Virtual Greyhawk Con 2 recap

I've just found the time to write about the games I played at Virtual Greyhawk Con 2.

Friday - I played a gnoll druid named Tharakx in "Escape from the Vault of the Drow" run by DM Josh. The rest of the party were:

• Sifu, a dwarven paladin
• Elengos, an elven warlock
• Ourxrek, a gnoll fighter
• Grek, a troglodyte monk

We were taken by hobgoblin servants to the fungus fields with other slaves. Once there we were given saws and carts. While working a group of bugbears separated us from the rest of the slaves and gave us a copper symbol of one of the drow houses and a bag of coins to do some job. Their were about to explain the job when several giant spiders attacked the everyone working in the fields.

After defeating the spiders and the bugbears, we took their equipment and decided to follow the spiders who had taken several prisoners, one of them a dwarf that knew an alternate exit from the Vault. After crossing the mushroom forest we arrived at the edge of the Vault and spotted the spiders entering a cave mouth 60' above the ground. We were lucky to spot at the entrance of the cave a roper that fed on the silk-wrapped corpses dropped by the spiders. Then we proceeded to kill it by missile fire and climbed into the cave. The tunnel led to a chamber where the prisoners were webbed to the walls. My druid shifted into a spider and started to free them while the rest fought the spiders that jumped on us. 

In the end we killed the spiders, freed the prisoners and escaped the Vault.

Saturday - I played my old character Alof, a human cleric of St. Cuthbert from Verbobonc, in the "The Tomb of Tasbraev Tenneb" run by DM Leslie. The rest of the party were:

• Krovas the Tall, a human fighter/thief from Safeton,
• Enoch Pratt, a human fighter from Hardby,
• Kred, a dwarven fighter,
• Taira Trelop, a female half-elf thief

After exploring the area the group decided to investigate a stone circle that supposedly hid an entrance to the tomb. The stones were covered by a strange moss and there was a charred corpse nearby. The moss attacked Krovas mind and we burned it with flaming oil from a safe distance. Then we found a slab that hid a ladder to a room. In the room started a spiral staircase anchored on one side and separated from the wall, where a strange mucus oozed down. Several side passages opened but we kept going down, until we arrived to a square room that had another spiral staircase. When we looked down we saw the mucus was flowing up! After some deliberation we continued down through the stair but felt we were going up. Arrived to a circular domed room with smooth and repulsive mauve lighting, The dome portrayed an eclipsing sun that if looked at too long caused vertigo. Corridors with murals  exited the room, both depicting two moons in different phasing (full & crescent), a green/brown/blue planet with white polar parts (the Flanaess) and a fourth planet jet black with purple light. Also an inverted ziggurat with a red skull. The west corridor led to another circular room partially collapsed with rubble. Some footprints could be seen in the dust and also some bits of torn cloth and flecks of dried blood. The east corridor ended in a dragon mouth and led to another circular room with a bronze statue of a medusa with ruby eyes upon a pedestal in the center. There were statues of different people in different poses surrounding the pedestal. Krovas tries to move a statue but it breaks, screams and starts to bleed. We hear a sound of stone grating over stone, then saw some footprints on the dusty floor and ended capturing a hooded figure named Chum.  Alof uses his ESP ability on him and finds he fears someone. He then pulls the tail of the medusa 3 times and a secret door shows. After a corridor and a  T-intersection we go to the right and find a barred door. We go down a flight of stairs and find a chamber with a table, a chair and another door. Krovas realizes Chum must have had an invisibility ring and back to get it. Meanwhile the rest opens the door and finds Mayra, the prisoner girl. We go to the other branch of the T-intersection and find more prisoners in cages and pits of dead bodies. The girl turns into an Avernal Maiden surrisig and attacking Alof! She casts Darkness, Alof casts Light, and the rest attack her. She flies away and starts calling her father. A pit fiend appears and we flee.

Sunday - I played Emerly Gosre, a female cleric, and our group was instructed by Lady Eclavdra, Queen of the Vault, and Lyme, Lord Mage of House Eilservs, to kill the drow sage Erastoriûl Ka’arndrik who has betrayed your masters. The rest of the party were:

• Pharmakeia, female assassin, 
• Nivara, female fighter,
• Deleri Karv, male magic user, 
• Veldrin, male fighter/magic user

We were to navigate the monster infested sewers of the Vault to the basement of the Carnelian Tower, the residence of the sage. In the sewers we found a hag that tried to sell us some souls and, after our refusal, attacked us. When magical and physical attacks failed, Emerly sent her to its plane with an Abjure spell. We reached the basement of the tower and encountered a silver filament slime, an ooze-like creature that shoot tendrils that we found, the hard way, it sucked your memory, and was immune to magical attacks. We decided to flee before it ended up depleting our resources. After that we came across an altar and realized there was no more time to play, failing our mission. Most certainly our heads in pikes now decorate the entrance of House Eilservs...

Bonus - With the gift certificate I won from Frog God games I got the Swords & Wizardry PDF version of the following: 

• Against Tsathogga 
• Baron's Gambit 
• Grimmsgate 
• Cyclopean Deeps Chapter 1 
• Cyclopean Deeps Chapter 2

My Virtual Greyhawk Con 2 Schedule - update

Yesterday I received a notification that the event I was going to participate on Saturday got cancelled. Luckily there were still some events with available places and I managed to get into one. Here's my updated schedule for Virtual Greyhawk Con 2.

Hobbs & Friends of the OSR zines

This week, after a long wait,  I finally received from Goodman Games the three Hobbs & Friends of the OSR zines by fellow gamer and friend Jason Hobbs.

#1 Excavation of the Tomb of Lorninane - a mini-dungeon location centered around an excavation site.

#2 Bettlebee Ridge - a starting town surrounding the Ridge with buildings, detailing their content and the various people living there.

