following day, with Cesar now concious after another Cure Light Wounds from Tak, they hide the armor and weapons among the ruins of the upper floor. Cesar casts Speak With Animals and Animal Friendship on 3 rats before starting their journey back. Outside of the Castle of the Mad Archmage ruins the come across a patrol of elves from the first level who are sad to know of Larry's demise, but speak of a hermit druid in the forests to the West taht might be able to help them.

Kaythong

KEYTHONG

 

Rare Heraldic Beast

Frequency: Very Rare

No. Appearing: 1-4

Armor Class: 4

Move: 18"

Hit Dice: 7

% in Lair: 20%

Treasure Type: C

No. of Attacks: 3

Damage/Attack: 1-6 / 1-6 / 2-8

Special Attacks: Pounce

Special Defenses: Surprise only on 1 in 6

Magic Resistance: Standard

Intelligence: Low (5-7)

Alignment: Neutral

Size: L (8' long)

Psionic Ability: Nil

Attack/Defense Modes: Nil

Level/XP Value: V / 525 + 8/hp

Description

The keythong is a rare heraldic beast closely related to the griffon. It possesses the head of a raptor, complete with hooked beak and pointed ears, neck, and massive taloned forelimbs, but the hindquarters of a great lion. Unlike the griffon, it is completely wingless. Keythongs are swift terrestrial predators inhabiting rocky highlands, lonely moors, and ancient borderlands where forgotten kingdoms once stood. Their heraldic significance often leads nobles to adopt them as symbols of vigilance and martial prowess.

Combat

A keythong attacks with two foreclaws and a powerful beak. If it charges at least 30 feet and hits with both claws, it gains an immediate beak attack at +2 to hit and inflicts double damage on the beak strike. This represents the creature hurling its prey to the ground and tearing into it. Also the target must save versus paralysis or be knocked prone and stunned for 1 round. Due to their avian forequarters and feline agility, keythongs may leap up to 9' from standing or 18' running. While leaping it has Maneuverability Class C. This allows it to turn 90 degrees per round, changing its pounce vector.

Special Defenses

A keythong's vigilance is legendary. It is surprised only on a roll of 1 on 1d6, regardless of terrain or lighting conditions. It has a 25% chance to detect invisible creatures within 30'. Invisible creatures do not gain their normal surprise benefits against a keythong.

Ecology

Though often mistaken for wingless griffons, keythongs are a distinct species. They hunt deer, mountain goats, and occasionally horses. Unlike griffons they rarely attack settlements unless provoked or starving. Their feathers, beaks, and talons are prized by heralds, wizards, and noble houses that bear the creature upon their coats of arms. Their eggs are highly priced, reaching values up to 10.000 go for the right buyer.

Training

Just like griffons and hippogriffs, keythongs can be trained with 4 months of intensive work. For carrying capacity purposes treat it as a Medium Warhorse (4,000/6,500 g.p. weight). Upkeep has a cost 200–400 g.p. per month for specialized feed and keepers

Erynnor Gilithrim

"Before learning the art of the shadows, Erynnor was a soldier of the realm. Under the colors of his clan, Gilithrim (meaning Star-Host in Sindarin), he trained in the tough discipline of the line and mastered both longsword and longbow. On the battlefield he realized that battles are often won before the first blow, in the shadows where secrets are kept. 

Seeking to bridge the gap between martial prowess and subtle cunning, he stepped away from the ranks. He traded the cumbersome heavy armor for the lighter leather and sought out the guild masters' advice. Under their gaze he learned to pick locks, disarm traps, and slip through the dark undetected. He didn't abandon his warrior roots but merged them. His fighter’s discipline steadied his hand when picking a lock under pressure, and his thief’s agility turned his swordplay unpredictable and deadly."

Erynnor of tne Gilithrim is an elven fighter/thief (Swordsman/Robber) for an OSRIC play-by-post game on Discord. We are playing UK4: When a Star Falls, a TSR UK module from 1984 by Graeme Morris.

The rest of the party so far are Don Tavanym, a human fighter, Eldrin Greenwood, an elven thief, Ark Lysemius, a human cleric, Friederich Flintstone, a dwarven fighter and Kojak, a human magic-user. 

STR 12, DEX 15, CON 10, INT 11, WIS 8, CHA 10

Lands of Cantona - Session 5

Last Sunday we had another session of my Lands of Cantona campaign with my son and nephews as players (wife couldn't play this time), set in Greyhawk and using the Labyrinth Lord rules. 

After the happenings at the "Red Rapier" tavern the day before, the group went back the next day to the place to try find more clues about the Syndicate and a bandit named Rollo, that was involved in the ambush they suffered on their way to Cantona. To their dismay they found the place closed with nobody answering their calls. Ragnar, the elf fighter, asked a couple of beggars if they knew about another Syndicate hideout or someone named Rollo. At first they denied, but after some silver coins they recalled someone with that name saying he was going West. When Larry, the human fighter, showed some gold coins pushing for more information, more beggars appeared surrounding the trio and asking for coins. Seeing this, Tak, the human cleric of Trithereon, tossed away some silver coins and the beggars went after them, leaving them alone. Late that day Ragnar noticed he was missing a dagger.

With not more clues to follow in Cantona they decided to go back West to the village of Baz, where they suspected of Arim, the moneychanger being the one responsible for the attack on them, even though the message they found on the ambush leader was signed by "D". Anyway, after 3 days of travel without incidents they arrived at Baz at late afternoon. Both the trading post and moneychanger were closed so they went directly to the "Dice and Raven Inn" to get a meal and a room. Ragnar bought drinks for all the patrons, about a dozen of them, and asked for someone to tell a story. A man told them about the disappearance of Arn, a local forester, and his family, wife and two kids. 

