tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49212788078820029912024-03-28T14:04:24.813-07:00Graphite PrimeRPG Character Sheets, Art, and Much More.GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.comBlogger131125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-76437034347109400512024-03-25T21:03:00.000-07:002024-03-25T21:03:59.557-07:00Unnamed Traveller Girl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvxI-LaKcNa02B_Tv4gImBZQ0XHxItOJv0zwkWgN8iOyFk67UMVR45j5KkE7pIOaVoubjtfxW7-7e51sxNdjWfGPXxsmOirs_CcaijWqU23_VYb1sE8qTaMO-RRWQi8djfKzAb0zB7ljTS5Uull03kmB5wQfwfHDkFHvOg8mm4MGRe6ypceFvykW1zxxjL/s1980/travellergirl2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1980" data-original-width="981" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvxI-LaKcNa02B_Tv4gImBZQ0XHxItOJv0zwkWgN8iOyFk67UMVR45j5KkE7pIOaVoubjtfxW7-7e51sxNdjWfGPXxsmOirs_CcaijWqU23_VYb1sE8qTaMO-RRWQi8djfKzAb0zB7ljTS5Uull03kmB5wQfwfHDkFHvOg8mm4MGRe6ypceFvykW1zxxjL/w199-h400/travellergirl2.jpg" width="199" /></a></div><br /><p>As rolled up with the Mongoose Traveller RPG 2nd Edition 2022 Update, a book I was at first skeptical about...</p><p>Initial stats:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Strength: 4 (-1)</li><li>Dexterity: 4 (-1)</li><li>Endurance: 8</li><li>Intellect: 5 (-1)</li><li>Education: 4 (-1)</li><li>Social: 5 (-1)</li><li>Psi: 6 (just for the hell of it, she is not psionic)</li></ul><div><br /></div><div>The universe was not kind to this one. </div><div><br /></div><div>What kind of back-water planet slum produced these results?</div><div><br /></div><div>The cruelty would continue...</div><div><br /></div><div>Her dreams of joining the Scouts, well... it would not be. </div><div><br /></div><div>Entered the draft. Swooped up by an Intelligence Agency. Her stats say she is not cut out for this line of work... probably used as some sort of patsy. Subsequently...</div><div><br /></div><div>Nearly killed. CR25,000 in medical debt just to restore her body to its prior self. (5 points were lost among her already low physical stats.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Spends the next few years drifting. Works in the belting industry. </div><div><br /></div><div>Somehow she gets caught up in a failed, illegal, side venture. Gullible? Incompetent? Or just plain unlucky? The rolls were so bad I actually switched dice. </div><div><br /></div><div>Arrested.</div><div><br /></div><div>Incarcerated...</div><div><br /></div><div>Joins a gang and learns how to fight. Paroled. Ironically, prison is where she found the most success.</div><div><br /></div><div>Drifts once more as a scavenger. Runs into members of her former prison gang. They betray her. A former contact, now a rival.</div><div><br /></div><div>Wanders some more. </div><div><br /></div><div>Meets a new contact...</div><div><br /></div><div>And this is where we stand: </div><ul><li>Strength: 4 (-1)</li><li>Dexterity: 4 (-1)</li><li>Endurance: 9 (+1)</li><li>Intellect: 5 (-1)</li><li>Education: 4 (-1)</li><li>Social: 5 (-1)</li><li>Psi: 6 </li></ul><div><br /></div><div>Good Lord.</div><div><br /></div><div>Skills:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Athletics:0</li><li>Drive: 0</li><li>Flyer: 0</li><li>Gun Combat: 0</li><li>Investigate: 0</li><li>Melee -- Unarmed: 1</li><li>Profession -- Belter: 0</li><li>Recon: 0</li><li>Stealth: 0</li><li>Streetwise: 1</li><li>Survival: 0</li></ul><div><br /></div><div>CR: 4,000</div><div>Debt: 25,000</div><div>Contacts: 1</div><div>Rivals: 1</div><div>Age: 38</div><div><br /></div><div>Or perhaps these are just memory implants and she's nothing more than a discarded replicant...</div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVuqsFog4ptnJ215H6P0tLjyTVWzR3yUttKWl2ggskwe5ijmzL8_vgpOqeNograC6xwCqcLWVKDxOoN8iJ-V3PT6eN06e16J_aiTVWENW2fFpjZ5whOuzyCzcjeUwCYmQCyVpvOe7DIoR4lGXPgXSmin9ftLWfMStxO-KSewAt07FpFZaaZzI6rtvSa-4Z/s505/travellergirl2faceb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="464" data-original-width="505" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVuqsFog4ptnJ215H6P0tLjyTVWzR3yUttKWl2ggskwe5ijmzL8_vgpOqeNograC6xwCqcLWVKDxOoN8iJ-V3PT6eN06e16J_aiTVWENW2fFpjZ5whOuzyCzcjeUwCYmQCyVpvOe7DIoR4lGXPgXSmin9ftLWfMStxO-KSewAt07FpFZaaZzI6rtvSa-4Z/w200-h184/travellergirl2faceb.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div> </div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-17618161487786551662024-02-22T15:54:00.000-08:002024-02-22T15:54:26.100-08:00Castles & Crusades: Saving Throws... Focusing On Death<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKnzSy_Qp-_iwdzaCbB_ybAEB6EJTb0f4FcZU-WatmlgLgCNbafQeHnl6JO1laqAR7Pju-HqruIn4nqmd3vOnoutYwtOD9Rc0_UnPlVqzSvjW-6JxXX9ZjZtFXln3ZZAaqjqUv3g_KdeioeDhyphenhyphenRXXjDCaVPTMDz4xzDKDEN7fahmRlp1K-m938Mmsj5xic/s1066/deathskullb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="693" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKnzSy_Qp-_iwdzaCbB_ybAEB6EJTb0f4FcZU-WatmlgLgCNbafQeHnl6JO1laqAR7Pju-HqruIn4nqmd3vOnoutYwtOD9Rc0_UnPlVqzSvjW-6JxXX9ZjZtFXln3ZZAaqjqUv3g_KdeioeDhyphenhyphenRXXjDCaVPTMDz4xzDKDEN7fahmRlp1K-m938Mmsj5xic/w260-h400/deathskullb.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In the earliest editions of D&D, <i>death</i>, along with <i>poison</i> was your best save.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In Castles & Crusades, the <i>death</i> save is a charisma save. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Also under the purview of charisma are <i>charm</i> and <i>fear</i>. </div><p>This has consequences.</p><p>For example, in C&C, half-orcs suffer a -2 penalty to their charisma stat, thus, they are less personable (of course) but also, more suspectable to death, charm, and fear than any other race. Does that make sense to you?</p><p>Also in C&C, bards have charisma as their <i>prime</i> stat. This makes sense for their profession, charming and all that, but, this also makes bards very resistant to fear and death, right up there with knights and paladins. Does <i>that</i> make sense to you?</p><p>So, in C&C, saving throws are based off your main stats. You have prime and secondary stats where you roll a 12 or higher for prime and an 18 or higher for secondary. Those are just the base numbers to which you add your level (unless you're stepping on another class's toes, such as a cleric trying to pick a lock) and your ability bonus. So, assuming average stats at 1st level, you're actually rolling over 11 and 17 respectively. Then you calculate in the challenge level, a spell -- the spell caster's level, a monster -- its hit die, for a trap it's the level of the trap setter, and so on. </p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>For example: A medusa is a 6HD creature. Here are what various PCs would have to roll (on a d20) to avoid petrification. This assumes an average wisdom score.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>PC level 1, wisdom prime: 17</li><li>PC level 1, wisdom secondary: 23</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>PC level 5, wisdom prime: 13</li><li>PC level 5, wisdom secondary: 19</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>PC level 10, wisdom prime: 8</li><li>PC level 10, wisdom secondary: 14</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>PC level 15, wisdom prime: 3</li><li>PC level 15, wisdom secondary: 9</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li>PC level 20, wisdom prime: -2</li><li>PC level 20, wisdom secondary: 4</li></ul></ul><p></p><p>Characters start with 2 primes and 4 secondaries, 1 prime from race, 1 prime from class. Humans are the exception getting 2 primes, thus starting with 3 (other races get other perks, dark-vision and such.)</p><p>Here are the C&C classes by prime stat...</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>STR: Fighter, Ranger</li><li>DEX: Rogue, Assassin</li><li>CON: Barbarian, Monk</li><li>INT: Illusionist, Wizard</li><li>WIS: Cleric, Druid</li><li>CHA: Bard, Knight, Paladin</li></ul><p></p><p>Most, but not all, of a class's abilities will function off their prime stat. Class ability rolls are essentially saving throws. So, charisma is crucial for all of the bard's performance and influencing skills, likewise, charisma is crucial for the successful use of a knight's and paladin's battlefield leadership abilities.