#3 Halfmen of Hirsute Hollow - DCC adventure to be played between Sailors of the StarlessSea and Well of Souls.

In the first two you can takea glimpse at Jason's homebrew game world called the Emergent Empires.

All of them have cool art by Craig Brasco and Hawk.

You can get them from DriveThruRPG too.

James Earl Mackie

  James Earl “Jimmy” Mackie, was born on March 17th, 1855 (Age 24) in Sewanee, Tennessee. 

His father died during the Civil War at Third Battle of Chattanooga in 1863, and he and his mother fled to Nashville. After a pause in the hostilities, they moved to Memphis, Tennessee, in 1865. 

His mother died in 1869, shortly after they arrived in Little Rock, Arkansas, where some relatives lived. He didn’t stay long with them and decided to go West to Fort Smith, where many refugee slaves, orphans, Southern Unionists, and others came here to escape the guerrilla warfare raging in Arkansas, Missouri, and the Border States. The place, despite the absence of federal troops since 1871, thrived and was a bustling community full of brothels, saloons and outlaws, just across the river from Indian Territory (Coyote Confederation).

After robbing a bank in Fort Smith he fled to Tulsa, in the Coyote Territories, and changed his name to Jordan Eugene “Dusk” McCoy. There is a bounty of $600 for his capture. When money ran out he traveled South into Texas and, with two associates, tried to rob a bank in Dallas. The heist went awry, with one of his associates dead and another missing. Unable to go back to the Coyote Territories he fled towards the Mexican border and now goes by the name of Johnatan Edmund Mackay, AKA John E. “Johnny” Mackay.

Aylen the Black & Fress

Aylen the magic-user and Fress the thief were created for a D&D Holmes game run by Aron Clark. Fist, we played The Lichway (1978) by Abie Fiore taht was published in White Dwarf magazine #9. The rest of the party were:

Tark (dwarf)

Balzon (fighter)

Franz (fighter)

Caspian (magic-user)

Later, after exploring The Lichway we delved into The Halls of Tizun Thane (1980), also by Abie Fiore, from White Dwarf magazine #18. This time the party had some new members:

Rollo (thief)

Chad (fighter)

What follows is a summary I put together after the fall of Aylen & Fress.

"Pressed by the fact that Fress wouldn't be able to control Lokota the demon much longer, Rollo and Aylen agreed to move forward into Thaark's four-story tower. Chad followed with his lantern. The bottom room was a richly furnished dining room with a long table fully dressed with china and glassware occupying the center. On one end of the table, a fireplace big enough to roast a boar with a 12-inch tall figurine of a casting magic user on the mantle and a dragon skull on the wall above it. On the other end he table a big mirror. Rollo checked the fireplace but found nothing. While Lokota waited here the rest went through a door and up a spiral staircase. The room was relaxing lounge with rugs and comfortable chairs, and also a fireplace. Upon inspection the group discovered the fireplaces were connected, so Fress and Rollo decided to climb the chimney while Aylen and Chad went up the spiral stairs. Lokota waited in this room after laboriously navigating the staircase. The thieves, Rollo carrying just his sword and Fress a dagger, a torch and his waterskin, nimbly ascended the sooty shaft into a dark room smelling of wool and parchment. Strange snores and mumbling could be heard from the room above. Rollo opened the heavy door to let Aylen and Chad in, the torchbearer's lantern revealing a library with countless tomes, some opened in wooden stands, with the floor covered by a thick woolen rug. Fress called Lokota to get there too. Aylen cast Detect Magic hoping to find something of interest here but only perceived a strong dweomer emanating from the room above. Lokota started to make a strange keening noise that was reciprocated from above and a thunderous voice could be heard through the fireplace. 'Who dares to enter my dominions unannounced!?'

The sound of heavy footsteps lumbering down the stairs set everyone but Lokota, that stood its ground, into motion. Rollo hid around a corner, Aylen behind a bookstand, while Chad and Fress tied a rope to a metal ring and threw a rope down the chimney. Thaark, an apeish fur-covered brute clad in a purple robe and wizard hat, both too small for its frame, bursted into the room. The group was slow to react but the demon looked confused by what he saw. Rollo and Fress tried to sweet talk the fiend but things didn't turned as expected and the demon started to cast! Rollo swung his sword but missed. Fress emptied his waterskin on Thaark. The demon cast Charm Person on Fress but the thief resisted. Lokota moved in and launched a barrage of attacks (claws, talons and beak). Aylen cast Frost Shroud on the demons, freezing the water and dealing more damage. Rollo took a step back and reached for his bow but with his frostbitten fingers couldn't take a shot. Fress moved next to Aylen, that was casting again, to retrieve some holy water from her back pack. Thaark used his magic again, this time a blast of fire engulfed the room. Aylen, Fress and Chad fell burned to the ground. Rollo dived away just in time avoiding the flames. The room started to burn, wood, parchment and wool feeding the blaze. Lokota, apparently unaffected by the fire, lounged forward and teared Thaark's flesh with claws and talons, killing the demon, but also grazing Rollo with its beak in its charge. The surviving thief, ignoring Lokota now free from its master, grabbed some potion from the shelves and urged the demon to help him. Lokota agreed and rushed to help Aylen and Fress; poor Chad was a charred corpse beyond all hope. Sadly, despite Rollo's bravery and efforts none of them made it through.

There he stood, face to face with a masterless demon that longed for a heart to be free. He offered the hearts of his fallen companions, that the demon gladly accepted. As Rollo escaped, Lokota feasted on the corpses Aylen and Fress before flying away from the inferno of what once were Tizun's Halls.

Nimue

This one is a long overdue post about one of my favorites characters so far, one with I've had countless hours of fun and met some wonderful people.

Nimue, a cleric of Cthulhu, was created for a DDC RPG campaign run by Edgar Johnson that would start with The Pod-Caverns of the Sinister Shroom.