The next day they decided do go back to the Castle of the Mad Archmage ruins. They explored the NW part of the courtyard where several former stables were near one of the towers. Larry explored the tower navigating the unstable wooden stairs up. His luck ran out when he reached the second level and the floorboards gave in. He plummeted down but miraculously managed to grab a beam at the last moment and only end with a twisted ankle when he lowered himself to the ground. There was also a spiral staircase going down but they didn't explore it. In one of the stables they found the standing skeleton of a horse, that fell when touched. In another strange noises sounded when they entered but there was no one there. They searched the area inside out, with Cesar casting Detect Magic but nothing showed. At last Tak suggested it could be something of spiritual nature, so they built an ouija board with wood, horse bones and an oil Larry had, distilled from some silvery fungus he found in an abandoned tower (check the first session here). The message they received was that there has been a murder there. 

After that they investigated a patch of very tall grass, not like the rest of the courtyard that was sparse soil. Ragnar ran into it and was tripped by the grass, hit his head hard into the ground and fell unconcious. Larry treaded carefully cutting the grass and freeing Ragnar. Then they turned their atention to the NE part of the upper ruins where two doors could be seen from the courtyard, a great ironwood door and a lesser oaken one. They chose the latter that, to their surprise, was opened by the spirit of a doorman that bowed to their entrance. The group tried to talk to him but it was unresponsive, so they tried the ouija board which was a total success. they explored the place finding an old armory with a few rusty weapons, a room with a flight of stairs down (which they didn't explore), a hall with long tables and benches (Ragnar was attacked by a giant tick here, but he killed with one blow), a narrow hall with arrowslits and a hall (where the great ironwood door led into) decoreated with old tattered banners. 

They continued exploring to the South through a thick oaken door that could be barred from their side. It led to a short corridor that ended in a similar door that was shut. They proceeded to hack it with an axe making a lot of noise. When they finally opened it a group of bandits was waiting for them! They tried to parley but they reconized the elf and the druid and attacked them. The fght ended with the bandits dead and the group somewhat wounded.

The session ended with the sounds of more bandits approaching...

Why I’m Testing Archivist AI

After 20+ sessions as a player in a campaign that’s used Archivist AI since day one, I’ve seen firsthand how it transforms a long-term game. Now, I'm two sessions into a DM test run for a separate campaign to see the magic from behind the screen.

The core features I appreciate the most are:

• Automatic recaps and timelines
• The compendium for characters, items, locations and factions
• The "ask the Archivist" chatbot integrated to Discord
• Cast analysis showing the talk pace during sessions 

As a player, it helps I can focus entirely on roleplay without worrying if I missed a lore detail in my personal notes. As a DM, it help on session prep saving time and the "Session Handouts" it generates provides all the information for any player that missed the session. 

If you’re running a lore-heavy campaign or just want to spend less time transcribing and more time playing, it’s worth the trial.

Castle of the Mad Archmage: Vaulted Halls of Night

A new level of the Castle of the Mad Archmage by BRW Games is live on Backerkit and it's part of MEGA DUNGEON MONTH that runs from Aprith 7th to May 1st, 2026. It has two pledge levels: digital only ($4.95) and print+digital ($3.50). I backed it with the digital only. 

Greyhawk Journal 2

 

A new installment of the Greyhawk Journal by the "Pages of the Grey Grimoire" crew is available to download for free. You can also check Lord Gosumba's Legends & Lore #334 where he, along with Anna B. Meyer, Mike Bridges and Samuel Weiss (editor in chief of the journal), discuss in detail the various articles in this issue.

Lands of Cantona - Session 4

Last session our heroes (Ragnar the elven fighter, Larry the human fighter, Tak the human cleric of Trithereon and Cesar the human druid) were in the village of Baz planning to go to the walled port town of Cantona to sell their newfound stash of old coins. They rested at "The Dice & Raven Inn" before starting a 3-day walk from the fringes of the Welkwood Forest to the coast of the Wooly Bay. 

Unbeknownst to them, "Snarl" Davos, the owner of the villages' trading post sent a pigeon with a message to his accomplices at a bandit camp near the fork to Beachcourt on the road to Cantona. 

On the second day of travel, when the party, along with two men-at-arms and two torchbearers (these last two carrying the chest with the coins), reached that point, the alerted group of bandits sprung the ambush. Two archers and a crossbowman peppered them from higher gourd on the sides, while four footmen with sword and shield charged supported by a mounted bandit with spear and shield. All this happened commanded by a mounted bandit leader from the rear. 

While Ragnar charged past the footmen to attack the leader, Cesar cast Entangle on the archers disabling them for the rest of the fight, and Larry, Tak and the men-at-arms faced the footmen. One of the men-at-arms fell, but so did a couple of bandits. Cesar the cast Faerie Fire on the remaining attackers. Meanwhile Ragnar had to sacrifice his shield pierced by a spear strike that  otherwise would have ended him, and continued fighting holding his elven sword two-handed. 

Mortally wounded the leader tried to escape but was killed by Ragnar. At the same time two more bandit fell and the remaining mounted bandit turned his horse and fled, and so did the crossbowmen. Since most of the party members were wounded they decided not to pursue the survivors. They bind their wounds the best they could, with Tak casting Cure Light Wounds on the elf who was hurt worse. The entangled archers were captured and tied down, and they buried the fallen men-at-arms. Also Cesar went after the spooked bandit leader mount and cast Animal Friendship on it. They gathered all the armors (6 leather, 1 chainmail, 5 shields) and weapons (5 longswords, 2 short bows, 18 arrows, 1 spear), and also a signet ring and a note from the bandit leader. 

