Friday, May 29, 2020

Best of the Web - Fun Traps, Military Tips, and Snowflakes vs Compost

After writing my thoughts on bestiaries yesterday I came across a post by Anxiety Wizard called Half-Organized Thoughts About Monsters which really got me thinking about the content of the individual entries in a bestiary. The article is really good, I suspect I'll be reading it again and again to keep a few of the ideas front and center when I write bestiaries for my own Fantasy Heartbreaker.

Dungeon Fantastic has a short post called "Harmless" and "Fun" Traps. He says the post is partially in fun but I think the idea is brilliant. I've always felt puzzles were better than traps. Even traps I used tended to have at least one having been previously tripped so the characters would know a trap was near and how to spot it, they just needed to figure out how to disarm it (more of a puzzle than trap that way).
Empty the chamber pot, the vomitorium's tub, or the spittoon on anyone who sets off the trap. It doesn't kill, but it should induce rolls against HT to not get sick, yourself, and Will rolls to go on without cleaning up. The stink will attract the attention of hostile creatures, but may also in fact disguise you.
I love the chamber pot idea. Not only is there potentially noisy puking, but suddenly four days rations are inedible and the smell is gonna ensure everybody is aware of the parties movements.

The website roleplaying tips has a list of Military Tips that I find amazing. Especially the large scale battle section. I've had characters as part of a military but never part of a big battle and never used them as special forces types the way its mentioned in the tips. The post made me think immediately of the movie Troy with Achilles and Boagrius facing off with the armies watching. That's the sort of thing NPCS in the campaign would talk about for years.

Dreams in the Lich House has a post called Are Your PC's Snowflakes or Compost? in which he basically describes the divide between new games (not story mind you) and OSR games. It's a great post and it got me thinking about the DCC funnel (the ultimate compost) and the changing style of play as one progresses through the BECM rules. There is room for both Compost and Snowflakes in the same game (well not all of the Snowflakes stuff...) but not at low levels. I would think if one was a compost from 1-5 levels or so and then started to stand out as a hero among heroes it might make a nice distinction. ACKS has details on domain play but not many OSR games seem to care much about higher level play and how it might/should be different rather than just bigger monsters. If there is one please let me know.

Thursday, May 28, 2020

Thoughts on Bestiaries

I love Bestiaries, or should I say well illustrated bestiaries. A list of statblocks does nothing for me. I want the pictures that go with the beast. Even a compilation of unusable monsters that are well illustrated has me buying the book.

I like bestiaries separated out from the main rules the way of the AD&D Monster Manual. Tucked away inside the core book makes it feel small and lost when I want my book of beasts to stand alone begging to be expanded with further volumes. Those beast expansions could be with settings  Lamentations or just a book but they should be separated. In Veins of the Earth the monsters really informed the setting before you read about the place, that worked very well but Im a fan of DIY games and want the DM to be able to put together their own worlds and adventures so having them in their own bestiary (AD&D and Pathfinder style) is probably the preferred way most of the time .

What I haven't seen is an attempt to organize bestiaries in a useful way. That is typically a D&D or OSR bestiary will have Greek Myth (too many to name) mixed with a couple Asian beasts (Oni, Rakasha), and some outright inventions (Bulettes and Aboleth), none of which really go together. Then the next bestiary would do the same thing but a different hodge-dodge of beasts that don't belong together. This worked fine back in the day when they were making it up as they went along and included whatever they could think up, but now? Now we have the luxury of being able to plan. Piazo had the beasts all laid out for them when they planned out their bestiaries but didn't really do anything to reorganize. If you are making a sword & sorcery game why include Medusa (Crypts & Things)? If you are going for Grim Dark renaissance why include Elves and Dwarves (Lamentations of the Flame Princess)? The choice of beasts helps establish the setting and more thought should be put into the selection than just using the standard beasts found in every game mixed together in exactly the same way.

Another thing that bugs me, if you are going to go the hodge-dodge route, is that bestiaries tend to include all levels of beasts to cover adventure parties from first to 10th level (pretty much everyone does this). Basic and Expert D&D got this mostly right because of the nature of those games but everyone else sort of lumps them all together. Lumping them together means the DM has a limited changing selection throughout a parties career when it would be more useful for a DM to have more low-mid level monsters and a separate book from the high level monsters. I can't help but think this is a marketing decision as most folks probably play at lower levels but I don't know. I could be just everyone making bestiaries the way they'd always done so instead of trying to stand back and think about it.