The rest of the party were:

Banvha the 1st level Halfling
Aram the 1st level Cleric
Vane the 2nd level Warrior
Klaus the 1st level Thief
Grumble the 1st level Dwarf
Jerkal (Gerbil) the 2nd level Wizard

Also, Nimue had a 1st level Warforged named Sybian, an old "murder machine" that we found in an abandoned basement and was given  to her to use in her super creepy rituals.

Here's a little background on it by Adam Muszkiewicz;

"The first thing we found (which happened off-camera and we retconned in as an explanation of where Gabriel's new PC came from) was a man-sized automaton of some sort that we managed to get working somehow and who then joined up with the Purple Tentacle team. Thus, the legend of Sybian the Whoreforged was born. Is he a pleasure-bot of some lost species of super-hedonists? Or perhaps the personal orgasmatron of a dowager-queen from a repressed society of sexual prudes? For now, the only thing that is certain is that Sybian has a "pole-arm" and knows how to use it. Oh, and he has a lantern built into his noggin, so we periodically have to make sure he's all oiled up."

Later, we playtested an adventure that would become DCC #87 Against the Atomic Overlord by Edgar Johnson. I got really excited when Doug Kovacs asked about Nimue to be on the cover. 

DK: I need to sell Nimue to Joseph Goodman.
Me: Tell him she's like a Red Sonja but with dark hair.

DK: Done.

Here'e the video of  What's New at Goodman Games Gary Con 2015 where the module was presented and Doug talks a bit about the characters on the cover, around the 39:00 mark.

 

There are a couple of blog posts about Nimue: Dealing with Dissaproval and The Ritual.

László Béla

László Béla was my character in a Never Going Home campaign run by Adam Muszkiewicz.

He was a veteran of the Austro-Hungarian campaign against Serbia in 1915. The experience left him with a medal and a thousand yard stare. In 1916, during the Burislov offensive in the Russian front, his home village got destroyed in the fighting. Later that year, he received German training in the village of Beuveille, near Doncourt-lès-Longuyon, as the new cadre of the Austro-Hungarian army assault battalions (Jagdkommandos).

In early 1917, he was transferred to the Romanian front as part of a  secret project involving the newly developed A7V German tank.

After that, things started to get spooky...

Nabunassir of Larsa

This character was made for Jason Hobbs Lost in Agata (Emergent Empires) game using the Old-Schools Essentials rules.

Nabunassir is a magic-user of Argonot descent from the former state city of Larsa.

He follows Istreus, the Master of Secrets, god of knowledge, learning, and magic. His holy symbol is the crescent or the tower, while his sacred animal is the owl. The mages and scholars of the Tower of Knowledge pay him allegiance. His worship is conducted in secret, and only the initiated know the meaning of the mantra, “no sooner spoken than broken”.

He belongs to the Cylindros branch of mages, as opposed to the Conicus one.

Zola & Cree

Zola was my first character in Jay Murphy's game set in Rom'Myr Dying Earth and using the Basic Fantasy RPG ruleset. He was a thief from the city of Valla'Tair that ended killed by a bator in the Yonni'Hor mountains.

Drawing by Jay Murphy

Cree was a monster hunter and thief also from Valla'Tair. He had a more extended career, having the chance to explore the multi-verse before coming back to deal with some unfinished business in Valla'Tair, the starting campaign city.

You can check Jay's blog or watch the games on his YouTube channel.

Olobaris

This was my character on Larry Hamilton's Delvers Deep game.

Olobaris is an elven magic user from the Verdant Vale and (former) follower of LUMENOR. His mentor has sent him to The Deep to find its secrets and harvest rare materials for the manufacture of scrolls and potions.

He wears green and blue robes with a dagger on his belt, and leans on a wooden staff. A guard dog named Argo is always by his side.

He spends his downtime in Delvington drawing or scribing scrolls, providing he has enough time.

After his first delve he joined one of the Delving Organizations, the United Delvers.

In his second delve he became Herald of XAGIS, after the party awakened the god of Snow, Crossorads and Magic Users. Now he is spreading his word in Delvington, having attracted a few followers and the atention of other faiths. He has traveled East past the The Deep to Hillford and the surrounding hills to plunder some old tombs.

Hundolfr Æsbiornsson

 

Following the steps of his Nordborn brethren Haf Skappson, just like many others before him, he came to explore the mythic jungles of Kalmatta and plunder whatever treasures there might be among the overgrown ruins.

A Purple Caecilian worm smashed him like a dog rolling in poop.

Check the Kalmatta sessions here!

Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells quick reference sheet

Just recently, I came across this cool and useful quick reference sheet for the Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells rules set made by Starship & Steel.

Raznaur

 

Wholesome, clever, prudent, nimble and likeable. Nobody could say anything bad about the young Raznaur. He had a promising career in the Guild, maybe too promising for some. And so, those who felt threatened began plotting against and finally framed him. The choices were banishment or death.

He chose banishment to Sindanore, but it was death in the end... (electric trap).

Check the Kalmatta sessions here!

(Drawing by Jeff Easley)

Aneela

 

Aneela, priestess of Ninkasi, landed in Sindanore after learning that, after eons of being lost, the famous Chalice of Ninkasi had been found in the dangerous jungles of Kalmatta.

Got blood-boiled by a call lightning from the Horned King.

Check the Kalmatta sessions here!

(Drawing by Larry Elmore)

The Spaniard

 

A dwarf from the continent came to explore the dangerous jungles of Kalmatta in search of the Demon Stones. He paints his shields red and yellow. 

Still alive in Sindanore after 8 expeditions.

Check the Kalmatta sessions here!

Nathan Deryondomyn

This character was created for a AD&D 2e campaign (DM: Rous?). 

I was inspired by the movie "Last of the Mohicans" to make this character, specially by the character of Nathaniel Poe. He was a half-elven ranger from the Welkwood who worshipped the elven diety Solonor Thelandira. He had a racoon as animal companion named Rascal. 