"The Druid and the Elf have the Arn gold. They drag it in a metal box. Intercept at the fork. — D."

Cesar cast Detect Magic on the lot and determined the bandit leader longsword, the only one with a gem adorning the hilt, had a aura. With that, they looked for a suitable place to camp and spend the night. The prisoners were interrogated separately and, after being threatened with duress, one declared he was new and knew nothing and the other "spilled the beans". The latter told them the leader received a pigeon on their camp in the woods and informed them to prepare to set up an ambush. He also gave up the name of the horsed bandit that escaped (Rollo). They discussed about the fate of the prisoners and finally decided to turn them to the authorities of Cantona. That night, the party's camp was attacked by a giant spider and I randomly rolled who it will attack: it snatched away the tied up prisoners! 

The next day they arrived at Cantona. At the gates the watchmen asked their business in town, a scribe

wrote down their names and collected the entry toll for people and mounts. They asked directions for a moneychanger and went there to sell the chest of coins. After selling the coins Tak and Cesar, along with the men-at-arms and torchbearers went to secure lodgings at "The Giant Clam", while Ragnar and Larry went to the town's market, one to sell the loot (the bandits' weapons and armors) and the other to sell his magical potion. 

To my amazement, Larry's approach was to shout to the four winds "I have a magical potion to sell!". Almost immediately three "customers" showed up interested. They warned him he couldn't be selling things without a permit from the guild and, if he accompanied them, they would gladly sort it out for him for just a 10 gp fee. He made a counter offer of giving 3 gp each to forget everything and let him be, but they pushed it. They told him to surrender the potion to them and they will split the earnings with him. When he refused one of the thieves proceeded to successfully pick pocket the potion (I rolled 05%!). The robbers then ran each in a different direction and Larry chased after one, managed to grab it by the collar, only to end up with a cloak in his hands. Frustrated, he just waited for the Watch to show up and went to their HQ to give a description of the robbers. While he was waiting, a satisfied Ragnar returned after managing to secure a brand new armor, a plate mail. 

After Larry left with the Watch, Ragnar made some inquires around the market to see if anyone had seen anything. A beggar pleading "A coin for a veteran of the wars!" caught his eye and he asked him about the robbery. "Ah yes, they belong to the Syndicate..." said the beggar after securing some coins from the elf, who pressed for more information on where to find it. More coins changed hands and the beggar delivered "Look for any place with an inverted V over a line (the same symbol the signet ring had!) discretely engraved on the door jamb...". After asking for a precise place and some more coins, he came with the name of "The Red Rapier", a tavern on South of town. With that information he went back to the "The Giant Clam" to relay what happened to Tak and Cesar, and wait for Larry.

On his way back from the Watch HQ, Larry lost his way and got distracted by a lady of the night, just enough for a thief to get behind him and try to knock him out with a sap. Too bad for the thief that failed his move silently check and Larry swiftly managed to attack him (my nephew rolled a natural 20!). I ruled that he chopped the poor's guy hand clean off. The screams of the wounded thief and the street walker alerted the hood. Soon enough Larry was running for his life chased by an angry mob. Luckily he managed to get back to his friends unharmed. Over a dinner the group decided to check "The Red Rapier" the following day.

The tavern was a seedy and shady place with few patrons, a couple chatting over their drinks, one drunkard slumped over a table full of empty mugs, a lonely man smoking a pipe and the bartender. Ragnar, wearing the signet ring went sat at the bar while Larry, Tak and Cesar took a table. The bartender served Ragnar and noticed the ring, the went to serve the table. While pouring the drinks for them he asked Ragnar "Is the tower still standing?". The elf was caught off guard by the question and just replied "Unfortunately not anymore." and the bartender knew he was not a Syndicate member. He casually adjusted a torch sconce and went about his business. The elf found that odd and started asking questions about it, but the bartender just dodged them. Things got heated as Ragnar started demanding answers and got none. The bartender headed for the kitchen followed by the elf. One of the patrons darted for the door while the other two stood up. Cesar went for the fleeing one hitting him on the back of his head. The guy stumbled out of the tavern. The guy that was smoking threw darts on Cesar, Tak and Larry. They all got hit, but only Larry slumped on the floor asleep. The remaining patron, short sword in hand, closed on Ragnar from behind while he knocked the bartender out. The cook moved to attack the elf with a meat cleaver. Cesar caught the stumbling guy outside and helped him back into the tavern as if he was too drunk. Once inside he closed the door. Meanwhile, Tak got stabbed by his attacker and Ragnar exchanged blows with his' killing the cook. Cesar and Tak, despite being both wounded, managed to take down the remaining attacker. They then woke up Larry and rounded up the bartender and the fleeing one, from which they got some answers before the Watch arrived.

• The question the bartender asked was a safe phrase between the Syndicate members.
• "Over the waves" was the expected answer.
• The torch sconce position was a signal if the place was secure or not.
• A guy named Rollo (the one that escaped at the ambush site) came a few days ago "to gather some muscle for a job"

Gygaxian Scroll of Honor

Today, I finally received an email from Paul J. Stormberg, President of the Gygax Memorial Fund (looks like yesterday there was a hiccup with their mail server) saying that my Gygaxian Scroll of Honor was ready for download. Now the only thing left to do is print it (maybe after removing the red background?), frame it and hang it on the wall.

The rewards as a 7th Level Adventurer of Gygax includes, apart from this scroll, that my name would be on the Gygaxian Wall of Honor and also the maps & keys of Greysterne Castle that cover the Lands & Ruins as well as the following dungeon levels:

1. Warrens of the Rat King
2. Gates of the Goblin Chiefs
3. Temples of the Orc God
4. Mines of the Hobgoblins
5. Hunting Grounds of the Gnoll Pack
6. Lagoons of the Lizard King
   
   And, since I choose the Complete Castle Greysterne add-on, I get the entire 18-level dungeon!
   