The only bestiaries I can think of where they really shook things up and rethought things was 2E where they had those binders. The idea was ahead of its time. I hate the idea of using binders with the torn ring-holes and all, but the idea is perfect for the days of PDF where there are programs that allow you to pull apart one pdf and assemble another one could truly make a personalized bestiary, which brings me to my last problem.

The 2E bestiaries were designed with a beast per page. I like one beast per page, I don't like beasts sharing real-estate with other beasts. Yes this limits things when you come to beasts with limited info, but beasts can be combined with like beasts (all bears on the same page) in such cases, and if that doesn't work perhaps the beast needs to be rethought, what purpose does it serve. I like having enough gygaxian realism mixed with adventure hooks on each beast but I don't need an encyclopedia as I'm likely to toss those colorful bits anyway. Also, a problem with 2E is they included a beast on the back of the page. They had to, printing costs being what they are who would allow for blank pages. So if you liked on and hated the other well, suck it, make photocopies at a dime a piece. This is a problem that also goes away with PDF.

I think the problem really gets down to the compatibility of most monsters. You run a Lamentations game and you can use the Pathfinder bestiaries if you want with minimal fuss. Since most DM's probably have a vast assortment of bestiaries they don't really think about it and just pick from here or there but that doesn't mean the publishers shouldn't try a bit more.

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Thule Island - People of the March (Part 3)

NPCs from Adina

Adina is the largest settlement on the island by a long shot so naturally there are a lot more NPCs. Originally I'd broken them out by parts of the city but these are free-roaming NPC and that was a lot of work so I dropped it.












Monday, May 25, 2020

Thule Island - People of The March (Part 1)

Back to my Thule Island Sandbox for a bit. I'm a bit burned on converting my notes to Blogger but I think I can manage a couple more.

March Lord of Thule and his Leadership Team

The March Lord is a relaxed fellow and hardly the authoritarian his detractors claim. Unfortunately he's so lax that many of his underlings and the Templars of Lough get away with brutalities the March Lord would certainly not condone. The March Lord is bald but wears a fairly nice wig, the wig tends to slide back on his head at times exposing a large expanse of forehead but most courtiers are kind enough not to mention it.


    Cult of Lough Leadership on Thule

    The Cult of Lough, pronounced "Law" is a monotheistic religion akin to the worst of the Catholic Church during the Inquisition. They justify their harsh attitude with sermons about the dangers of Chaos and the use of Magic opening up rifts and destroying worlds. They 100% believe this threat is real.




    Old Faith Leadership on Thule

    The Old Faith leadership can also be found in any settlement on the island. The Old Faith is a polytheistic religion. The major deities have their own priesthoods that all report up to High Priestess Gwenda.



      Rebel Leaders on Thule

      The Rebel leaders can be found in any settlement on the island. They are more involved in criminal enterprises and money-making than actual rebellion. Primarily this is because the Templar and March Lord's men could swiftly wipe them out if they put their minds to it. The people of Thule love the rebels and have an overly romanticized view of them.



        Friday, May 22, 2020

        Best of the Web - Boss Fights

        Goblin Punch has a post on Bosses and another on Boss Mechanics from World of Warcraft that are both worth reading. Boss fights are a staple from the days before Computer games burned them into everyones brains, and they have a place in the end of many adventures. But the posts made me think about bosses in the other way. in the movie the Warriors the boss of the Rogues, you know the 'come on out and play-yay' guy was a weasel. His threat was not his own power but that he led a gang. He was a faction leader. And factions and faction leaders don't get enough attention.

        Everyone knows its a blast to have factions the players can get involved with, but giving the different leaders personalities, and giving large factions sub-factions that can be exploited can really pay off.  Some thoughts.

        • The big tough guy faction leader might lead a weak faction because he kills those that are a threat to him, but if players take the leader down they might find they've gained lots of allies, or even upset a delicate balance and thus earned enemies.
        • A smart but weak faction leader might be leading the orc version of Tucker's Kobolds.
        • One leader might have a drinking problem and a keg of ale would guarantee safe passage.
        • Another might never takes prisoners. 
        • One faction might create a highway of sorts to allow travelers to pass through their territory quickly while others would put up tolls or other defenses to keep anyone from passing without paying their respects.
        • Factions near to entrances/exits are likely on guard more than those in the interior.

        This should work especially well in a mega-dungeon where the players are likely to stomp through the same territory again and again.

        Thursday, May 21, 2020

        Something Completely Different - Carving out a Dungeon

        I stumbled across this video on the web and just watched it in awe. Not only is the guy amazing but it made my brain buzz about what a team of dedicated humanoids could do to carve a dungeon lair out of sandstone. Including how beds could be created (secured to the floor) out of wood, and tables simply left as a large stone block while carving out the room, and a small stove/kiln type contraption. And the stairs, and even the pool. Simply amazing. Mr Tfue I salute you.