I don't remember who were the other members of the group and can't find the character sheet. :(

My Virtual Greyhawk Con 2 Schedule

 

Virtual Greyhawk Con 2

 

Update

Updated the content of the pages and will be posting about the many characters I've played since last post, back in 2018. Also about my ongoing Greyhawk campaign in which, after 3 years of playing, the party have achieved important goals.

One Page Dungeon Contest 2018

I have sent my submission for this year's One Page Dungeon Contest. It is called 'Long Before the Sands Came' and it's inspired on the early World of Greyhawk long before the cataclysm that created the Bright Desert. I want to thank +Jarrett Crader for the suggested edits.

“Sodattahs the Sorcerer Emperor has cemented his grasp over the land after defeating the remaining rebellious lesser kingdoms. Only the Kingdom of Rati, to the far South, has been strong enough to face the Zulmish Empire onslaught so far..”

You can click on the Downloads button above to get it.

Bonus issue of the Hobbs & Freinds of the OSR zine

Now you can find my entry to the contest run on 'Hobbs & Friends of the OSR' and 'Gaming & BS' on the bonus issue of the 'Hobbs & Freinds of the OSR' zine. The PDF compiles the six entries that participated, along with some grat art.

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/217531/Hobbs--Friends-of-the-OSR-Bonus-Issue-1

It's a PWYW and all proceeds will go to get art for future zines. 

I want to thank contest organizers +Jason Hobbs and +Brett B for the awesome prizes. I have already received by mail the PDF version of the 5e game supplement 'The Book of the Tarrasque' from Encoded Designs. 

Also I'm eagerly waiting for the printed version of the Greyhawk book to arrive to the mailbox. I've been a World of Greyhawk fan since ever, so that book is doubly appreciated!

OSR Encounter Contest winner

I have just finished listening to the last episode (#13) of the Hobbs & Friends of the OSR podcast. Yes, right out of the oven exclusively for Patreon supporters. In there, my friend and Metal Gods colleague, +Jason Hobbs announced I am the winner of the 'OSR Encounter Conterst' he co-organized with Sean and Brett from Gaming and BS RPG Podcast. 

Thanks guys!

EDIT (July 5th): I have just listened to the latest episode (#147) of Gaming and BS RPG Podcast where the announcement was also made.

Also all entries will be published in a special edition of the Hobbs & Friends zine.

Seraphim Caligari

+Adam Muszkiewicz set up a new game on Tuesdays, 'Murder Gangs of Ur-Hadad, games of skullduggery and filth on the streets of Ur-Hadad', using the Blades in the Dark set of rules with his own characteristic approach.

The crew is a [Cult] -- the Last Adherents of the Sensate -- devoted to an alluring but sinister demon (the Sensate) that occasionally manifests itself in the real world. They are assisted by a gang of Elite Adepts, cultists of a scholarly and scientific (occult?) bent. The cult operates out of a perfumerie and aromatics shop (secretly an alchemical shop) in a middle-class neighborhood in Ur-Hadad, where they operate a workshop as well as a secret ritual sanctum. 

The cult operates in territory that belongs to the Swaggernauts, but their strongest relationship is with the Bloody Successors, who helped the cult set up their shop (and attendant workshop and sanctum) after the cult's shipments of teleaphrodisiacs were interrupted by adventurers. In the process, the cult ended up attracting some followers away from the Cult of the Gloaming Deeps. Due to their connections with the Swaggernauts, the pawns of the Faceless Vizier openly distrust the cult.

Seraphim Caligari grew in the pirate city of Port Scourge where his family ran an apothecary shop. It was there he met a woman named Caixalla when she entered the business seeking certain off-the-list substance. Seraphim discovered she was in fact "as much a prophet as a purveyor of fleshly delights" in the words of his elders, but sought to learn about the occult from her anyway. She refused at first, but Seraphim took the risk and played the blackmail card. After an attempt on the life of a notorious pirate captain took place, and the victim showed the unique effects of the drug used, Seraphim knew who was behind the attack. She then agreed but made an obscure augury about Seraphim’s future in Ur-Hadad. Years passed and he became in charge of the family business. During that time he learned all he could from Caixalla, until she uttered a bleak prophecy about an impending doom on Port Scourge. Scared by her prediction Seraphim he closed the shop and took a ship out of Port Scourge to never return. Once in Ur-Hadad he and others founded the Last Adherents of the Sensate cult, became acquainted with certain figures (Bloody Successors) and managed to open a perfumes and aromatics shop...

My son's first D&D game

My first adventure

Last weekend Ivan, my 6 years old son, asked me if he could play with me what I had played the previous weekend with his cousin Mat. "I want to explore a labyrinth too!" he said. Of course I obliged and brought out the 1983 D&D Players Manual to run the solo adventure. I printed a character sheet for him and then he rolled some 3d6 for the stats. He added the numbers (with little a help) and wrote down the results. Since he wanted a miniature, I took out a box with some 3.x era plastic ones and he spend some time choosing one. He finally selected an orc raider. "Now you have to give it a name and write it down on the character sheet. What's his name?" I asked him. "It's Monster, his name is Monster." he said. OK, it was character after all.

Monster

I let him choose a d20 and a d6 from the die coffer and let him know one was to roll attacks and the other to roll for damage. "How many lives does Monster has?" he asked. "Well, he has only one." I replied. "Only one!?" he complained and looked a bit dismayed. "But he has 8 hit points!" I added quickly and that seemed to be alright for him so we carried on. 

Dungeon entrance

Monster was ready to investigate a labyrinth that was near the town where he lived. I showed him the Elmore drawing of the entrance. "This is the way of the dungeon. Do you dare to explore it?" I asked him in a theatrical voice. "YES!" he said excitedly.