</p><p>Anyhow, bards, knights, and paladins are, by default of this system, the hardest to kill by <i>death attack. </i> These classes are also the most resistant to fear and charm. Charm makes sense for bards and the other two make sense for knights and paladins, but all three classes inherently have an advantage in situations specifically calling for death. Now, you can <i>choose</i> charisma as your second or third prime, but you're probably sacrificing some class abilities in doing so. </p><p>Charm makes sense for charisma to some degree, but fear and death do not. Look at those around you, impersonable grouches are usually quite resistant to charm and those who think they're slick often fall prey to other slicksters. Of course, the smart-ass might say, impersonable grouches can be charismatic in their own way, but now we're muddying the waters.</p><p>Of the six abilities, the charisma saves make the least sense. This is probably a case of trying to spread the <i>saves</i> evenly among six stats so as to avoid the game having a dump stat. How better to give charisma some weight than by linking it to <i>death</i>? And this is not necessary. You see, charisma is the <i>social</i> save.</p><p>Should there even be a death save?</p><p>For example: Poison is damage (and pain.) When you're stung by an insect or bitten by a snake, the amount of damage you take depends on the strength of the poison/venom/toxin. If that particular beast (whatever it is) <i>hits</i> you, you've been poisoned. What exactly, are you then <i>saving</i> against? It's like you have a free, vague, parry maneuver to <i>reverse</i> reality, saying -- no, actually, I was <i>not</i> bitten. </p><p>Larger animals with poisonous bites, due to their sheer size, also do damage with their bite/sting/claw. This is where modern versions of D&D might have it correct in the fact that they might state damage as 1d6 (+2d6 poison damage.) If you do not have the hit points to survive this, have you not then, by default, suffered a <i>death attack</i>?</p><p>Going back, death should not be linked to any one particular stat. Perhaps the only death save that should exist in any game should come into play if your hit points happen to fall to exactly zero and you are making a save every round to see if you fall negative and die. In such a case, you could argue for a con-based save or a will-based save (wisdom.)</p><p>Going back to C&C. I believe fear should be covered by wisdom. Charisma should only handle <i>social</i> interactions, bard stuff, the knight's/paladin's warlord stuff, the assassin's disguise ability, bribing a guard, etc. I would also shift <i>confusion</i> from wisdom to intelligence, with, <i>charm</i> and<i> fear</i> going to wisdom. This leaves charisma to dominate the social realm. </p><p>So the abilities and their saves in C&C, rules as written are...</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>STR: Paralysis, Constriction</li><li>DEX: Breath Weapon, Traps </li><li>CON: Energy Drain, Disease, Poison, </li><li>INT: Arcane Magic, Illusions</li><li>WIS: Divine Magic, Confusion, Gaze, Petrification, Polymorph</li><li>CHA: Death Attack, Fear, Charm</li></ul><div>My changes...</div><div><ul><li>STR: Paralysis, Constriction</li><li>DEX: Breath Weapon, Traps </li><li>CON: Energy Drain, Disease, Poison, Polymorph*</li><li>INT: Arcane Magic, Illusions, Confusion</li><li>WIS: Divine Magic, Gaze, Fear, Charm, Petrification</li><li>CHA: Loyalty, Morale, all things Social</li></ul></div><div>*Polymorph was originally attached to wisdom, but I moved it to constitution because of its archaic ties to system shock. Though petrify/polymorph are also classically linked, petrification is usually caused by gaze attacks which seem to be, at their core, an assault upon your will, where as polymorph is battling the structure and health of your physical body.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now those pesky half-orcs aren't so shit-on by fate. Not that their existence is pleasant.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for death attacks (not counting death specifically linked to things like poison) the best way to handle this is to allow the PC to use their BEST saving throw. This way, death favors no single class and with saving throws scaling as the threat-level rises, success is no guarantee.</div><p> And so it's full circle with <i>death</i> becoming your best save.</p><p>And if your best save can't save you, then to Hell with you!</p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-18954918519958759172024-02-20T08:23:00.000-08:002024-02-20T08:24:56.150-08:00Last Day of The Lamentations Of The Flame Princess 2 For 1 Sale!<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoIwynS8DUg">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoIwynS8DUg</a></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-23774088781577149152024-02-15T17:58:00.000-08:002024-02-15T17:58:00.005-08:00Tweaking The Castles & Crusades Assassin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh13EDJQLR45A5rB34YJzyjYHQHy2eFN68QH6JqZsCdUjtf9ArppkEMYZeEyess-g6tIalXaLI0GcxSvDxd39avMbw8OgqYH6A5VAS35YYFqsgcR6ajkyowB8UsNVmOZVuLr1d-yjFTijBItZqulJNoNggKEB2FV8YDU6CKGICfkRuqVu2fqa_1tSHJ3bIx/s1967/ccassassinb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1967" data-original-width="1426" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh13EDJQLR45A5rB34YJzyjYHQHy2eFN68QH6JqZsCdUjtf9ArppkEMYZeEyess-g6tIalXaLI0GcxSvDxd39avMbw8OgqYH6A5VAS35YYFqsgcR6ajkyowB8UsNVmOZVuLr1d-yjFTijBItZqulJNoNggKEB2FV8YDU6CKGICfkRuqVu2fqa_1tSHJ3bIx/w290-h400/ccassassinb.jpg" width="290" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">This is regarding the Assassin as presented in the Castles & Crusades Player's Handbook 8th Printing as seen on the right below...</span></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBRAQ4g0ZafAkrVA3fkDS8ATK5PEmNLBLXIrPF-F3P-6M5-OH0tGp3udaN0Yf81PvAfyoyxMttDSpZiFnWVEnn62XU4YMXexQ4GVreMA5b_DTNZXsFOG_ETDL84DmoTt72T9vJS_DngZktTJIJM2xuJj4OoKBSyUZzISUyKJsopYm6_OQLRgDE76TOeT7/s4032/IMG_0803.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBRAQ4g0ZafAkrVA3fkDS8ATK5PEmNLBLXIrPF-F3P-6M5-OH0tGp3udaN0Yf81PvAfyoyxMttDSpZiFnWVEnn62XU4YMXexQ4GVreMA5b_DTNZXsFOG_ETDL84DmoTt72T9vJS_DngZktTJIJM2xuJj4OoKBSyUZzISUyKJsopYm6_OQLRgDE76TOeT7/s320/IMG_0803.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />In <i>this</i> printing, the Assassin (which alphabetically should, and has up until now, been first) is presented at the end of the class section, as an optional class(?) that "<i>turns the idea of a hero on its head</i>." <div><br /></div><div>Do not dis the Assassin!<p></p><p>Anyhow, this Assassin is a pretty good version of the concept. Most of their classes are. And I like the fact that C&C classes go up to 24th level. </p><p>The Assassin...</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Prime Attribute: Dexterity</li><li>Hit Die: d6</li><li>Alignment: Any non-good</li><li>Weapons: Any</li><li>Armor: Leather, Leather Coat, Padded</li></ul><div>Abilities...</div><div><br /></div><div>Only those given at 1st level, more come at 13th, but I'm not concerned about those at the moment.</div><div>Anyhow, these abilities are good, exactly what you'd think they'd be, but a couple could be tweaked and made mechanically more interesting, at least to me.</div><div><br /></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Armor Allowed</u>: As above, but they can wear any armor above AC:12 with a -1 penalty to their abilities per point above AC:12. I like this, nothing to tweak here. As the Assassin levels up, you can begin to weigh the risk/reward of better armor. Also, this could easily be ported over to Wizards -- any armor above 10 could give a -1 penalty to the casting strength level of their spell, hence an easier saving throw for the target. This idea could actually be applied to any class with armor restrictions. Basically, a -1 to all rolls for every point of AC you normally can't have.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Case Target (Wisdom)</u>: Basically, if they spend 1d3x10 minutes observing a target, the CK (Castle Keeper -- "DM") gives them some sort of useful information. Too vague for me, and clearly designed for non-dungeon use.