        Monday, May 18, 2020

        Feats & Blessed Items

        I have a love hate relationship with Feats. On one hand they are kind of fun little skills for characters to have. Something that makes them special. On the other hand their mere existence creates a mini-power game of picking the right ones and planning out a characters entire future that I don't like. Also they are sort of magical super-powers which bugs me as I like characters to be more human and less super-heroes.

        My solution for my own Fantasy Heartbreaker is to use Feats to create somewhat colorful low-level magical items. So Feats can be gained if can acquire them, which allows the GM to control the Feats, to give them out temporarily for an adventure if necessary, or to even have them taken away or limited in number of something.

        I've taken the list of Feats and updated the more interesting ones for Black Hack, but they should work just as well for most OSR games that don't use Feats.

        I call them Blessed Items because I see them as religious in nature and 'artifacts' should be more powerful.  I restrict them to Law Aligned folks, at least for now. A number of the items are named after Gods, Prophets, Martyr's or Saints which I feel is a nice way to provide details to a religions mythology. These names can/should be updated for the local campaign of course. For the curious Daend is pronounced D-on-D.

        The first are the Blessed Stones. The blessed stones are simple smooth stones the size of a thumb or palm with a  blessing carved on one face. Typically such stones are kept in a small sack hung around the neck. Blessed Stones are generally found at Temples of Law. It is considered ill luck to keep a stone for over a month.

        1d10
        Blessed Stone
        01
        The Agility Stone - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all Sleight of Hand checks and Reflex saves.
        02
        The Animal Affinity Stone - The possessor gains +2 bonus on all Handle Animal checks and Ride checks.
        03
        The Investigator Stone - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all Gather Information checks and Search checks.
        04
        The Iron Will Stone  - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all WIS saving throws.
        05
        The Linguist Stone - Possessor can communicate in any language fluently. Does not enable reading in other languages.
        06
        The Negotiator Stone - Possessor gains +2 bonus on all Diplomacy checks and Sense Motive checks or Intimidate checks.
        07
        The Nimble Fingers Stone - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all Disable Device checks and Open Lock checks.
        08
        The Self-Sufficient Stone - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all Heal checks and Survival checks.
        09
        The Stealthy Stone - Possessor gains a +2 bonus on all Hide checks and Move Silently checks.
        10
        The Tough Stone - Possessor gain +3 hit points.

        And next a series of Weapons, because that's what people want. 

        1d10
        Blessed Weapons
        01
        Arrows of Daend - 6 black arrows that never break or get lost. The arrows are very precise and can  be used to attack a target in melee combat with no additional penalty.
        02
        Axe of Cleaving - If the wielder deals enough damage to drop a target they get an extra melee attack another target within range immediately. The extra attack is at the same bonus as the attack that dropped the previous creature.
        03
        Blade of Daend - A longsword with runes along the fuller. The sword allows the wielder to go into a battle fury for a number of rounds equal to the wielders CON. While in the battle fury, the following effects take place:
        • STR is considered to be 5 points higher for the purposes of Damage Modifier.
        • Melee attacks are at Advantage.
        04
        Bow of St Kaye the Martyr - A bow made of living wood (with leaves on one end). Using this bow has the following effects:
        • Missile weapon attacks are Advantaged
        • Range increased by 50%.
        • Damage increased by +2
        05
        Bow of Saint Troy - A short bow that can fire very rapidly.  Archer gets one extra attack per round but that attack is at a –2 penalty. 
        06
        Crossbow of Reloading - A heavy crossbow that can be reloaded in a single round.
        07
        Dagger of Saint Douglas - Quickdraw dagger. The dagger is very plane in appearance. It can be drawn and thrown in the same action. Additionally if used asa melee weapon the wieider can take a number of additional attacks equal to their DEX modifier.
        08
        Falchion of Decapitation - A black bladed Falchion. When the wielder declares a Decapitating Swing, A critical hit results in the targets decapitation. The target must be humanoid in size.
        09
        Glaive of St Erik - Aka the Glaive of Blind Fighting. When attacking a concealed or invisible opponent the wielder takes normal penalties but also attacks with Advantage.
        10
        Sword of Defense - Wielder can take a penalty of as much as –5 on their attack roll and add that same amount to their Armor Class. The changes to attack rolls and Armor Class last the entire round.
        And the last group are interesting items that have been blessed.