I described him the room with the statue and three exits, and then gave him three choices (listen carefully, explore the room or go through one of the exits). He decided to go down one of the exits...and found two goblins! Combat unfolded with various hits and misses, near tears when Monster got hit and loud cheers when Monster hit the goblins, until he decided to flee back to town. "Because his health bar was too low." he explained. 

Monster didn't find any treasure on his first foray into the dungeon, but he was alive to go adventuring another day! 

Drawing my first dungeon!

After that, he decided that he wanted to run and adventure for me. So, while he drew his dungeon and chose miniatures to populate it, I rolled my character. Then I chose a miniature, named it Marshal and was ready to play. The first room of his labyrinth also had a statue in the center and several exits. I stopped to listen and he told me I could hear a conversation in hushed tones. When I decided to investigate, two statues (that weren't there in the initial room description!) lowered their swords blocking the passage, and a couple of orcs appeared and attacked! I was lucky to defeat both of them. I asked him if they had any treasure on them but there was none, so I took their weapons and went back to town to heal and sell the loot. 

Soon I was ready for another delve into his dungeon. This time I found a room with a "yeti monkey and a dread guard guarding a big chest" that attacked immediately. I lost initiative and the monkey went first. He rolled a natural 20 and grabbed a d10+d4 for damage! 

He TPK'd me on his first game as a DM. I couldn't be more proud.

Playing D&D with my nephew

The first time I played D&D with my nephew Mat was more than a year ago. You can read about that here. After that, we played again on a couple more occasions but I forgot to blog about them and I don't remember when they were. Then we played again last weekend.

D&D next generetion

Let's do some recap...

Session I (14/11/15)

At the end of our first session his group, composed by a fighter, an archer and a magic-user, saved their village from the attack of a necromancer and his skeletal minions. It was a bitter victory because the magic-user died, so they were to go into a quest to revive him. 

Session II (??/??/??)

The session begun at a near town where the local cleric revived the magic-user, but in exchange asked the group to retrieve a holy relic from the ruins of a nearby abbey. The group searched the ruins and found a flight of stairs going down. Mat decided that the group would go downstairs to explore, so I took out a sewer's battle mat from Dragon magazine. Since I wanted to introduce the concept of resource management, I told Mat to write down that each of his guys carried three torches and, as he explored,  I would ask him to cross one out from time to time. He quickly realized he needed to leave some for the way back to the surface or be forced to navigate the place in total darkness.

WoG Cultists

The group set forward to explore a series of abandoned rooms, corridors and sewer tunnels. First they fought and killed a giant rat that thought they were an easy meal. Then some black tentacles with purple suckers emerged from the stagnant water and tried to grab them. Finally they found a couple of identically clad cultists. While one hold them off blocking the walkway, the other fell back to their lair. After defeating the first cultist, Mat came with the brilliant idea of having one of his guys to pose as the dead cultist! 

At that point I asked him to check his torches and he realized he had about half left. He had to decide to press forward or go back. After pondering the situation for a moment Mat decided to stay. The fake cultist moved to find the lair while the rest followed a bit far behind. He managed to trick the remaining cultist into opening the door and they stormed the place. With the last cultist defeated they searched the room and found, not after the thief narrowly avoided a poison needle trap, the relic along with some treasure. 

With that they made their way back to the surface with the risk of running out of light sources.

Session III (??/??/??)

I decided to start this session by rolling stats for the characters and make character sheets for them. I used the 1983 D&D Basic Rules and ran the adventure that comes in the Dungeon Masters rulebook. This was a huge step for Mat since we haven't used any sheet or stats for the party. We used just a d20 to roll the attacks and saves, and to roll damage a d4, d6 and d8  for the magic-user, thief, and fighter respectively. He was really excited about it, because the game took a whole new dimension for him.

I ran the adventure almost 'as is'. In the combat with the carrion crawler, the thief got paralyzed and Mat kept asking if he was dead, but I wouldn't tell until the end of the combat. After the thief recovered, the group went to check the entrance to the ruins and found it was guarded by some kobolds, which Mat renamed as 'dog-men'. The kobolds, sorry, dog-men, were defeated without much effort and their bodies looted. He's a quick learner.

The group then went to explore inside the castle ruins. I was glad to see that Mat remembered the light sources drill from previous sessions. While exploring a bedchamber some zombies emerged from the closet and the cleric attempted to turn them but failed. By that time he had to go so we left the battle for next time.

Session IV (20/05/17)

Braaains!

Last weekend we picked up where we left last time, so we just rolled initiative! The group didn't have much trouble getting past the zombies. After the combat Mat asked 'Where's the treasure?'. 'If there's any treasure, you have to find it.' I replied. 'This is not like a tablet or cell phone game where the gold coins are floating on mid-air.You have to search, you have to tell me you search, otherwise I'll assume you do nothing.' I added. He chew on my words for a bit before he decided to search the place where the zombies came from. He was delighted to found some treasure there (I didn't put it there, it was in the adventure).

After that they came to a room full of crates and boxes with a lonely large box in the center. Mat sent the thief to open the large crate, only to be surprised by another zombie! The cleric failed the turn check again, so the fighter closed in to end the threat.

Exploring further they encountered more dog-men (kobolds) and Mat wanted them to follow him. I secretly made a reaction roll (uncertain). 'They look hesitant. What do you do?' I asked him. 'The fighter will put down his sword and shield, and motion them to come closer.' he said. 'The  kobolds look at each other and slowly get near you.' I told him. Being an evil DM, I was planning to surprise the party (hey, the strongest member have put down his weapons!) when Mat said 'I give them some meat!' That did it. 'They eat the meat hungrily. You now have a group of five kobold following you!'. Looking forward to play again!