</li><ul><li><u>Tweak</u>: Spend the first round of combat casing a specific target and receive a to-hit/damage bonus equal to +1/+2 at 1st level, +2/+4 at 6th, +3 /+6 at 12th, +4/+8 at 18th, and +5/+10 at 24th. An Intelligence check must be made to gain these bonuses, the CC (Challenge Class) is modified by the target's HD. You can not even attempt this if you take damage before your turn. These bonuses last that entire encounter against that particular target.</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Climb (Dexterity)</u>: This is your basic, almost supernatural, ability to climb pretty much anything you want without equipment. Doesn't really need tweaking.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Death Attack</u>: You must be hidden while studying your target for 3 rounds, then make a Sneak Attack (see below, not the same as the Rogue's classic Back-Attack.) If you succeed, the target must make a constitution save or die instantly. All well and good, but I will always prefer a Death Attack that's triggered by a natural 20. Either way, in this game, Death Attack saves are made with charisma. Monsters only have two saves, physical & mental. It seems to me that this would be a physical save for monsters.</li><ul><li><u>Tweak</u>: Death Attack triggered on a natural 20, then 19-20 at 12th level, and 18-20 at 24th.</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Disguise (Charisma)</u>: You need props, make-up, and 1d3x10 minutes of prep, with some penalties for age, race, sex, etc. Then the CK rolls secretly for you and reveals if you succeeded at the appropriate time. Usual disguise rules stuff. </li><ul><li><u>Tweak</u>: An almost supernatural ability to fit in where you don't belong. I've said it before, it's like stealth out in the open. The roll is made by YOU when the moment of truth comes. CC modifier equal the highest HD present.</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Hide (Dexterity)</u>: The classic <i>Hide in Shadows</i>. There's really not much to tweak here. At 3rd level the Assassin can attempt to hide and move silently at the same time -- this requires two rolls, both at -5. I would require no such thing. Stealth is one of the hallmarks of thieves/rogues/assassins!</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Listen (Wisdom)</u>: "Hear Noise." Pretty standard here, however, in SIEGE, since this is a class ability, classes that don't have it do not get to add their level to the ability roll (SIEGE check.) Here, I'll bring up one of the criticisms of SIEGE, and it really goes back to the origins of D&D itself. Why does <i>wisdom</i> represent awareness? Wisdom, more accurately stated, is willpower/faith. I would argue that all observation/perception type abilities/skills should be under the purview of intelligence. I know, you can have absent minded professors and such, but should clerics be the most observant members of a party? In C&C, clerics kick-ass in this department because wisdom is their <i>prime stat</i>. Trust me, I love clerics, but, I think not.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Move Silently (Dexterity)</u>: See <i>Hide</i>, above.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Poisons (Intelligence)</u>: With the aid of some alchemical equipment, the Assassin can identify and manufacture poisons and antitoxins at 1/3 the market price. The handling of poison makes Assassins a bit resistant to them (+1 vs poison at 3rd level.) Pretty vague here. No time table is given nor are alchemy kits listed in the book.</li><ul><li><u>Tweak</u>: You can harvest poison/toxins (actually, this would be venom, not poison) from slain monsters. An intelligence roll vs. the monster's level (HD) must be made as well as 1 turn of time (that's an old-school <i>turn</i>, C&C does not have 10 minute turns). Failure means you either botched it or the source was destroyed when the creature was killed. A natural "1" results in poisoning yourself. Vials are needed for storage. A vial of poison/toxin can be turned into 1d4 antitoxins with a full days work -- and another roll, failure means no antitoxin and the poison is destroyed.</li><li><u>Tweak</u>: Your +1 save vs. poison/venom at 3rd level continues to increase with levels, it becomes +2 at 7th, +3 at 12th, +4 at 18th, and +5 at 24th. </li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Sneak Attack</u>: In C&C, Rogues have a <i>back attack</i> and a <i>sneak attack</i>. Assassins don't have the <i>back attack</i> because they have their <i>death attack</i>. With Sneak Attack, you can surprise attack someone walking by or even standing face to face. You get a +2/+4 attack/damage bonus and the target can't roll for initiative until the following round. But, you basically need the CK's permission to pull this off and the CK may require you make a <i>Hide</i> and/or <i>Move Silently</i> check anyway, at which point it becomes a weaker form of <i>back attack</i>. In this form it's more of a <i>role-playing</i> ability.</li><ul><li><u>Tweak</u>: After initiative is determined, in the first round of combat, the Assassin can use Sneak Attack on anyone who acts after him. Thus, he gets the jump on that particular target.</li></ul></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Traps (Intelligence)</u>: Finally a game that bases traps on intelligence instead of dexterity. And it's interesting that finding traps requires intelligence yet listening at doors requires wisdom. Nothing to tweak here though. One roll to find, another roll to disarm. And if you wish, a roll to set a trap of your own. Obviously setting your own trap would take time and it's not something I've ever seen come up in any game or system.</li></ul><div>The 13th level+ abilities are mostly bonuses to surprise, initiative, dexterity, and sneak attack. At 15th level you gain a <i>Signature Move</i> which increases the potency of your death attack by +2 (meaning -2 to save) and at 20th level you gain an ability called Slow Kill which causes extra bleeding damage.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>More to come on Castles & Crusades.</div><div><br /></div><div>Great game.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p></p></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-69440114438780013332023-12-09T09:08:00.000-08:002023-12-14T14:05:48.188-08:00O.C.C.: NIGHTBANE<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCuTyGRHqGcgn-3m6X39mWRvBqbwWPiheUCzMVc3bu8ZIcIrYlb5bqupHzfkbYvzz1u0d4B2cmyUORZZSjmOZ5JoPKQCIjFc8YfHkCpjTu6RI-QkRjO3VarJtTTbUVcAFoVJ6N2I3wrwqmHCs5LUHyAnPD142HdQ-nIGvZ4f3P3uvdLqVlVn5TnQpdrukd/s1650/NightbaneLeatherBoyVIN.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1650" data-original-width="1275" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCuTyGRHqGcgn-3m6X39mWRvBqbwWPiheUCzMVc3bu8ZIcIrYlb5bqupHzfkbYvzz1u0d4B2cmyUORZZSjmOZ5JoPKQCIjFc8YfHkCpjTu6RI-QkRjO3VarJtTTbUVcAFoVJ6N2I3wrwqmHCs5LUHyAnPD142HdQ-nIGvZ4f3P3uvdLqVlVn5TnQpdrukd/w309-h400/NightbaneLeatherBoyVIN.jpg" width="309" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Sans any skills or martial-arts what-so-ever.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On a world where your Nightbane transformation was PERMANENT, this is what you became...</div><p>A blend of leather and metal -- straps, chains, and spikes... But this is no armor, no true exoskeleton. This is your flesh. It doesn't come off, it can not be changed. Covered, perhaps. You can still bleed, a knife still cuts, a bullet, potentially fatal, but, probably not. You are tough. Tough as nails, tough as spikes. You can take... a lot. And give a lot more.</p><p>You hardly have a face, only a hint. Your lips will never again touch those of another. Do you have other options? Not your immediate concern.</p><p>You will almost certainly never walk the daylight again.</p><p>There's an invasion. A bleak mirror-world clandestinely attacks, ultimate motive, unknown. Do you defend? How can you when you are so shunned? Sometimes you have no choice but to engage and the more you fight, the more you appreciate what you are, nightmare it may be. </p><p>Oh, how you love kicking ass.