   
7. Burrows of the Bugbear Chief
8. Halls of the Ogre Lord
9. Mind Maze of the Minotaurs
10. Tiers of the Troll Dens
11. Halls of the Hill Giant Chief
12. Glacial Crevasse of the Frost Giant Jarl
13. Forges of the Fire Giant King
14. Castellan of the Cloud Giants
15. Aerie of the Azure Dragons
16. Infernal Pits of the Dragon Queen
17. Sepulcher of the Vampire Lord
18. Necropolis of the Lich King

On 2024, I travelled to Lake Geneva all the way from URUGUAY for Gary Con XVI and the 50th anniversary of D&D. Hope to visit again to see this memorial!

Happy Birthday D&D from 330 Center Street

Today everyone who supported the Kickstarter of the "Gary Gygax Memorial Game Table for Dungeons & Dragons Fans by Gygax Memorial" received an update from Paul J. Stormberg, President of the Gygax Memorial Fund. In there we could read about a nice tidbit of D&D history: on February 18th, 1973 Dave Arneson met with Gary at 330 Center St., Lake Geneva, WI to show him his Blackmoor game.

Check the video Paul J. Stomberg made to celebrate that milestone:

We can read more about that date in the video description: "On this date in 1973 when Arneson met with Gary to show him Blackmoor and Dave Megarry's game, DUNGEON! In a letter to Dave Arneson, Gary Gygax says, "looking forward to seeing you around the 19th" and "I'm eagerly awaiting information on BLACKMOOR" and in another postcard from February 7th, 1974, Gary Gygax tells Dave Arneson, "Printer has D&D nearly done, so your copy should be in mail next week." Thus Dave would have likely received his copy around the same time as the game concept was originally demonstrated a year earlier, around the 18th of February. That ties the introduction of Blackmoor through the development of D&D to its release into a neat little 1 year time frame. So, happy birthday D&D!"

Knowing that the original manuscript of Castle Greyhawk from 1973, the original characters' cards and the dices, all of them invaluable pieces of D&D history, are being so lovingly kept and preserved is very refreshing and evocative. 

Campaign update

What happened since last update on March 2025? A lot!

When we last left our heroes they were deep in the Suss Forest and about to begin exploring the Ruins of Nol-Daer (Dungeon Magazine #13). After tracking missing dwarven miners to the ruins, the group faced a gauntlet of spriggans, manes, and a couple of deadly Black Dragons. They also found an old ally, Naahzruhn the cambion, who had the miners digging under the ruins while he bides his time to go after Markessa. He bargains with the group the freedom of the miners for information about Markessa's hideout in the Suss.

With that, they set for the villainous Markessa and a brutal siege of her underground semi-flooded stronghold ensued (A6 Die, Marquessa Die! from casl Entertainment). The party and its allies prevailed against her human and norker minions, but at a heavy price. Rivers, the party's elven thief, fell in battle, only to be brought back by the ultimate magic: a Wish spell. While Markessa and her lieutenant fled, the party secured a massive dragon hoard—though transporting "two crates and five chests" through a forest full of Kobold hordes and six-legged displacer beasts proved to be a logistical nightmare.

After that, the party took to the waves aboard the "River’s Bargain" from the port city of Fax back to the Pomarj's northern shore. Meriven, the cleric of St. Cuthbert, and Stengar the cavalier had a promise to fulfill, free the town of Lost Fenrill from its ghostly curse. They explored the shadow-haunted town and they didn't just survive; they conducted a masterclass in looting, emptying the Merchant’s Guild vaults of gems, paintings and ancient tomes. When 150+ Orcs of the Crooked Claw clan cornered them, the party broke the line with steel and spell, eventually using Hallucinatory Terrain to craft a ghostly "Earth Dragon" mist to cover their departure towards Safeton.

The party returns to their winter quarters, sailing up the Wild Coast, upriver the Selintan river past the Free City of Greyhawk and into the Nyr Dyv, around the Greyhawk Peninsula and into the Velverdyva river estuary to finally dock in the city of Dyvers. A final leg by land to Sobanwych and Twilight Falls just before the end of the year.

Sobanwych: Stengar will spend this downtime time patrolling his lands and training his followers, as well as strengthening the ties with the Gnarley Rangers and the several elven clans of the forest. Meanwhile Meriven will supervise the progress on the construction of the "Cuberthine Abbey of the Steadfast Way" and also scribe some scrolls.

Twilight Falls: Kothar’s ambitious library project, a shrine to Delleb, is nearing completion under the close inspection of cleric-librarian Adso of Mol and magic-user apprentice Aladram. With the addition of the tomes from the Sanctum of the Absent Mage, Markessa's stronghold and the vaults of the Merchant's guild of Lost Fenrill, it starting to slowly grow into a beacon of knowledge. Kothar works with Guy of Korbin, his alchemist, to craft some potions. Seraktikor, the gnomish sage at his service, successfully completes the study of the exotic objects from the Merchant’s Guild of Fenrill and answers a specific question about contacting a creature from another plane (noctral). Kothar also spends some time researching a new spell and scribing a scroll.

Dyvers: Rivers and his crew sails the "River's Bargain" up and down the Velverdyva and western Nyr Dyv ports dealing on different goods and making a substantial profit out of it.