OSR Encounter Contest - The curse of Vagrot the Blue

Today I sent my submission to the OSR Encounter Contest, 

"Since he settled, some time ago, in the ruins of an abandoned abbey atop a nearby forested hill, Vagrot the Ogre-Mage has extracted a weekly tribute from the village of Galdorum under the threat of razing the place to the ground. "

You can get the PDF here or in the Downloads section.

(Image is Public Domain)

OSR Encounter Contest

The Gaming and BS RPG Podcast  and Hobbs & Friends of the OSR crews are organizing the 'OSR Encounter Contest'. Check it out!

https://gamingandbs.com/osr-encounter-contest/

My entry to the contest will be available soon in the Downloads section.

Xaxum Lano

After the death of Fonso the Remarkable by a gelatinous cube, I rolled another character for the Dwimmermars game. I hope it lasts more than a couple of sessions!

She's Xaxum Lano, a young Tellurian tomb robber that, having heard the news about the doors of Mount Dwimmer had opened again, decided to explore the place in search of any rich treasures of yore that might replenish her depleted finances.

Raised and trained by DontoYuul, leader of the Plunderers, after her parents death, the skinny little girl proved to be very useful and profitable since she could fit through places that other didn't. Along the way she had to endure many things, both physically and emotionally, and though being a pretty face, she's short-tempered and got a sharp tongue. She recently left the gang with a promise of revenge, after learning that Donto was responsible for raid where her parents died.

S 9, I 7, W 12, D 16, C 10, Ch 6

Fonso Barsali

Fonso Barsali is my character on DWIMMERMARS. That's where +James Maliszewski's Dwimmermount meets ERB's Barsoom and it's run by +Adam Muszkiewicz. 

Fonso is a Greco-Roman wrestler of Roma origin, but also fugitive anarchist who joined a gypsy circus as a strongman to avoid being arrested. With the intinerant troupe he travelled all over Europe and reached Paris just in time for the 1889 Exposition Universelle.

Once there, he managed to be among the first people to ascend the Eiffel Tower. As the lift went up, and everyone on board admired the exposition, that covered the Champ de Mars, the Trocadéro, the quai d'Orsay, a part of the Seine and the Invalides esplanade, it accelerated with a flash to speeds never known before. The next thing was everyone waking up, naked, on the barren lands of Tellus.

STR 16, INT 14, WIS 6, DEX 13, CON 7, CHA 5

Obituary: "RIP Fonso the Remarkable. What les gendarmes couldn't kill, a gelatinous cube could. Fonso stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his blue Tellurian men-at-arms to the very end. If only any of them had survived to praise his virtues!" - Adam Muszkiewicz

Sir Ferdinand de Monte Vidi

Sir Ferdinand is a Knight that regularly travels to the Jousting Fields of the Axe Lands to participate on the various jousting events, meet new people and compete for the chance to win OSR prizes.

"A charming young Knight from the Southern Kingdom, clad in leather armour, Sir Ferdinand stands confident by his warhorse waiting for the joust to begin. A squire, also in leather armour, looks after his lance and kite shield bearing his colours. His retinue of five men-at-arms armed with clubs, guard the camp keeping the curious at bay."

Check the rules of the game here.

STR 11, INT 8, WIS 11, DEX 7, CON 13, CHA 15, HP 4, XP 475

Knight's Station 7 (Bachelor)
Starting Armor (+2) Boiled Leather (AC 8)
Starting Shield (+1) Reinforced Kite Shield (BF# 1)
Starting Horse (+1) Light Warhorse 0/+1
STARTING SQUIRE (+1) F1 5 8 Boiled Leather, Dagger, Sword
STARTING RETINUE (+3) 5 Men-at-Arms (0 Level) Armed with clubs

Statistics:

2016 St. Valentine Tourney - 2 won, 1 lost

2016 Summer Festival of Riverjun - 1 bye, 1 lost

2017 Spring Tourney of Gulltown - 1 lost

Gwynn Woods

Gwynn Woods is my character in the Warhammer 1st Ed. campaign run by Craig Brasco  via Google+ hangouts. It is set in his home-brew world of Urlund, a low-magic, Game of Thrones style setting, with different houses forging alliances or scheming against each other. He's a woodsman pursuing a career as a scout for one of this houses.

Race: Human

Alignment: Good

Height: 6’ 0”

Class: Ranger

Age: 24

Career: Woodsman - Scout

Gender: Male

Fate: 2

Stats: M 4, WS 38, BS 43, S 4, T 3, W 7, I  33, A 1, Dex 27, Ld 24, Int 33, Cl 40, WP 38, Fel 29

Skills: Speak Urlander, Very Resilient (+1 Toughness), Sixth Sense, Nightvision (2d6 yards), Concealment Rural, Follow Trail (+10 to Initiative), Identify Plants, Set Trap, Silent Move Rural, Specialist Weapon - Two-handed Weapon, Spot Trap, Secret Language (Ranger). Animal Care, Secret Signs (Scout).

Atacius Lightfoot

Atacius Lightfoot is my character in Michael Shorten Dark Ages campaign run on the Rizzoma platform. It's a revamp of an old campaign that Michael used to run over the now defunct Google Wave.

He's a littleling (halfling) thief from the Direlands that had to leave his homeland, because of a feud with another littleling who falsely accused him of a crime,  and traveled to the Southern port town of Skalfier in search of a new life. There he has found friends, adventures, wealth and, in the village of Appleton, a place he can call 'home'.

Michael Shorten commented on his blog: "Gabriel plays a curious, no-fear (sometimes) littleling (halfling) to the fullest, and when I tempt him with coins, I can feel that 'aw man, do I/don't I?'"

You can check the development of the game here.

UPDATE: The game runs on a Discord channel since September 2019.