</p><p>So be it.</p><p> </p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-83199963266713908112023-11-14T14:29:00.000-08:002023-11-14T14:29:21.100-08:00Spotlight: OSRIC Player's Guide<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMWteckB0bu1DBo2L8rsBTDFxl1vL7J4Q7Rd-nzbD9AMjObBC5FTunGx9YxTNN-oubaFgEONYgjxieKAu9Qz4_ZnkWTKn6ADXaQMbo2Orus2HHKpzyhHc1t7E6Os3K8nf5CYlqyQaHhYkML8oqM_75eIHULA9LgEN6Kj5pp06DNKAUHYOcFkQVRiM3rFTk/s2242/osric.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2242" data-original-width="1315" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMWteckB0bu1DBo2L8rsBTDFxl1vL7J4Q7Rd-nzbD9AMjObBC5FTunGx9YxTNN-oubaFgEONYgjxieKAu9Qz4_ZnkWTKn6ADXaQMbo2Orus2HHKpzyhHc1t7E6Os3K8nf5CYlqyQaHhYkML8oqM_75eIHULA9LgEN6Kj5pp06DNKAUHYOcFkQVRiM3rFTk/w235-h400/osric.jpg" width="235" /></a></div><br /><div>Charlie Mason of Seattle Hill Games has put together a <i>Player's Guide</i> for OSRIC.</div><p>It is 220 pages, soft covered, spined in orange, and contains all the information a player needs for 1st Edition AD&D... as presented in OSRIC. This isn't <i>his</i> version of OSRIC, this <i>is</i> OSRIC, word for word, at least, part of it, races, classes, equipment, spells, combat rules, etc.... just laid out better including much better art.</p><p>The PDF is free, and the print copy from Amazon is only $8.</p><p>Now, numerous times, I've contemplated contacting the right folks to acquire the current Black Blade Publishing copy of OSRIC, not because I need it, rather, because I want it. But I keep hesitating. Why? Because I'm not a big fan of the layout. It pains me to say that, considering the effort these fine folks must have put into producing the book. The major flaw is the fact that many charts are not contained on the same page or two-page spread... probably to save space. You should never have to turn a page back and forth to scan the contents of a chart. All charts should be contained on a single page/two-page spread and if this creates white space, so be it, add art.</p><p>Then I got wind of an OSRIC revision project in the works, perhaps still a couple years off from completion...</p><p>So, my question at this point: Is this <i>Player's Guide</i> a part of that current OSRIC revision project or is it just a stand alone thing? </p><p>Because this book is nice. Well laid out and the interior art is PERFECT. If the revision of OSRIC is done exactly like this... It would certainly make for a fat tome, no doubt, but adding the rest of OSRIC to this <i>exact</i> book, in this <i>exact</i> fashion... I'd pay a king's ransom for it.</p><p>Of note, spells in OSRIC are listed alphabetically by class, whereas traditionally, they are listed by level by class. I'm a fan of alphabetical period, not by class, not by level. Any time I need to look up a spell, I know the spell I'm looking up, finding it should be easy. If you don't do it straight alphabetically, there should be some sort of tab noting what section of the spell descriptions you've opened up to, to help guide you to you're destination.</p><p>ERRATA NOTE: On page 4, in the section on Dwarfs, under Infravision, there is a reference to the Light and Vision rules on page xxx (it should say 162). If you know the diligent folks working on this project, kindly pass this along.</p><p>Anyhow, a few samples and link below...</p><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGRKIXgOlPhvkYK8gBEareK9NQEwYUaTdKsAISdNoETpfyNlhs1No4ASPxLl2x4hVHRGvMsjvTjujh0Gxl9CvJjLKhThOPVvs17d_JzRSjG8JkecGeoTn4d4vPYU-thsRZqmYC3AffzSJFdM4crgqJoAFn8LnNIPZh7YV3sT2FcF-8UrPlKrU8kQME1XXm/s4032/IMG-1347.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGRKIXgOlPhvkYK8gBEareK9NQEwYUaTdKsAISdNoETpfyNlhs1No4ASPxLl2x4hVHRGvMsjvTjujh0Gxl9CvJjLKhThOPVvs17d_JzRSjG8JkecGeoTn4d4vPYU-thsRZqmYC3AffzSJFdM4crgqJoAFn8LnNIPZh7YV3sT2FcF-8UrPlKrU8kQME1XXm/w300-h400/IMG-1347.jpg" width="300" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEias7D31RbE9JkZbs0Dp3O_ahdEr6Jgkpsq6uKieK_rusv2xJOQ9LnS5BtpSW-AKlNY7_RSe2PMDgmCL5J9mM1SQVGpVf2u5udZO8dnsAM7-JE83IiyEy7PoJIzjCBP3aZwV0nbStIf-PyDK9LmQWCgv_M9E5Hxkr4Kk3CBabtvOhvkjLRa44c0lDrtemTi/s4032/IMG-1348.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEias7D31RbE9JkZbs0Dp3O_ahdEr6Jgkpsq6uKieK_rusv2xJOQ9LnS5BtpSW-AKlNY7_RSe2PMDgmCL5J9mM1SQVGpVf2u5udZO8dnsAM7-JE83IiyEy7PoJIzjCBP3aZwV0nbStIf-PyDK9LmQWCgv_M9E5Hxkr4Kk3CBabtvOhvkjLRa44c0lDrtemTi/s320/IMG-1348.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Classic orange spine.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWI39ubTErtoRhCZsqaXj8y9XvJUM9L2HcjAMNwFDix3lwpgzw-Gz3ibS70w6mRVpLkyHOAVBQPo1gtnT2E7TfnxDPwHqyKOWaX2SbG7vabPS0bcK5XZ9Qcdm670wV-bWGkCvG0wq8KR_V8-tYl33DzyWvtRofkx4Ai0GVFqQnUlMttTZTUw3esJTVLhGG/s4032/IMG-1360.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWI39ubTErtoRhCZsqaXj8y9XvJUM9L2HcjAMNwFDix3lwpgzw-Gz3ibS70w6mRVpLkyHOAVBQPo1gtnT2E7TfnxDPwHqyKOWaX2SbG7vabPS0bcK5XZ9Qcdm670wV-bWGkCvG0wq8KR_V8-tYl33DzyWvtRofkx4Ai0GVFqQnUlMttTZTUw3esJTVLhGG/s320/IMG-1360.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cleric!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9Jv9mePWb813Ye66b9zo4qUM6_m0Pq2A5SFEg7DBKorh4VxPFf6eMLxVetTUSNtEZAvZuDiGuux6ou0EUZnZMjc_Be6l-Fbw3foxEqvmstCwJ6gn5cO0BhBYVuf4XdDm-y0zx1zCxH3OMxInGaIAOgmwxtID4sYIDKjYvLi2dnPtvA4VKKUQOidDKiJc/s4032/IMG-1361.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9Jv9mePWb813Ye66b9zo4qUM6_m0Pq2A5SFEg7DBKorh4VxPFf6eMLxVetTUSNtEZAvZuDiGuux6ou0EUZnZMjc_Be6l-Fbw3foxEqvmstCwJ6gn5cO0BhBYVuf4XdDm-y0zx1zCxH3OMxInGaIAOgmwxtID4sYIDKjYvLi2dnPtvA4VKKUQOidDKiJc/s320/IMG-1361.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Nice.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4kYSmkvyRkwXjttNkjXb85Y3jisAXXnZH-n1iUSO5z5bUrG6unDoSuOO7oE7zKwGbY16Sk_fTnhJkGYG3cK5qPSwA3oTOXl4cS7klcdXBu5WLDUswM_j6CtWFmXFnRqbCo2R7565wE6zXCnxfSUjLFZYGsS8tTuQeFJiCzxu_cNQCyjdxVJE3bF2HmFd/s4032/IMG-1362.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4kYSmkvyRkwXjttNkjXb85Y3jisAXXnZH-n1iUSO5z5bUrG6unDoSuOO7oE7zKwGbY16Sk_fTnhJkGYG3cK5qPSwA3oTOXl4cS7klcdXBu5WLDUswM_j6CtWFmXFnRqbCo2R7565wE6zXCnxfSUjLFZYGsS8tTuQeFJiCzxu_cNQCyjdxVJE3bF2HmFd/s320/IMG-1362.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Fighter!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_2BEvbfFFU6m1SF8C_cr17G_9YYcH-rXmbRI0zXmCnBcvy7KANzbSnOsAukFMGanBnZo4E6Rk9yPkhsFmBMv8jE-h4FB0ho4-bZB1QLa6rXkZvdoDGZlrFC-GajBEzMmjb3e3z2-wAOOT1fIFRO-9LZ2IMUoyM0zfpNAz70G0rplTjrSYVQwyKD7oqka/s4032/IMG-1363.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_2BEvbfFFU6m1SF8C_cr17G_9YYcH-rXmbRI0zXmCnBcvy7KANzbSnOsAukFMGanBnZo4E6Rk9yPkhsFmBMv8jE-h4FB0ho4-bZB1QLa6rXkZvdoDGZlrFC-GajBEzMmjb3e3z2-wAOOT1fIFRO-9LZ2IMUoyM0zfpNAz70G0rplTjrSYVQwyKD7oqka/s320/IMG-1363.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I approve.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgih37IkiTK5Ilq_GN6TTBq-YZXl3k5N3uov49GKwrxycSXm2WFqOx4dugfijGpI28tCJflLBx9Fd2HqsQPb3RRYggI8YM6lfSaBHBi7tw-aeluyKp5b0dbNJHAe7zGakBdYqwPtE4uh1OlzBycuoAapybod5Dat5BhElCFJqmFpdGTU_se3mYCMjoRv8Om/s4032/IMG-1364.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgih37IkiTK5Ilq_GN6TTBq-YZXl3k5N3uov49GKwrxycSXm2WFqOx4dugfijGpI28tCJflLBx9Fd2HqsQPb3RRYggI8YM6lfSaBHBi7tw-aeluyKp5b0dbNJHAe7zGakBdYqwPtE4uh1OlzBycuoAapybod5Dat5BhElCFJqmFpdGTU_se3mYCMjoRv8Om/s320/IMG-1364.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Sample two-page art spread.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcAVS4k5Jfwh7Lfml52LqPC-3ml3kXRVY8zOxPh8Qh7awhEEDM7k_ZUmG4hS0EHf0Jb0zp_F1kacHNsiWyymEYyeIbQ7-6AGe2tcfQS7oUik0fyhGnqmJvc5KLCzEFtqsQ8vtm6q4DJVQmvtwrlZSXc34ELDiTJKZ0owqk8Fbn-AAMa6uIBu-vHEidFda/s4032/IMG-1365.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcAVS4k5Jfwh7Lfml52LqPC-3ml3kXRVY8zOxPh8Qh7awhEEDM7k_ZUmG4hS0EHf0Jb0zp_F1kacHNsiWyymEYyeIbQ7-6AGe2tcfQS7oUik0fyhGnqmJvc5KLCzEFtqsQ8vtm6q4DJVQmvtwrlZSXc34ELDiTJKZ0owqk8Fbn-AAMa6uIBu-vHEidFda/s320/IMG-1365.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Yep.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg75qMHJDZMZcXOQzFgRSCITdTVYaynd3WwcPfg1nawPz4XusuTRGSw5izonx1CPQD2mNMwdboan7kr2Qa0n4HhUlwffOiBSYeRyKAHJOPY1TnB0GL6D5yzPyHakzjedfHaquAVkPv841FdgX6m_-0kFj-9YCOwZ3tBKCy5jgsu5g9PXzsd-sdM7hE4diy6/s4032/IMG-1366.