        1d10
        Blessed Items
        01
        Boots of Lexor the Trixster -  Wearer can move four times their normal speed. If they make a running jump they gain a +4 bonus on the Jump test.
        02
        Boots of Nimbleness - Leather hobnail boots that provide an extra +1 dodge bonus to Armor Class. Any condition that makes one lose DEX bonus to AC also makes them lose the dodge bonus.
        03
        Clogs of the spider - Shoes carved out of wood. They are more comfortable than they sound. The clogs allow the wearer to move along a vertical surface as long as they return to the ground at the end of the round.
        04
        Dagger of St Eric - All allies within the bearers CHA in yards gain the bearers CHA bonus as a bonus to any Saves. Also any allied NPCs need not make moral rolls while in your presence.
        05
        Gloves of Daenda - The wearer may transfer a companions injuries to themself. Empathic Wound is incapable of re-growing or re-attaching severed limbs or resurrecting the dead.
        06
        Horn of St Eric - A drinking horn the provides immunity to all natural poisons and all saves versus magical poisons are rolled as Advantaged. If a poisoned drink is placed within it is converted into a very nice and recognizable ale
        07
        Saddle of Ton Reming - The saddle creates the following effects:


        • Ride skill tests are Advantaged
        • Rider may use 2H Weapon while mounted
        • All animals that wear the saddle can be considered to be trained for combat
        08
        Scarf of Daenda - Provides immunity to all natural diseases and all saves versus magical diseases are rolled as Advantaged.
        09
        Skin of the Blessed Bear - A cloak made of bear skin that provides +1 AC. This stacks with equipped armour.
        10
        Silver Holy Symbol - Anyone possessing this Holy Symbol can turn the dead as if they were a Cleric.


        Friday, May 15, 2020

        Best of the Web - Mid to High Level Spending

        After the last series of Encounters post I dug deep in d4 Caltrops site and found another series of thought provoking posts. Another one he seems to have abandoned too soon. In this one it was about mid-level play and spending. Specifically Clerics purchasing Shrines.
        To me a good post is one that gets my creativity flowing and this serious really did that. I may end up taking up the challenge and writing up something similar. We know a bit about Fighters being able to set up strongholds at certain levels, Wizards can set up towers, etc, but the details. 

        First I'm not a big believer in the level limits for this sort of thing. A proper game a Thief with a ton of money should find little encouragements to building a Thieves Guild, or a Cleric to building shrines. Some in game benefits maybe (imagine a Cleric needs to return to the big city to get 3rd or higher level spells filled, but if they build a shrine near the borderlands they only need to return to that Shrine) or a Wizard who builds a Wizarding tower might get some free spells from the Wizards he allows to stay in that tower researching on their own projects, a sort of paying the rent with low level spells sort of thing). 

        But beyond that the nitty gritty of setting up these things could be adventures. A thieves guild would require buying property for the headquarters, some safe houses, establishing and securing territory (which would probably be an ongoing project) dealing with the government with bribes and such. In exchange the Thief can get a monthly profit and perhaps a low level magic item that was too hot and sold to one of their fences. An adventuring group might purchase a ship to get from place to place without hiking or riding everywhere with sacks of gold on their backs. Such a ship might be a money-pit but grand adventure.

        All of this could be an incredible amount of fun and as far as I know nobody has really gotten into detailing much of it yet.

        Thursday, May 14, 2020

        Found in a Box Part 10: Some Maps

        I don't have much context for these maps. I don't think I ever used them for RPG although I've outlined novels and short stories and all sorts of that type of thing taking place in the area. The first map I recognize from some earlier Found in a Box posts, this was clearly going to be the main campaign area. The next two Match up to the East of the first to form a set of three. The last, the only one I'd properly inked, was a prototype of the first I think, but I'm not sure.

        I like the look of them and may do another version at some point.




        Wednesday, May 13, 2020

        Found in a Box Part 9: Dwarves

        Again, not actually in a Box, but still old stuff.

        Dwarves
        There are two basic types of Dwarves. They are the same physiologically, the differences are cultural. Grooming, clothes, & accent make it easy to tell one from the other.
        • Mountain Dwarves - They could best be described as unsophisticated. They live higher in the mountains and they 've learned to dislike Elves. Most stories of Elf Dwarf conflicts involve Mountain Dwarves. They braid and die their beards in ways that are both humorous and amazing. 
        • Hill Dwarves - Hill Dwarves that are more social which is a good thing now that Mountain Dwarf and the occasional Elf refugee have started filling up their cities. Still, the increased pace of war against the horde, and increased contact with the Elves, has increased Dwarven vs Elf resentment.
        Roughly 75% of all Dwarves are born male but the constant wars have evened the numbers to 60%/40% male to female ratio. This imbalance colors the Dwarves view of the world driving most of them towards a life of hard work hoping to prove themselves enough to attract a mate. Dwarves are embarrassingly chivalrous as well regrading the ladies, of all races/species.