Str 10, Dex 11, Con 13, Int 9, Wis 9, Cha 7  

Patreon

I support the following content creators on Patreon:

• Castle Greyhawk. An ongoing fanfiction webcomic by Scott Casper and +Mike Bridges.
• Drink Spin Run. An RPG talkshow podcast by +Adam Muszkiewicz and +Donn Stroud.
• Hobbs & Friends of the OSR. +Jason Hobbs & Friends are creating RPG podcasts, zines, and other RPG related material

Please consider supporting them too!

One Page Dungeon Contest 2017

I have sent my submission for this year's One Page Dungeon Contest. It is called 'Crypt of the Lost Hymns' and it's inspired on the +Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad DCC game, set in the World of Ore. I want to thank the Metal Gods crew for the inspiration and +Jarrett Crader for the suggested edits.

“In the vast windswept plains North of Ur-Hadad, the First City of Men, a lonely barrow is the only landmark for many miles around.”

You can click on the Downloads button above to get it.

Time to dust off this blog

I've been neglecting this blog for way too long. Almost a year and a half without posting! I guess it's because most of my online activity is now on G+.  

Let's recap what gaming-ralated events had happened since last post:

• +Drink Spin Run - An RPG Talk Show Podcast awesome t-shirt finally arrived. (Mar. 2017)
• Received +Diogo Nogueira 'Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells' RPG after the first one got lost in the way. (Feb. 2017)
• Got my Sons of Gygax t-shirt. (Feb. 2017)
• Received +Doug Kovacs Sketchbook. (Nov. 2016)
• Received a WayneCon t-shirt and swag from +Wayne Snyder. (Sep. 2016)
• Revamped my 1-on-1 PBeM-style Greyhawk 5e campaign on Rizzoma.com. It is set in the Phostwood forest after the occupation of Tenh by the Stonefist barbarians and the forces of Iuz. My only player leads a band of warriors that make guerrilla warfare against the invaders.(Aug. 2016-present)
• Received an AS&SH boxed set I bought from +Michael Curtis. (Aug. 2016)
• Received my copy of 'Null Singularity' by +Steven Bean. (Jan. 2016)
• Also received +Richard LeBlanc CC1 - Creature Compendium that I won on the OSR Christmas Giveaway. (Jan. 2016)
• Received Taylor Frank's zine 'Dungeon Lord: The Wayne Con' issue. (Dec. 2015)
• Received some 'It's Wizard Time!' stickers from +Wayne Snyder. (Nov. 2015)
• Ran D&D for my nephews! (Nov. 2015)
• +James MacGeorge send me a copy and a t-shirt of 'Black Sun Death Crawl'. (Late 2015)

Also I've been playing a lot of games on Mondays/Thursdays on Google+ hangouts. Mainly it's been DCC, but also Traveler, Delta Green, Maze Rats and Black Hack. On 'Wednesdays of OSR' I've ran another Greyhawk 5e campaign, this one set in the Yeomanry/Sea Princes area, play-tested +Craig Brasco's Above Snakes RPG and also played Torchbearer and Runequest 6.

I'll try to post more frequntly from now on.

d30 NPC/monster disgusting actions

Here's my first attempt at a d30 table.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzMxqOxwwSOyQ1RCdDEtNEh0Vk0/view?usp=sharing

Another site update

I guess I should write more often or change the name of the blog to "My RPG updates". Well, what happened since last April?

Wednesday nights games (OSR):

- Continued a D&D 5e campaign, run by me, set in Greyhawk (Yeomanry-Hool Marshes-Hold of the Sea Princes area). The group finally exited the tomb unharmed and loaded with all the valuables they have found. A bullywug horde led by a toad-riding Wastrian acolyte was waiting for them. After defeating them, the group decides to find the attacker's base before going back to the town. The trail went North deeper into the swamp, until it reached a series of mounds in the mist. One of them is covered with semi-buried sarcophagi and crowned with a statue of four cobras with jewelled eyes. The thief climbed one of them to pry out the precious stones. Immediately one of the sarcophagi opened revealing an undead yuan-ti that attacked them with magic and sword. With the thief paralyzed, and the fighter badly wounded, it was only the monk's abilities that saved them from a certain doom. After that they went back to town.

- Then switched to a Warhammer (1e) game run by +Craig Brasco set in Urlund, his homebrew setting similar to Westeros in regard to Major Houses and regions of land. Our characters, a noble (Jason), an entertainer (Adam), a pit fighter (Phil) and a woodsman are investigating a series of attacks to a village by Chaos creatures.

- Also rolled a character for a Metamorphosis Alpha game that +Adam Muszkiewicz hopefully will be running after Craig's game. A mutant humanoid with 11 arms, among other mutations. 

Thursday nights games (DCC with the Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad):

- Played some DDC Lankhmar run by +Doug Kovacs. "Jumped off building. Stood in 2nd floor window. Watched thieves and murder. That's what I recall from Lankhmar game." - DK

- After that some more DCC in "The Hunt for Red Varza" run by +Edgar Johnson. Ritual murders, house burnings and critical groin hits. Let's see where this goes.

Friday nights games (D&D): 

- Started a 5e game, also set in Greyhawk (Great Kingdom-Alhissa-Solnor Compact area), for a couple of friends from our old F2F group and my wife. Even though we live in the same city, we all have children so it's hard to play F2F anymore. A fighter, a wizard and a thief arrive with a caravan to the Free City of Ountsy during the Forefathers Festival. During the festival assassins attack the crowd, the Duke is murdered and the killer transforms into a hideous monster, that is killed by the characters, The three factions struggling for power in the city, will try to get the group to work for them.

Last update I forgot to mention that +Michael S rebooted his Dark Ages - Southern Seas campaign (AD&D/OSRIC/house rules) after about 4 years. The previous campaign was played on the now defunct Google Wave platform and, since the backups of the old waves were lost, we rolled new characters and started again using Rizzoma. 

Received from +Wayne Snyder his "It's wizard time!" t-shirt, and from +Edgar Johnson copies of  "Against the Atomic Lord", "DCC #82: Bride of the Black Manse" and copies of the original "Blood for the Serpent King" maps, all autographed by the Dr. Rev. himself. Thanks amigos!