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg75qMHJDZMZcXOQzFgRSCITdTVYaynd3WwcPfg1nawPz4XusuTRGSw5izonx1CPQD2mNMwdboan7kr2Qa0n4HhUlwffOiBSYeRyKAHJOPY1TnB0GL6D5yzPyHakzjedfHaquAVkPv841FdgX6m_-0kFj-9YCOwZ3tBKCy5jgsu5g9PXzsd-sdM7hE4diy6/s320/IMG-1366.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cool.</div><p>You can purchase a copy at the link below.</p><p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLVFWT61?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860"><span style="color: #fcff01; font-size: x-large;">OSRIC Player's Guide</span></a></p><p>Nicely done.</p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-14077072945016018802023-10-31T20:48:00.000-07:002023-10-31T20:48:58.442-07:00Boosting...TMNT Is Back! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDD03yIF2zcQH20jZr0WU1oKbvCuT-wz4PFmokNuhGItkOYhbizvhCevo90Q5g-6CkNSt1bnnhvxs6pDGer8eFPm0bXCgK-4xOTCMsPXbXI3-kyw2tpWSV5ONWlf0vv3FgZF7npsNqsb5OhF37KvDu_dO8xaIwzcQPw8XazWbh3Wav_Sh7N7Zd89cNk2TT/s1845/TMNTMIC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1845" data-original-width="1569" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDD03yIF2zcQH20jZr0WU1oKbvCuT-wz4PFmokNuhGItkOYhbizvhCevo90Q5g-6CkNSt1bnnhvxs6pDGer8eFPm0bXCgK-4xOTCMsPXbXI3-kyw2tpWSV5ONWlf0vv3FgZF7npsNqsb5OhF37KvDu_dO8xaIwzcQPw8XazWbh3Wav_Sh7N7Zd89cNk2TT/w340-h400/TMNTMIC.jpg" width="340" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div>As most of you probably know, Palladium Books has brought back the much beloved TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES<i> & OTHER STRANGENESS </i>Role-Playing Game.<i> </i><div><i><br /></i></div><div>An absolute no-brainer for me!<br /><div><br /></div><div>I went in for the old-school black & white, with red editions.</div><div><br /></div><div>Kickstarter link below!<br /><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/palladiumbooks/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-and-other-strangeness"><span style="color: #fcff01; font-size: large;">TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES & OTHER STRANGENESS</span></a></p><p><br /></p><p> </p></div></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-3920715009639920652023-08-31T06:04:00.004-07:002023-09-06T13:36:53.458-07:00Practical Insanity<p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJoNYoUWiqnSlJiJBZ1cuTdSZkGrDkMhgzotVAMqgjMwiP_z3IL36EN-XgqWlZnkdjzdGzoI572F73gAYQjZUXL6uwrZNrRlJZlpL7tK3yagxf4K3N1s8FA8nrnmIK7vSNx3XoYg6P20qrn1iicM_h_Lx8xB81J0pJJkZzv7V_v8tMWFB4UB2lXogCc8v/s2064/Scan_20230830b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2064" data-original-width="1700" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJoNYoUWiqnSlJiJBZ1cuTdSZkGrDkMhgzotVAMqgjMwiP_z3IL36EN-XgqWlZnkdjzdGzoI572F73gAYQjZUXL6uwrZNrRlJZlpL7tK3yagxf4K3N1s8FA8nrnmIK7vSNx3XoYg6P20qrn1iicM_h_Lx8xB81J0pJJkZzv7V_v8tMWFB4UB2lXogCc8v/w330-h400/Scan_20230830b.jpg" width="330" /></a></p><p></p><p>So... <i>After reading a page from the grotesque tome on the satanic alter, you must now save vs spells or roll for insanity... ah you failed... now you suffer from Equinophobia... the fear of horses... </i></p><p>Huh?<i> </i></p><p>In most games, when you go insane, you accrue insanity points, which ultimately leads to losing your character, and/or, you roll on a phobia table to find your new fear. In either case, it's usually up to you to <i>role-play</i> the symptoms of your new affliction which may or may not make any sense at all.</p><p>On page 83 of the DMG, Gygax himself suggested that DMs should assume the role of insane characters.</p><p>Well, that's no fun.</p><p>Insanity should have real, immediate, in-game mechanical costs that make dungeon-crawling more difficult. Having an insane character should be an irritating condition that you'll want to be cured of, much sooner rather than later. <i>In-game</i> insanity doesn't have to resemble <i>real world</i> insanity. Your character is going <i>mad</i> and simply isn't functioning the way they're supposed to. Which leads to...</p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Practical Insanity</span></p><p>1. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Amnesia</span></u>: You've forgotten just who exactly you are and now function at half of your current level as far as, to-hit, saves, spellcasting, and turning is concerned. Or -2 if you're 1st level.</p><div>2. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Kleptomania</span></u>: You now have the <i>pick-pocket</i> ability of a thief of half your level (even if you're already a thief, because now you're sloppy about it.) Any time the party takes a rest, you must save vs spells or attempt to steal a random item from a random party member. If in town, you must attempt a theft at least once per day against a randomly determined target. You will always deny your theft (but you might have one person that you secretly brag to about it.)</div><div><br />3. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Catatonia</span></u>: Melancholia to the extreme. When a stressful situation occurs, save vs spells or retreat into yourself. You won't do anything. You can be carried. Lasts 2d4 hours.</div><div><br />4. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Schizoid</span></u>: You think you belong to another class. Determine the class randomly (use the 4 archetypes, 1-fighter, 2-wizard, 3-thief, 4-cleric, reroll if you roll your class.) You fight and save as if you belong to that other class at half your current level. Wizards and clerics must save vs spells in order to cast a spell or turn undead, but only if someone else reminds them that they are capable of doing so.</div><div><br />5.<span style="font-size: medium;"> <u>Delusional</u></span>: You think you're better than you actually are and wonder why you don't experience better results. In combat, you attack with a +4 bonus but only do half damage. Targets save vs your spells at -4, but your spells only do half damage or only affect half the normal number of targets and only last half the normal duration. You only receive half of your XP earned.</div><div><br />6. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Suicidal</span></u>: If a trap is discovered, you must save vs spells or purposefully trigger it. If a chasm presents itself, you must save or throw yourself over -- hopefully your friends will stop you. You'll be the first into combat every time.</div><div><br />7. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Schizophrenia</span></u>: Like Schizoid, but the other class changes daily.</div><div><br />8. <span style="font-size: medium;"><u>Panic Disorder</u></span>: Your anxiety is extreme and your fear is all consuming. When a stressful situation occurs, save vs spells or retreat as fast and far away as you can get. Your anxiety builds with every successful save you make against this disorder causing any subsequent saves to suffer a cumulative -1 penalty until at last you're overcome by fear and flee. The DM should make you call split second answers to <i>right</i>, <i>left</i>, or <i>straight</i> as you race through the dungeon away from the danger and the other PCs until you are alone and lost. Only then might you get a grip.</div><div><br />9. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Melancholia</span></u>: Save vs spells every morning to see if you have the will to live. If not, all rolls suffer a -5 penalty. Save vs spells to see if you'll even try to help in any given situation.</div><div><br />10. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Obsessive/Compulsive</span></u>: You insist on doing things a certain way even if it doesn't make sense. A fighter will switch weapons every round or with every foe or will <i>insist</i> on using his least effective weapon, how else will he improve? A wizard will cast spells in a certain order (who cares if you need <i>fireball</i>, it can't be cast before <i>feather-fall</i>!) A cleric will always waste the first round of combat in prayer or spend 1d4 turns ritually cleansing their equipment after every battle -- if they don't do this they won't be able to cast any more spells that day. A thief takes twice as many rounds/turns to do his thing, etc.</div><div><br />11. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Manic-Depressive</span></u>: On any given day, you're either (1-3) Hysterical or a (4-6) Melancholiac.</div><div><br />12. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Hallucinatory</span></u>: In combat there is a 25% chance, after you've resolved an action, that you did so against a foe that isn't really there. </div><div><br />13. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Sado-Masochism</span></u>: In any given combat, you're either a (1-3) Sadist or a (4-6) Masochist.</div><div><br />14. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Homicidal Mania</span></u>: You will murder any NPC that you think has failed you, lied to you, betrayed you, or even looked at you funny (yes I know, this is every PC that has ever existed. God Damn murder-hobos!) Even other PCs need to look out.</div><div><br />15. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Hebephrenia</span></u>: Any time a stressful situation occurs, you must save vs spells or behave as if you are under a confusion spell for the duration of the stress. Someone may attempt to snap you out of it with physical contact (slap!) in which case, you get another save.</div><div><br />16. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Paranoia</span></u>: You don't trust anything, every door, staircase, chest, ladder, every <i>thing</i> is a potential trap. Your movement is cut in half. Actions take twice as long. e.g., picking locks, searching rooms. Every NPC is lying to you, anyone who thinks otherwise is a complete idiot. You must save vs spells to be healed, because, fuck-no you don't trust their God! You will only eat rations and use equipment that you brought along yourself. And all gold is cursed...</div><div><br />17. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Hysteria</span></u>: Any time a trap goes off, or a party member dies, or you run out of rations or light, or you're lost, etc., you have to save vs spells or FREAK THE FUCK OUT!... causing an immediate random encounter check at +1 probability (most likely now a 2 in 6 chance.) </div><div><br />18. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Sadist</span></u>: When you slay someone in combat you will keep on attacking that target until it becomes pulp (this includes casting spells on it.) Save vs spells to snap out of it.</div><div><br />19. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Masochist</span></u>: When in combat, you must save vs spells in order to attack, otherwise you just stand there and take it.</div><div><br /></div><div>20. <u><span style="font-size: medium;">Psychosomatic Disorder</span></u>: You keep insisting there is something wrong with you. <i>Don't you see these sores all over my arm?</i> And soon there will be. You must save vs spells or terrible sores start to appear on your body. They ooze puss and they bleed and you must save everyday to avoid this terrible malady from worsening. Every time you fail a save, more sores appear and you lose 1 hit point from your hit point maximum until you die or your insanity is cured. Once cured, your original hit point maximum will be restored minus 1 hit point per week afflicted.</div><div><br /></div><div>On top of the above afflictions, all insane characters should suffer nightmares. A save vs petrification is required each night to acquire any benefits of a full night's sleep.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>Only <i>heal</i>, <i>restoration</i>, <i>limited wish</i>, and <i>wish</i> spells can heal these afflictions. Natural healing is possible but requires <i>two successive</i> saves vs spells done on a monthly basis, one save at the end of each month.</div><div><br /></div><div>Or something like that.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p></p></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-79175839637793099922023-08-22T09:34:00.001-07:002023-08-28T20:00:32.435-07:00The Dream House Of The Nether Prince -- Hell Done Right!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CYVOZeFAhcInCMcegKBb_d8WrmSrjLmzo8qPbu-FmA0c3eftmMQ6_8fmfYmhTQchLkxdToSbjO5cGnbsGJA2mxr6vX2UJ7sbEYFTMKrln4IfFVOJYsH3v2unQCQZCmxs4vQ5JZWf9gPkEI-mzo0KPhkSMG7pglDx3ON-XBf9Vv4ruq-mdFDsq3phXnQD/s1980/Scan_20230822b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1980" data-original-width="1512" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CYVOZeFAhcInCMcegKBb_d8WrmSrjLmzo8qPbu-FmA0c3eftmMQ6_8fmfYmhTQchLkxdToSbjO5cGnbsGJA2mxr6vX2UJ7sbEYFTMKrln4IfFVOJYsH3v2unQCQZCmxs4vQ5JZWf9gPkEI-mzo0KPhkSMG7pglDx3ON-XBf9Vv4ruq-mdFDsq3phXnQD/w305-h400/Scan_20230822b.jpg" width="305" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Of course I had to draw the Big Guy (sorry Hunter, different Big Guy, this one takes his cut in souls.)</div><p><br /></p><p>Yes, Hell done right!</p><p>If you've ever entertained the notion of publishing a brutal dungeon based in Hell, don't bother, here it is...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnAd94YSnUF88nV1LMYTd7VO1-v9EG9yBs5Fma0LE31DpWwrNmojOKQ6n3rENene47BJMAjMDz0NqzgNFO5Vyh7jrHNoXZuAcbMCAH4NWaplZQih60NYWY47w4G79CxV4XAr4OHV1oP5uaRzBcr1qMtSrPy3GrhX_uZhG2BhYIkE-wpx0k3YPGmJb1EDoS/s4032/IMG-1333.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnAd94YSnUF88nV1LMYTd7VO1-v9EG9yBs5Fma0LE31DpWwrNmojOKQ6n3rENene47BJMAjMDz0NqzgNFO5Vyh7jrHNoXZuAcbMCAH4NWaplZQih60NYWY47w4G79CxV4XAr4OHV1oP5uaRzBcr1qMtSrPy3GrhX_uZhG2BhYIkE-wpx0k3YPGmJb1EDoS/s320/IMG-1333.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p>Though technically, this is the Abyss, but to mere mortals, what's the difference?</p><p>A rare module I can read without falling asleep.</p><p>Seriously, I can't read modules to save my life, rulebooks yes, modules no, mechanics yes, bland room descriptions no. There are many boring adventures out there, we all owe <a href="https://tenfootpole.org/ironspike/">Bryce</a>, <a href="http://beyondfomalhaut.blogspot.com/">Melan</a>, and <a href="https://princeofnothingblogs.wordpress.com/">Prince</a> a debt of gratitude for laboring through them.</p><p><i>The Dream House of the Nether Prince</i> is written by Anthony Huso, whose blog is <a href="https://www.thebluebard.com/">here</a>.</p><p>(This is not a proper review ((those have been done; a good one is <a href="http://terriblesorcery.blogspot.com/">here</a> and another good one is <a href="https://princeofnothingblogs.wordpress.com/2023/08/27/review-dream-house-of-the-nether-prince-add-1e-3pp-summit/">here</a>)) just my initial thoughts on something I find ridiculously refreshing in its darkness and complete and utter devotion to AD&D. It makes me want to drop everything else...) </p><p>In the preface, Huso lists the AD&D core canon, in order of importance (to him) as...</p><p>1. Monster Manual 2</p><p>2. Dungeon Masters Guide</p><p>3. Player's Handbook</p><p>4. Monster Manual</p><p>5. Fiend Folio</p><p>Aside from some monsters scattered throughout various modules, he calls everything else, interpretive dance. He's not wrong, really, if AD&D is the pinnacle for you. Though I think he's the first I've seen to put Monster Manuel 2 on top. I would replace Fiend Folio with Deities & Demigods.</p><p><i>Dream House</i> is designed for at least 6, 14th+ level characters. There is a culture of sorts here and a currency. Demons are explained, summing up every drop of reference to them in AD&D. Their ranks, how they're made, how they're unmade, their amulets, what they eat... oh yeah, Huso hits on a core truth in (actual reality) that HUNGER drives everything, all things consume other things, eat or be eaten. Those of you who see the universe as beautiful and harmonious... you are wrong. Demons want to eat you, and the fatter you are the better (they would love modern America, in more ways than one.) In fact, the very fabric of the Abyss itself is made of corpse matter, the bodies and souls of the damned are broken down and molded into new demons or the raw materials of such. Remember how Lovecraft spoke of the human mind's inability to correlate all of it's contents as being a thing of mercy? Huso has correlated all of AD&D's contents on demons... roll for insanity.