Winter turns into Spring, and the party decide it is time to explore the map Rivers found some time ago hidden in his ship's figurehead. Kothar travels to Sobanwych to join Meriven and Teodric, and together they travel to the port of Caltaran to rendezvous with Rivers. From there they sail to the west coast of the Greyhawk Peninsula (WGR2 Treasures of Greyhawk - The Tomb of Karyne).

While the party is busy with all these tasks, a silent threat looms. Kothar's Leomund’s Secret Chest, a long reliable storage solution, has been compromised. An Intellect Devourer discovered the chest in the Ethereal Plane and it is currently waiting inside... lurking for the moment the chest is next summoned.

Lands of Cantona - Session 3

Happy New Year! This is the recap of Session 3 of my new campaign "Lands of Cantona" that I am running for my two nephews, my son and my wife. The party is composed by Ragnar the elven fighter, Larry the human fighter, Tak the human cleric of St. Cuthbert and Cesar the human druid.

~ o ~

In the end they decided to go up and out and follow the treasure map that showed 3000 coins buried about 10 miles East from the castle. On their way out of the castle they find a patrol of 8 dwarves from the Bloodaxe clan led by Gatnur Bonechin.

After that they follow the path South and, before reaching the bridge, they turn East following the stream under a thin fog. Under Cesar’s guidance they manage to keep from getting lost. After a couple of hours they reach a fault scarp that runs North-South and drops about 30 feet to a hilly terrain. Everyone manages to navigate the way down except Larry that tumbles down the last 10 feet suffering minor injuries. By Cesar’s estimations they must be near the place shown on the map but they see nothing that marks it.

They were atop a hill looking around when a 9 feet tall brutish humanoid wielding a crude wooden club charges at them! A fierce combat ensued with hits and misses by both sides, with the fighters scarifying their shields to avoid deadly blows, and spells cast by the cleric and druid. The creature was defeated and the party was binding their wound when another, similar but smaller creature, attacked them. Some lucky blows brought the creature down before it could be a threat.

They searched the ogres, as they called them, and found that the bigger one had a bag with gold pieces (500). When they find they are all of the same mint (a tower over waves on one side and a man's profile with the letters ARN SON BARONIS on the other), one they didn't recognize. They decided to search for the lair of the creatures and their findings led them to a nearby cave filled with bones, hide and half eaten carcasses. Among this filth they found a metal chest filled with 5 large sacks all containing silver pieces (2500) with the same mint as the gold ones.

They prepared camp away from the cave and the next day under a great storm they started their way back to the village of Baz dragging the treasure chest. The travel was uneventful until they reached a stream by nightfall where they came across a herd of wild cattle. After a miserable but uneventful night, the next day still under a heavy rain they enter the woods. By late afternoon they found a group of Sylvan elves with whom they share camp. They manage to get from the elves a longbow, arrows and a dagger. 

By midday of the next day they arrived to the village of Baz and went to see Arin the moneychanger. They didn't agree on the exchange rate for the coins and said they were going to the city of Cantona. With that idea in mind they went to the trading post, run by the nefarious "Snarl" Davos and his partner Gregam, but they found their prices of goods and horses too high.

~ o ~  

The session ended with the party in town, with some treasure and divided about what to do. 

Lands of Cantona - Session 2

This is the recap of Session 2 of my new campaign "Lands of Cantona" that I am running for my two nephews, my son and my wife. The party is composed by Ragnar the elven fighter, Larry the human fighter, Tak the human cleric of St. Cuthbert and Cesar the human druid.

~ o ~

After getting directions to the elves they leave the dwarves. On the way they cross paths with a giant scorpion which they manage to avoid, only to find it behind them! Cesar casts Faerie Fire while Ragnar and Larry rushes to melee and Tak throws a bottle of wine at it. A fight breaks out with Ragnar and Larry throwing blows but having to sunder their shields to survive the creature’s claws. Tak and Cesar keep throwing bottles of wine and a torch to light it up. The creature finally collapses and Ragnar cuts out its claws as a trophy. Shortly after, a blinding trap leaves everyone blind except Ragnar and Tak’s men-at-arms. They wait until an elven patrol finds them and guides them to their quarters . There they wait until everyone gets their sight back and they trade 4 bottles of rare wine for 2 shields for the fighters, 2 spears for the hirelings, 1 longsword for Ragnar and 1 chain mail for Larry, whose splint mail goes to Tak. The elves let them rest there.

The next day, they leave for the dwarves but get lost in the dungeons. They manage to avoid a Giant Toad but shortly after a spear trap claims the life of Ragnar's torchbearer and wounds Larry. Behind a stuck door they find a lit room with vases & roses. After fooling around they find what looks like a treasure map inside one of the vases. Cesar finds that if the roses are taken from the vases they quickly wither, but regain life if put back in. That gives Larry the idea to put his wounded arm into a vase. He is healed but all the roses wither. Tak gets the idea to use them to revive the dead torchbearer, but to no avail.

More exploration ended in finding a rhino that charged at them, wounding several, but it ended up being all an illusion. They found a secret door in the room where the “rhino” came from and proceeded to follow the corridor behind it. After several twists and turns, and a spear trap that claimed the life of another hireling, they reached a corner where they found another secret door that led into a dusty, clearly unused corridor. They followed it and reached a dead end… with another secret door. This one led into a room with a spiral stairs leading up and several exits.

They followed one of the exits and after a T intersection on a long corridor they found yet another secret door. Larry opened it and found 3 skeletons. Two rush forward to attack, but the other, a slightly bigger one with lightning eyes, stays back. As Ragnar and Larry moved to meet them, Tak tried Turn Undead on them and Cesar cast Faerie Fire on the bigger one. As the turn failed, the big skeleton pulled its head off and threw it at the cleric. The head exploded and rolled back to the skeleton. Ragnar moved to attack the big one as Tak successfully turned it. Cesar cast Shillelagh on his staff before moving to attack. After many hits, misses and shields being splintered they destroy the skeletons and find some treasure in a chest, 400 gp, a potion (of Polymorph, but yet unknown) and a clerical scroll with 2 spells (Resist Cold and Remove Fear). 