The DCC Megazine (The Gongfarmer's Almanac 2015) was published and my article Healing Spllburn was included on Volume I: Men and Magic. You can download the five volumes here. 

Until next update! :)

Site Update

What happened since our last post back in September? Here goes a well deserved update.

Wednesday nights games (OSR):

- Resumed a D&D 5e campaign, run by me, set in Greyhawk (Yeomanry-Hool Marshes-Hold of the Sea Princes area) that we started before GenCon. A mysterious figure is seeking asylum in the Yeomanry from the Hold of the Sea Princes. The party has to meet her at the border and escort her to the city. Meanwhile the Scarlet Brotherhood will try to thwart their plans.

- Then switched to White Sands, an ongoing ACKS game run by +Jason Hobbs, in which we  explore the Badlands of Shaidar legend in the Eye of Opjamar.

- After that we started Griffin Mountain an awesome Runequest campaign run by +Adam Muszkiewicz. A group of initiates passes the tribe's rite to adulthood and become hunters. As the seasons go by their nomad tribe travels Balazar, breaks old alliances and forges new ones, everything amidst an internal struggle for power.

- Now we have returned to the D&D 5e campaign mentioned above. The party is helping to recover a magical mask from a reptilian civilization buried in an ancient tomb deep in the marshes. So far they've bested the swamp's perils and found a ziggurat full of traps!

Thursday nights games (DCC with the Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad) :

- Finished a short arc run by +Doug Kovacs that started right after GenCon in which, after exploring the "The Tomb Of Ulla Gandur", what was left of Sybian the Whoreforged humanity got transferred, by the goddess of Nature, into a human body affixed to a suit of full plate armor adorned with an intricate filigree of vines.

- "Un-death & Taxes" run by +Edgar Johnson. An escort mission in which the group must protect the Imperial tax assessor as he makes his rounds of various far-flung hamlets and villages.

- "Into the Lair of the Feculent Swine" run by +Adam Muszkiewicz. Employed by Master Guang-Yuan Jo to retrieve the feathers of the slumbering feculent swine, Jerkal the Blazin', Scorpion Boy and Nimue of Cthulhu from the Divine Order of the Purple Tentacle, along with some fresh faces, have set off for the mountains that separate the Satrapy of Kuth from the Duchy of Karel

Received gorgeous +Drink Spin Run - An RPG Talk Show Podcast and +Wayne Snyder's "Secret of the Serpent Moon" t-shirts. Also received an awesome poster of Metamorphosis Alpha Warden deck cross-section by +Doug Kovacs, and issue #3 of  the +Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad zine. Can't complain about our postal service so far.

Contributed with an article about Healing Spelburn to the DCC Mega Zine.

EDIT: Also received in the mail "The Art of Dragon Magazine"!

EDIT2: And started to play Conspiracy X in a F2F group every 2 weeks.

GenCon haul

Let's see what's inside the bag. It came with badge but I picked it up the second day because I didn't knew about it. Thank (the Metal) God(s)! A backpack is not enough...

I split the haul into art, books and miscellaneous categories. Please don't pay attention to the tablecloth. I thought the 25" x 36" combat mat I got from Crystal Caste would be big enough.

Art

• The Complete Elmore Artbook.
• A print of the 1983 AD&D Dungeon Master Guide cover.
• A print of the DCC RPG Limited Edition cover.
• A print "showing the corruption involved in the pursuit of magic over a lifetime" as Doug Kovacs says about it on his website.
• A map drawn by Doug on my mighty wallet. I need to write and adventure for this one!
• Original art of the Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad zine issue #2 back cover by Wayne Snyder. 

Books

• Goodman Games GenCon 2014 Program Guide.
• +Harley Stroh's Peril on the Purple Planet. I didn't participated on its Kickstarter, but after playing with Harley in The Seven Pits of Sezrekan tournament, how could I not have it?
• DCC RPG rules. This was my pledge for the DCC World Tour 2014 Kickstarter and had it mailed to Adam Muszkiewicz address.
• +Joseph Bloch's Castle of the Mad Archmage. I'm a sucker for megadungeons and also had this  one mailed to Adam's.
• Judges Guild Heroes and Villains, an adventure for DragonQuest RPG.  I was with Adam at the Goodman Games booth when Bob Bledsaw, Jr. handed each of us a copy of this one.
• Issues #1 and #2 of the Metal Gods of Ur-Hadad zine. 
• Wayne Snyder's Dark Ruins II. I'm missing Dark Ruins I!
• +Tim Callahan's Demon Drums, a 12-page DCC compatible adventure. 
• These old modules in real good conditions and I couldn't let the opportunity pass: WG6 Isle of the Ape, I7 Baltron's Beacon and T1 The Village of Hommlet.

Miscellaneous

• Wayne Syder's GenCon badge.
• Pathfinder's pin and goblin mask.
• My GenCon badge.
• Grimtooth’s Ultimate Traps Collection/Judges Guild Collector’s Edition sticker.
• Dice bag.
• Purple d30, red and green d20 from Crystal Caste.
• Escape from Catastrophe Island stuff: three 0-level character sheets, game flyer, ghost rules, two game cards and four pins.
• DCC RPG dice bag and Shana’s Weird Dice
• DCC, sword, wizard and d11 pins. 
• The Seven Pits of Sezrekan tournament yellow character sheets and Hugh/Skull cards.
• Q1 Queen of the Demonweb Pits character sheet, name tag and Chessex dice.
• DCC swag! Character sheets, notes,bookmarks, pencils, stickers and tattoos.
• The Seven Pits of Sezrekan flyer, Sezrekan  pin and OSR pin.
• Crawljammer game character sheet.

* All the small pins were made by Kathryn Muszkiewicz.