        Female Dwarves are put on a pedestal and protected to a level that most consider stifling.

        Dwarves marry only once. This cultural trait is strong and inflexible, which has caused havoc in their society as Vaults have fallen and widows are everywhere. Many widows have joined military bands seeking revenge and purpose in their lives.

        Dwarven House
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        House Size
        01-04
        01
        Great House
        --
        02
        Minor House
        --
        03-04
        Common House
        01-05
        05-07
        Fallen Great House
        06-10
        08-10
        Fallen Lesser House
        11-20
        11-20
        Fallen Common

        Why Fallen?
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        House Size
        01-02
        01-02
        Over time House fortunes faded
        --
        03-10
        Slaughtered in the fall of Aald Osst Ar
        --
        11
        House Leaders were dishonored in the fall of Aald Osst Ar
        03-10
        12-18
        Slaughtered in the fall of Aald Veztr Ar
        11
        19
        Slaughtered in the fall of Morni Torak
        12-20
        20
        House Leaders were dishonored in the fall of Morni Torak


        House Unity
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        Unity
        01
        01-02
        Very close. Character lives at home
        02
        03-04
        Reasonably close. Everyone gets together occasionally
        03-04
        05-07
        House is more like a dozen different houses really
        05-15
        08-10
        House has been decimated in numbers
        16-20
        11-20
        Character is an orphan (possibly kicked out)

        Rational for Adventure
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        Rational
        01-09
        --
        Suicidal Rage
        10-17
        01-02
        Cold burning revenge
        18
        03-04
        Restore House Glory
        19
        05-10
        Recover House Artifacts
        --
        11-12
        Earn enough to raise house/Start vault
        --
        13-18
        Earn enough to attract love and settle down
        20
        19-20
        Other

        Scars & Wounds
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        Scar
        01-02
        01
        Limb hurts when its cold out
        03-04
        02
        Missing 1d6 fingers or toes
        05-06
        03
        1d6 scars on the face and neck
        07-08
        04
        Burns along the b
        09
        05
        Missing an eye or ear
        10
        06
        Part of the scalp is a mass of scar tissue
        11-13
        07
        Numerous teeth were knocked out, wooden teeth are adequate
        14
        --
        Developed a drink now for tomorrow we may die personality
        15
        --
        Agoraphobic, can't go outdoors for more than a few minutes without strong booze
        16
        --
        Darkphobia, freaks out of the lights go out
        17
        --
        Mumbler, tends to have unintelligible conversations with self
        18
        13
        Psycho, only good Orc is a Dead Orc!
        19
        14
        Multiple wounds, roll again
        20
        15-20
        No wounds

        Gained the Scars where?
        Mountain
        Dwarf
        Hill
        Dwarf
        Scar
        --
        01-05
        Fall of Vault Aald Veztr Ar (Old West Gold, a Hill Dwarf Vault)
        01-02
        06-10
        Battle of Khaz Morni Rukh (Dead orc)
        03-04
        11
        Battle of Khaz Valaz Dueger (Cowardly Duegar)
        05-14
        12
        Fall of Vault Morni Torak (Dead Soul a Mountain Dwarf Vault)
        15-15
        13
        Battle of Khaz of Burk Torak (Axe Soul)
        17-19
        14
        Battle of Khaz Khazdul Heus (Dwarven Hammer)
        20
        15-20
        Fall of Vault Aald Osst Ar (Old East Gold a Hill Dwarf Vault)
        * Note the name Aald (Old) is a recent addition to the names of vaults that have fellen to Orcs.

        Character Traits
        1d6
        Character Trait
        1
        Agoraphobic - Hate the outdoors. Must make a WIS save any time you go outside during the day and every day afterwards. Any fail means you'll try to return to the underground (cave, cavern, dungeon, basement, etc) the quickest way possible.
        2
        Besotten - Must make a WIS save or fall in love with an individual of the opposite sex. Save lasts 1d6 weeks per individual. When the save fails you will agree to whatever the individual says or does.
        3
        Drunkard - Love the drink, and must make a WIS save to decline a drink and tend to stop drinking only when blackout drunk.
        4
        Greedy - Accumulation of wealth is your goal, not for yourself mind you but to improve the lot of your clan and Vault.
        5
        One-upper - Dwarven pride causes you to provide examples of how Dwarves do something better, even if that something is a bit of a lie.
        6
        Rage-a-holic - Life is unfair and it makes you angry. You tend to go berserk when threatened.