After the fight they decide to rest in the secret room, and after some hours (luckily without any random encounters) they go back to the elves’ to get some food and possibly shields. They get the former, for them and the hirelings, but not the latter so they decide to try with the dwarves. They do get a couple of dented metal shields for the fighters (no wooden shield for the druid) in exchange for the last bottle of rare wine.

Healed and equipped they take the circular stairs…

~ o ~

The session ended with the party unsure about going down deeper into the dungeon or up and out to look into that treasure map.

Lands of Cantona - New Campaign!

 Last Sunday I started a new campaign for my two nephews, my son and my wife. I introduced the kids to the game some time ago (you can read about it here) and played sporadically at best, but now I wanted them to play regularly. They were thrilled when I dropped the idea on them and, to be honest, it's always refreshing as a DM to run the game for new people.

The campaign is set on the Lands of Cantona, a relatively undeveloped region of the Wild Coast, in the World of Greyhawk 576 CY. I developed the village of Baz on the fringes of the Welkwood forest, in the style of the famous village of Hommlet, surrounded by several nearby locations for them to explore: an abandoned mine on the hills, an ancient cemetery among dead trees, a supposedly haunted tower deep in the forest, and some ruins sunk in the marshes. The first three are short low-level Labyrinth Lord scenarios (Den of the Morlock Shaman¹, The Tomb of Sigyfel and The Gibbering Tower), while the ruins were initially going to be the Ruins of Ramat adventure, which I have ran before, but then discarded it and I have not yet decided what to do about that location. I also expanded the tunnels under the mine with another dungeon (Lair of the Morlock Chief) and put, a bit further away, the Castle of the Mad Archmage. 

I had the players randomly roll on Rogues Gallery to see what characters the would be playing. The party ended up being Ragnar the elven fighter, Larry the human fighter, Tak the human cleric and Cesar the human druid. 

So, after hiring some men-at-arms (3) and torchbearers (3) they left early in the morning heading South looking for the Gibbering Tower. After a couple of hours they reach an ominous 40’ tall tower, built out of black stone, lying hidden in a small valley among the dark woods. 

Upon entering, they found a room with rotting chairs, couches, and rugs. A fireplace at the west wall, spiral staircase at the north wall leading up, and a staircase at the south wall leading down. On the fireplace mantle is a terrarium filled with a silvery fungus. They took the stairs down. 

Exploring the tower dungeons they find an ossuary, three cells (two empty, one with a shackled skeleton), a torture chamber and a cauldron chamber, both with two undead (ghouls), bodies of adventurers and two more undead (zombies), a trapped hall and some giant rats, a winery that they proceed to plunder, and finally a room with a 10” diameter glass sphere, on a metal stand. Someone touched the crystal ball and all were teleported somewhere else…

They found themselves in a circular room with a secret door that exits into a circular staircase with steps leading up and down, and an opening into a large square room with exits on the three other walls. They went straight ahead, opposite to where they entered and took the corridor until they reached a Y intersection with the corridor continuing ahead.

They took the right passage until an X intersection where they came across a group of dwarven warriors. They were led by Hilding Ironhelm of the Bloodaxe clan. He told them they were in the first level of the dungeons of the Castle of the Mad Archmage, known as the Storage Rooms. The dwarves held the northern section, the elves the southern and the kobolds the east. They controlled the access to the lower levels and charge adventuring parties with a percentage of the treasure found.

There ended the first session.

[1] Included in the Labyrinth Lord rulebook.

Temple of Elemental Evil game on Steam

"Years ago a demoness’s elemental cult ruled from a temple near Nulb until the Circle of Eight razed it. Now bandits stalk Hommlet and dark forces gather at the ruins. In this classic party‑based D&D RPG, unmask their true purpose and confront the reborn evil before chaos engulfs the land." — Steam

"The Steam version of cult classic DnD game The Temple of Elemental Evil, spearheaded by Fallout creator Tim Cain, finally fixes its age-old woes." — PCGamesN 

Read the full article here.

Virtual Greyhawk Con 6 Report

Here is long postponed Virtual Greyhawk Con report. As always, I had a wonderful time again this year, at the convention's sixth annual installment. Thanks to the organization and everyone that made it possible!

This year I played in four games, and attended to the "Ask the Experts" seminar.

Thursday 

The first game I played was Anna B. Meyer's "Shield Lands Skirmish" game where she was further testing Hawk Tales, her FRPG ruleset. We were a group of fairly new recruits that got to man one of the keeps guarding the frontline, some miles to the Southeast of Critwall, while the regular crew went on a mission further into Iuzian controlled territory. Even though Hawk Tales doesn't have classes, we were a Fighter (Gamus of Furd, this was the character I played), a Cleric (Kadius of Eragern), a Magic-User (Eddal of Eragern), a Thief (Alwes of Hirtfer), a Druid (Briad of Furd) and an Archer (Mogret of Herechel). 

Before getting into the fort, Briad scouted around as a fox and found that "something is out there". Shortly after setting in, goblins hailed arrows upon us while a group of skeletons tried to cross the ford. We returned fire while Eddal blasted most of the skeletons with a Fireball. After that , a flock of vultures, crows, ravens and other flying monstrosities flew over the tower causing fear and madness, but also dropping pieces of bone. When we checked them out the bones coalesced into skeletons that exploded after you hit them. After the cleric's Turn Undead dealt with them, a wave of ghouls swiftly came over the ramparts. We managed to retreat and held the door that gave access to the tower from above. Meanwhile downstairs orcs tried to break through the main entrance but were deterred by arrows and cold magic.