</p><p>There is no hex crawl here, no rumors nor overland random encounters. You are of a high enough level that you're expected to simply <i>arrive</i> at the <i>Dream House</i>, a sort of, vacation home of Orcus called, <i>Caedis High</i>. Linger outside too long and the weather <i>will</i> kill you.</p><p>There are core AD&D references all throughout this book and every one of them includes a page number -- you <i>need</i> those books. E.g., The Fulivium (Black Soul Rain) weather condition threatens <i>mutation</i> and calls for a roll on the subtable on pg. 194 of the DMG, and I thought -- there are no mutation tables in the DMG. Oh, but this is a clever use of <i>Appendix D: Random Generation of Creatures From the Lower Planes</i>. There is also a d100 table in the back of <i>Dream House</i> for generating random undead, 100 entries from all over AD&Dland, the Core books, Modules, Dragon Magazine, White Dwarf, etc., a somewhat useless table for most, but this book knows its core audience.</p><p>As with all things Orcus, doom is the name of the game. You are but pawns in the machinations of an ancient unholy grudge match. There are actual battles to be fought here. I'm not sure I'd even attempt to run the finale. No, I think for myself, I would slice it down to -- that thing/person you need/want is somewhere in Hell. How bad do you want it? You've been warned! Nobody's gonna survive this place; nobody's meant to. I find it hard to imagine a party even getting far. Huso's players must have been immensely powerful in their own right, not <i>just</i> 14th level characters. At times, you'll be fighting through literal hordes of demons. There won't be much parlay and if the demons don't kill you, there are plenty of <i>save-or-fuck-you</i> situations that will. </p><p>There are optional mechanics in here (for the final confrontation) pulled from a book called <i>The Primal Order</i> by Peter Adkison, published in 1992. Huso praises it <a href="https://www.thebluebard.com/post/why-your-atheist-is-getting-pwnd">here</a>.</p><p>In the appendices there are new demons, new spells (<i>Become Legend</i> stands out), new magic items including some technology, and artifacts. All worth reading; equally as entertaining as the dungeon-crawl itself, if not more so, but that's the <i>rules</i> side of me kicking in.</p><p>And the art... by Valin Mattheis, stylized, a mixture of color and black & white, the closest comparison I can give is Scrap Princess. For all of this book's adherence to AD&D, its appearance (layout and art) does not. One critique I have is that stat blocks are literal blocks of text, lots of comas, not fun to read.</p><p>Many of the rooms are vast; not your standard little 20'x20' chambers. And with the <i>rule of the Abyss</i> that no vision exceeds torchlight (unless under the Abyssal sky) I wonder how this plays out at the table for those that use theater-of-the-mind. Hand-waving I suppose, lest the players hug all of the walls and rarely experience the center of a room. Yes, just set the mood as dark and give monsters an edge when it comes to ambush.</p><p>Properly run, this place is not for the squeamish. Glass-eyed corpses abound and they often whisper. Roll on a random table to see their crime, and then I suggest whispering something vile into the ear of the appropriate player. Creep them out. Did I mention that dead babies are a form of currency here? -- if that is not evil...</p><p><i>The Dream House of the Nether Prince</i>. I think I've said enough.<br /></p><p>As someone who has rarely run other people's stuff, I would run this.</p><p>No question.</p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-88241899636639597042023-08-09T14:49:00.001-07:002023-08-09T14:54:40.670-07:00The SHIFTERS Campaign<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO_njHX8tIk3j29CC-PJhxQ1i-w6zy-zLt_KShi8PomrUqlDEYP38t1_-kBKi0H39woDoY_E1pyrpy3W8qAYlwQA27J7VYoe-fQjHUUhneC-FzIN_WTLwClTXhJURia27pVW0j95fA4psVLXbm3Jcfo6BssK1x5fnufVw64UXQeWlvVu63Mq1NQULui4iL/s2338/Scan_20230809.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO_njHX8tIk3j29CC-PJhxQ1i-w6zy-zLt_KShi8PomrUqlDEYP38t1_-kBKi0H39woDoY_E1pyrpy3W8qAYlwQA27J7VYoe-fQjHUUhneC-FzIN_WTLwClTXhJURia27pVW0j95fA4psVLXbm3Jcfo6BssK1x5fnufVw64UXQeWlvVu63Mq1NQULui4iL/w291-h400/Scan_20230809.jpg" width="291" /></a></div>Circa 2006.<div><br /></div><div>A one on one campaign.</div><div><br /></div><div>Was supposed to be one on two, but you all know how that goes.</div><div><br /></div><div>Using my own rules for a gritty-as-fuck, realistic super-hero setting called SHIFTERS. The premise was a dipole reversal, during which a chaotic lightning storm covered the planet. Those in the vicinity of the multihued lighting, if they survived, were "shifted" into super-human status. This was street-level stuff, the strongest could maybe lift 20 tons.</div><div><br /></div><div>The system, of which I had three editions, was an amalgamation of Cyberpunk 2020, Mutants & Masterminds 2E, and Palladium's Heroes Unlimited. There were no hit points, but a damage track involving Stun/KO/Death checks and negative modifiers, what some refer to as a death spiral. All attacks were opposed rolls.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hunter, a Wolverine type detective, was the main character, with Crow, an all black teleporter showing up later.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was set locally, for us Detroit. It was bloody and gritty, involving missing persons, pimps, whores, and sex-trafficking. There was a trans-dimensional succubus brothel, a fundamentalist organization seeking to eliminate SHIFTERS called S.N.O. (The Society for Natural Order), evil SHIFTERS, ninjas, and later, an African Civil War. </div><div><br /></div><div>Part One: A missing girl who would never be found, but the search involved taking down sex-traffickers, pimps, drug-dealers, the usual scum of the earth type stuff, with an epic tangent involving a gunfight/melee with an agent of S.N.O. in a raggedy liquor store. Ultimately, a succubus brothel was linked but not responsible. Oh, and an epic showdown with ninjas!</div><div><br /></div><div>My campaign notes...<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbCd715a0abhHl52Lv0hJWibCX3B8MlzFo6H9II3PtdOtsZfJukWcmyYNdPO1m5N3lDZD4P5Ku7a6XPO9Q9kXFP5K_ZujqsxmqIq-2PMSK7VI7-IJzlwYEvf61ES5ahqhMeLrC8UH8fgriFRn-oOJSEQFNgbrZzMUBLIBhVILNLKWzMy-3jCewtsQdhdl/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(3).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbCd715a0abhHl52Lv0hJWibCX3B8MlzFo6H9II3PtdOtsZfJukWcmyYNdPO1m5N3lDZD4P5Ku7a6XPO9Q9kXFP5K_ZujqsxmqIq-2PMSK7VI7-IJzlwYEvf61ES5ahqhMeLrC8UH8fgriFRn-oOJSEQFNgbrZzMUBLIBhVILNLKWzMy-3jCewtsQdhdl/s320/Scan_20230809%20(3).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizm-jul2n3k4MDAx_m1q7ZpUU42mcXnqq0wOzaZFqMxKPbQQSCq8_qga-QoqrDJAKGgVgAP0YqdvPMHswzzNhGac3EMOAt-3OJZfqmakGLzIF8l6AlbOZbBxar_erK0BiSw2OT5Y4FSKfMHBvEJ3Bq8__XMCaSnn4r_TZ-_tOM5hZNiqbP6IrYHghjQ_VW/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(4).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizm-jul2n3k4MDAx_m1q7ZpUU42mcXnqq0wOzaZFqMxKPbQQSCq8_qga-QoqrDJAKGgVgAP0YqdvPMHswzzNhGac3EMOAt-3OJZfqmakGLzIF8l6AlbOZbBxar_erK0BiSw2OT5Y4FSKfMHBvEJ3Bq8__XMCaSnn4r_TZ-_tOM5hZNiqbP6IrYHghjQ_VW/s320/Scan_20230809%20(4).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0KR0HVJWagC8XPeZsSNrz6kpB6fLCHans6669yLlAgwGcKu8yZGiultnmRv0HdnKh0ex9BT3j84sYw3W2eVxQMqAzvBZrYwK0caAy83j_pQd5HCgJlBR_J3ncmQc_tPkFlcP-QxGup-TlUxv_o7LcOpO2EWBROObUP81fFDZFKqe3iONmwhRw4pnVJcSO/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(5).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0KR0HVJWagC8XPeZsSNrz6kpB6fLCHans6669yLlAgwGcKu8yZGiultnmRv0HdnKh0ex9BT3j84sYw3W2eVxQMqAzvBZrYwK0caAy83j_pQd5HCgJlBR_J3ncmQc_tPkFlcP-QxGup-TlUxv_o7LcOpO2EWBROObUP81fFDZFKqe3iONmwhRw4pnVJcSO/s320/Scan_20230809%20(5).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSftmk1fKasoQQOL0UiJfkyZM-XIJxVyyl6QJ4J9k0IP9IIMGNb5EKOy6foN73gJMbF-C1GxvkjYaUJA3EQWdesEfnZRZiusaYS5MUWEmPntTGmSGGhts4TwEL-GiYqh99uRWfINAfMoale0b70idJ6PAO9YPlopOXF2RLhEwM47XH7G8ThMNLmHr01wB/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(6).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNSftmk1fKasoQQOL0UiJfkyZM-XIJxVyyl6QJ4J9k0IP9IIMGNb5EKOy6foN73gJMbF-C1GxvkjYaUJA3EQWdesEfnZRZiusaYS5MUWEmPntTGmSGGhts4TwEL-GiYqh99uRWfINAfMoale0b70idJ6PAO9YPlopOXF2RLhEwM47XH7G8ThMNLmHr01wB/s320/Scan_20230809%20(6).