"Hold the door!" was the shout that became the motto for the rookie companies sent to man those forts.

Friday

At night Les "OblivionSeeker" Reno ran "The Deadsinger of Molag" where I played Pandreyus, a 9th level Thief, or Rogue because it was a 5e game.

It all started investigating a farmhouse massacre near the frontier. We arrived at a farmhouse in the springtime, just after Growfest, to find a horrific scene. The family (5 adults, 4 children) had been attacked. The children were missing. The father was found decapitated (his head facing East), and his wife was also brutally murdered. The other adults were apparently taken captive along with the children. The house was ransacked, and animals were either slaughtered or set free. We found many clues: the door was opened from the inside; tiny footprints were found coming up the chimney, which felt familiar. The Bard's Speak with Dead on the wife revealed the attacker was "a small one with a fake face" (possibly wearing a mask) and that "none" of the attackers had a lute.

After that we hit the trail where we picked up the tracks of five men plus the kidnapped adults, which soon joined wagon tracks heading northwest, giving the kidnappers a lead of about a day and a half. Along the road, we found another body: face down, throat slit; a scythe symbol was carved on his forehead; he had a strange puncture on his forearm (not animal or insect), similar to the decapitated father.

Further ahead we came across a couple of helpful Knights that provided us with some troubling intel. We encountered Roderic (a cleric) and Archer (a huge archer), both Knights of the Holy Shielding in training. They offered to share their nearby camp and information. They reported seeing "travelling performers" (later we found they were actually Orcs & Hobgoblins!) with a couple of wagons. They also provided us with 4 potions of healing, 1 potion of greater healing, and a map showing an abandoned keep, a dolmen, and caves. 

After a night of rest we followed the tracks, crossed the Ritensa River by barge and found graffiti in Old Oeridian on an old  low stone wall near an also old body: “We will steal when we cannot buy what you stole from us. We also discovered a strange, iridescent blue blight on the grass that causes apathy if ingested. As sun begun to set we readied a camp among a rocky outcrop and assigned the watches for the night. A night that turned eventful. During the 1st watch drums in the distance were heard. The guy on the 2nd watch spotted vultures, one of which swooped down to grab a "furry figure", and on the 3rd watch a band of 20 drunk orcs passed by but didn't spot our camp. It was on the 4th watch that we heard sounds of a fight. Four goblins on worgs were being pursued by human horsemen in black leather armor, bearing a scythe and skull symbol (Nerullites!). One worg broke from the chase and headed straight for your camp. Everyone woke and the Druid summoned wolves, which helped us capture one goblin and one of the human pursuers after the other were killed. The goblin cooperated, but the human didn't so we killed him. From the goblin, we learned of two locations: "StinkTower" (Fort Tippit) to the East and "Little Longshanks" that dwelled in a cave described as "alive with arms and legs," where "a lady sings dead songs."

In the morning we freed the goblin and decided to check the dolmen. We found a 30-foot high mound with five wagons at its base. The area stank of roasting flesh. Over 30 hobgoblins and human Nerullites were drinking and gambling. We attempted a ruse disguised as "4 guards and a prisoner", which succeeded long enough to get you close to the tent at the top. However, we were discovered, and combat erupted against a hobgoblin, seven twig dolls with tiny scythes, and a halfling wearing a mask.

The Barbarian raged and killed the hobgoblin right away, then attacked the halfling. The Druid burned the halfling, knocking his mask off. The halfling creature shrieked, "You freed them!" The Sorcerer cast a protective Wall of Fire around the party. We identified the twig dolls as Carrionettes—a sinister Flan puppet that possesses human vessels. One Carrionette apparently dominated the Barbarian, but the Druid cast Hold Person on him. The Sorcerer then dropped the flames and cast Protection from Evil on the Barbarian, freeing him from the puppet's control. Meanwhile, a major threat emerged from a portal at the dolmen: Mir Murcas, "The Deadsinger of Molag," carrying a lyre!

The Bard tried to cast Hypnotic Pattern on Mir, but the spell bounced back, hitting the Bard instead! Despite the setback, the Barbarian, Bard (recovered), and the Druid's bears managed to surround and hack Mir Murcas to pieces. With their leader dead, the remaining hobgoblins and Nerullites scattered.

In the aftermath we pieced together the final clues: 1) The Carrionette were the "funny little man" from the Growfest—this is why the chimney footprints were familiar. 2) The children were the target all along. They all share identical birthmarks (related to an acorn and a tree).

We secured the wagons with the children inside and began riding south. As we left, we spotted two familiar figures—Roderic and Archer—who were now accompanied by five more people (four men and one woman).

Saturday morning

Brian Jagusak from "Dice and a Pencil" ran Rob Kuntz's 1975 tournament module "Sunken City". The great mage Drawmij put our group together to retrieve from the city a magical item that could read any language. He opened a portal to the submerged city that will remain for 4 hours. 

I played Othlinden, an 8th level lizard man fighter pretending to be a human. He was looking for the legendary Serpent Belt, a powerful magic item and national treasure of the Kingdom of Oogresh. Returning it would bestow great rewards to the one doing so. This was Eric Shook's character in the original RJK's World of Kalibruhn campaign.

After one of the several rafts that are available, we advanced in the general direction thanks to a Locate Object spell.  On our way a group of four hungry giant crabs attacked us. We fought back with some arrows and a well placed Fireball that killed two but rocked the buildings around, even bringing one down! All this made a couple of giant eels to investigate what was going on, but a good reaction roll and Speak With Animals spell were enough to have them on their way back to their lair. Some giant turtles were interested in us but a Speak With Animals spell and some rations got us past them.

Next stop was tower with two serpent heads. Othlinden was excited because the place looked promising to his interests. We entered the tower and explored it. The northern side was empty while the southern one was filled with bones in front of an altar that had an ornate belt on top of it. Othlinden knew instantly he was looking at the Serpent Belt. When he moved to take it he was attacked by something huge and invisible. In the end we defeated the thing, a 12-head hydra!

Moved the raft across the tower to avoid two whirlpools and continued to the other side towards a semi-submerged tower. Some made their way inside through an underwater doorway and then lowered a rope for the rest climbed to a window. There we found a tinkerer's room with workbenches, tools, books, cabinets, blueprints and more. Inside a 6' tall locked metal cabinet we found what we were looking for. What we found could be best described as a Star Wars Probe Droid. We also got its manual and managed to get it going.

With this construct in tow (we found it could Levitate) we exited the tower and tried to find the Silvery Dorr of Oricholum before the portal closed. On our way we were chased by five mermen with tridents riding giant sea horses. Othlinden drank a Potion of Polymorph Self to turn into a giant crocodile. He grabbed the raft with his mandibles and used his tail to propel it forward, while the rest fought the mermen with sling shots, rocks, javelins and a Hold Monster spell.

As we were racing towards the shrinking portal a huge sea troll tried to block our way, but we managed to get past it and dive into the portal to safety!

Sunday Afternoon

Allan "grodog" Grohe ran the playtest of "Gnoll Raiders Cairn", a scenario where the party is hired to go after a particularly ferocious band of gnolls that have been looting caravans en route to the Free City of Greyhawk, striking along the Urnst Trail and recover the wares.

I played Freda, a human 6th level ranger from the Slave Lords pre-generated characters. Since this was like I said a playtest, I will not go into many detail that could spoil some of the surprises this adventure has. Just say that I was eager to play a ranger against gnolls, but couldn't use some of her abilities when we fought them...

Sunday Night

In the "Ask the Experts" closing event I won one of the giveaways consisting in "Fortress Ellendar", an adventure for the High Fantasy RPPG from 1979, and the supplement "Relics & Ruins" from Knave rules toolkit.

Halloween game

"Somewhere under a lost and lonely hill of grim and foreboding aspect lies a labyrinthine crypt. It is filled with terrible traps and not afewstrongeandferocious monsters to slay the unwary. It is filled with rich treasures both precious and magical, but in addition to the aforementioned guardians, there is said to be a demi-lich who stillwords his final haunt."

Since this year Halloween falls on a Friday, the day we have our regular AD&D 1e game, I decided to run the classic "S1-Tomb of Horrors" for my group. We will be using the pre-generated characters that come with the module so they don't have to use their current characters.

I have 4 players so they will be running 2 characters each rolled randomly from the list.

Player 1 - Human Cleric 8 (#14) y Elf Fighter 5/Magic-User 11 (#5)
Player 2 - Halfling Fighter 4/Thief 5 (#20) y Dwarf Fighter 7/Thief 8 (#8)
Player 3 - Half-Elf Cleric 5/Ranger 7/Magic-User 6 (#10) y Human Fighter 8 (#13)
Player 4 - Human Ranger 13 (#4) y Elf Magic-User 7/Thief 9 (#11)

I know it's not any of the suggested combinations for a better success, but the idea is to have fun... and die horribly.

Gygax memorial fundraiser

There is a fundraiser going on for a Gygax memorial in Lake Geneva, WI. At the time of this post it is more than 75% funded and it will end on October 31st. Don't miss the chance to be part of history and contribute with whatever you can. I already did.

Follow the Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/617053430/gary-gygax-memorial-game-table-for-dungeons-and-dragons-fans

Had the chance to visit Lake Geneva on 2024 for Gary Con XVI and the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons, and I encourage every D&D fan to make that pilgrimage if you can.

Gary Gygax Memorial

Lake Geneva Public Library - Appendix N

Birthplace of D&D - 330 Center St

UPDATE (29/10/2025): The project is funded! 

Bite the Bullet

This is the latest creation of Jason Hobbs and Brian Tacle, art by James Richards, and it is based on the "Into the Odd" rules system. 

"Every town is a candle against a vast dark. 

Every ride into the wilderness is a wager with death.

The world didn’t end with a bang. It just…dried up. Crops failed. Governments and towns crumbled. That left gun smoke, a sharp word, and faith. Now it’s generations later. People live in worn-out settlements, carry old-world iron, and cling to whatever beliefs that kept them breathing. Some say miracles still happen out here in the Wastes—but they’refueled by something deeper, more internal, than bullets.

You’ve got grit, ghosts, and something you believe in that’s worth dying for. That's enough."

You can get it at DriveThruRPG as a PWYW.

There is also a fan-made app to generate characters for the game. You can also print your character sheet or download it in PDF, TXT or JSON format. 

Amyntor Wicke

This character was created to play Anthony Huso's "Castle of the Silver Prince" run by Aron Clark.

A scoundrel steeped in dishonor, Amyntor, only 23, now walks the path of a fledgling paladin. A level 0 character, he is a man plagued by excess—gambling, drinking, and indulgence—yet beneath his facade lies a burning ambition to reclaim his family's lost honor. 

His audacious claim of being the chosen champion of Hale, the god of the Stand, sparked divine intervention turning bluff into reality. Now, he must reconcile this incredible power with his past of deception as he strives to rise from the ashes of his family's disgrace.

S 18/57 I 9 W 13 D 18 C 18 Ch 17 Cm 16