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOB1AxY4qJEknIObvmVYkMLGlH5fApx5wKFhh6WnZyZ2goqspCowXEa3x8nY_lY6GWLyORSjbCAnt-LgKIN2lb9EvcvjcZyviElALITfxilzl47ppXpCyziAwRm6NR_zUgLSnLCuu79S6ndp-XvPZLMP3K4l7a1ROKe1D8ykdXHWcRJQZhHFlwApkIyB-t/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(7).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOB1AxY4qJEknIObvmVYkMLGlH5fApx5wKFhh6WnZyZ2goqspCowXEa3x8nY_lY6GWLyORSjbCAnt-LgKIN2lb9EvcvjcZyviElALITfxilzl47ppXpCyziAwRm6NR_zUgLSnLCuu79S6ndp-XvPZLMP3K4l7a1ROKe1D8ykdXHWcRJQZhHFlwApkIyB-t/s320/Scan_20230809%20(7).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN1oUVsamXxxHD9qgAHUAganUJn3ARkcW4rM6iI871rTfFWpPHcKBgCMtNQKs1eJ9DSbm9kuE6iyYPjB3fq6RyBWrRTvDjylk1N5qK56DzvxVUhkQ_l5n96Tf7MiAQl7hZu6FIGqAn1dskAYdlphs-CSbAjnLPWBR7U-9z7l5mDXhPzINfRCur6O1hRzIX/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(8).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN1oUVsamXxxHD9qgAHUAganUJn3ARkcW4rM6iI871rTfFWpPHcKBgCMtNQKs1eJ9DSbm9kuE6iyYPjB3fq6RyBWrRTvDjylk1N5qK56DzvxVUhkQ_l5n96Tf7MiAQl7hZu6FIGqAn1dskAYdlphs-CSbAjnLPWBR7U-9z7l5mDXhPzINfRCur6O1hRzIX/s320/Scan_20230809%20(8).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Part Two: Civil War in Monrovia, Liberia. Members of the press and civilians in need of rescue. The government reluctantly contracts the SHIFTERS to attempt an extraction, a potential act of war. Heavily inspired by the Sierra Leone Civil War and the movie Blackhawk Down.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Hence: Monrovia Down.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyRfC3rxQbkaI2WWWLIzYsZ8W7zvesTVLNUsuBEwe-iy4yIvykksO3KpXeYtn2Ta5ODb6xu6bXUi4AFWjbvm-ddfpgSUCA-rBYluck2HUa0Ma5vIJu_M9j4LvC5rMvJctxXaeCqwRrqaI7sMV4mvl3ilNsjhFtjF1J3kDeUGb-i4N8_So-D3QGb6017o2K/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(9).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyRfC3rxQbkaI2WWWLIzYsZ8W7zvesTVLNUsuBEwe-iy4yIvykksO3KpXeYtn2Ta5ODb6xu6bXUi4AFWjbvm-ddfpgSUCA-rBYluck2HUa0Ma5vIJu_M9j4LvC5rMvJctxXaeCqwRrqaI7sMV4mvl3ilNsjhFtjF1J3kDeUGb-i4N8_So-D3QGb6017o2K/s320/Scan_20230809%20(9).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72BO7bLpXAvtI2GZJVzsdN2d_nrkya7JFJcN2i7aUh7Ai9QD_R6PUrrtH9e2g31vJmayVPvGT7OmdFF8KJcdkPQ1y_wPGjO7FAAoQHD8ea_CNmoRxlFi05wIwfl7kZ2A1GgGuKs_MKAV5E5s-B_850TeoQxKlZrjd4H2Nb_4GVxe5quvvX96wxVJc7QR3/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(10).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72BO7bLpXAvtI2GZJVzsdN2d_nrkya7JFJcN2i7aUh7Ai9QD_R6PUrrtH9e2g31vJmayVPvGT7OmdFF8KJcdkPQ1y_wPGjO7FAAoQHD8ea_CNmoRxlFi05wIwfl7kZ2A1GgGuKs_MKAV5E5s-B_850TeoQxKlZrjd4H2Nb_4GVxe5quvvX96wxVJc7QR3/s320/Scan_20230809%20(10).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGo5C_Dzs2vgQAMm_dwxc9G1B2B8S0Iv60XHAK_HkBjdNS0GraDFRqs283WvR_fy6WK4y1Dyg2bssavmvfTG5sLFkhs09BUUg5ET7skhV8qFINCNvo3JzhgNUhLiK7TkZh8hw5uAOcgkIuOblwAoYNX8K5o0i4e7Xouqe8QFKUG3anfjSke1aAPH2PPVe/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(11).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGo5C_Dzs2vgQAMm_dwxc9G1B2B8S0Iv60XHAK_HkBjdNS0GraDFRqs283WvR_fy6WK4y1Dyg2bssavmvfTG5sLFkhs09BUUg5ET7skhV8qFINCNvo3JzhgNUhLiK7TkZh8hw5uAOcgkIuOblwAoYNX8K5o0i4e7Xouqe8QFKUG3anfjSke1aAPH2PPVe/s320/Scan_20230809%20(11).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieR4NdN0YI4ZoWijks_xmrAZ_kjZy-If7FVRRU5Vi9cmud-FnlXSvJRVFxyUmqG4zhe1JbOQTywfB7jE0Iny9nYKjdmhW8c8ZM_QEEHBURQIzIOoGJZS8YHcDanbVH0E-L1uji_L4Pg75hbXWQZBM6H_u2pcW1Nu4YfUcYvUN_0AVRgLUMGhVl3hdoQQvc/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(12).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieR4NdN0YI4ZoWijks_xmrAZ_kjZy-If7FVRRU5Vi9cmud-FnlXSvJRVFxyUmqG4zhe1JbOQTywfB7jE0Iny9nYKjdmhW8c8ZM_QEEHBURQIzIOoGJZS8YHcDanbVH0E-L1uji_L4Pg75hbXWQZBM6H_u2pcW1Nu4YfUcYvUN_0AVRgLUMGhVl3hdoQQvc/s320/Scan_20230809%20(12).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtsxtuVMzcXyMm7BvNUzJnOdqrorqWPEm64IiLRlWBelhguvIq5SxY-7M-G_Ri7hcP8oSi_MS4exmqNFV-Bz9A2wLqtQKeCTDEE5vDAqepxwy6o9Bq9Xy9CCDdq3jXTvE6COy7TKK_OWJxyRG8_2QrVuQCPMdq9gjEO36s2rs0IYMCIIOzjUR3RBzdMPO-/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(13).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtsxtuVMzcXyMm7BvNUzJnOdqrorqWPEm64IiLRlWBelhguvIq5SxY-7M-G_Ri7hcP8oSi_MS4exmqNFV-Bz9A2wLqtQKeCTDEE5vDAqepxwy6o9Bq9Xy9CCDdq3jXTvE6COy7TKK_OWJxyRG8_2QrVuQCPMdq9gjEO36s2rs0IYMCIIOzjUR3RBzdMPO-/s320/Scan_20230809%20(13).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cobra was killed by Hunter on a rainy rooftop after a brutal hour long fight in an abandoned factory district. Shot in the head. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrC-3OEmuy_EfvlmM9T_OE1oX6kCPdDg8kre3afsU5TbrhJTAkw1-AjwHv7MCDdvRIiu-VOXM014mQiEeDPf6NYa7Ik_lmsJ4w_0FRs6sWOQSJwxfmDIQXFa8joNOkTks24Qw1JAnotC0ixCewHi1eazsCa2jd7T9sFM_lfMINvQp9Jc2r5OR-NjPOWJSL/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(14).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrC-3OEmuy_EfvlmM9T_OE1oX6kCPdDg8kre3afsU5TbrhJTAkw1-AjwHv7MCDdvRIiu-VOXM014mQiEeDPf6NYa7Ik_lmsJ4w_0FRs6sWOQSJwxfmDIQXFa8joNOkTks24Qw1JAnotC0ixCewHi1eazsCa2jd7T9sFM_lfMINvQp9Jc2r5OR-NjPOWJSL/s320/Scan_20230809%20(14).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Haraka was killed in the final battle of Monrovia Down, being thrown out of an office building window several floors up.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1oUF0vu6WygE4F5zqVF2Bi1ttNbCjxW7eaoCpVSLX7PBxtL_jsIkeNwxMUem3thFvBEsOrcvjC7GOqcIr0pdqn97fY1b17yl8zeBrxbRnSgVSjuDdFHrKiIltEWH-iiwVC2SyS1lcMkDTbdu7nubvjz6iYjfL7ZYK1IihWwHaEfkXe1HwQVJ38TbOMMsy/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(15).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1oUF0vu6WygE4F5zqVF2Bi1ttNbCjxW7eaoCpVSLX7PBxtL_jsIkeNwxMUem3thFvBEsOrcvjC7GOqcIr0pdqn97fY1b17yl8zeBrxbRnSgVSjuDdFHrKiIltEWH-iiwVC2SyS1lcMkDTbdu7nubvjz6iYjfL7ZYK1IihWwHaEfkXe1HwQVJ38TbOMMsy/s320/Scan_20230809%20(15).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ruby assisted Hunter and Crow during Monrovia Down.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLl82gaasTKyq6psvum4KHvkSFLjggRE7maiaS9e6ludBbEMYCZnEyIYwKWq6yWosCwJf8eMvXNSe-2FcQ122LvwpHu7vrUUJ0LxPWglBB5v5lNN1JVepX4StEasELwnSDyjJpJVkzR7GsrQzBpTgZVjVse_WQyKDqoRzNeH5LtU4Tvwgm0C3L_gn0rpMY/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(16).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLl82gaasTKyq6psvum4KHvkSFLjggRE7maiaS9e6ludBbEMYCZnEyIYwKWq6yWosCwJf8eMvXNSe-2FcQ122LvwpHu7vrUUJ0LxPWglBB5v5lNN1JVepX4StEasELwnSDyjJpJVkzR7GsrQzBpTgZVjVse_WQyKDqoRzNeH5LtU4Tvwgm0C3L_gn0rpMY/s320/Scan_20230809%20(16).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Vertigo, A European mercenary, nearly ended the heroes, but was also killed in the office building battle.</div><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYfy9fa_eohyPHYedfx-BJLlvydwRkEJAd8ou8sdu7OSw3Rv5EWzLCGtWK_lRjO6H2rFKzYTQgJ4XN3ULaYSt5Q2R0yy0UB5pOv2Ci2Oti7AOeKIcqb-PH5QfbJ0eTojx-Y9j6bsoTLC9lou-1yCHS3CgrObrNoyJqWA9Ak31TR30wPbtgOvzUmYCa71B_/s2338/Scan_20230809%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2338" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYfy9fa_eohyPHYedfx-BJLlvydwRkEJAd8ou8sdu7OSw3Rv5EWzLCGtWK_lRjO6H2rFKzYTQgJ4XN3ULaYSt5Q2R0yy0UB5pOv2Ci2Oti7AOeKIcqb-PH5QfbJ0eTojx-Y9j6bsoTLC9lou-1yCHS3CgrObrNoyJqWA9Ak31TR30wPbtgOvzUmYCa71B_/s320/Scan_20230809%20(2).jpg" width="233" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">First page of 16 I drew for another story in the SHIFTERS universe.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfiKTQumNSluXNKcHr3pOeOpRtbD0SfdIA6zprQ1a4XWLo5MCZIQ7M7SSfucumqrkuocxY_kHBMCE0LwGSJrbc1H_uDmt26qXdlYAuiSlpq_e8zW7wgySinMh4z8MeteNOV_ekfTubImWYtbNQu4ymNWNjrhZBDiohrUjjoInMozKPg9qbJHFzQIrhMpE/s4032/IMG-1322.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfiKTQumNSluXNKcHr3pOeOpRtbD0SfdIA6zprQ1a4XWLo5MCZIQ7M7SSfucumqrkuocxY_kHBMCE0LwGSJrbc1H_uDmt26qXdlYAuiSlpq_e8zW7wgySinMh4z8MeteNOV_ekfTubImWYtbNQu4ymNWNjrhZBDiohrUjjoInMozKPg9qbJHFzQIrhMpE/s320/IMG-1322.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The SHIFTERS binder.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4LsKkDCfVD4Eg4ZulRIZqagbAlFn_rbbh3tgid-3CYY2FJzm497sGTazbH3BCQoJtXJufxSuA7sQxc2OOO04cDM0Xhd6RAYcLM-8IrOa6j9DpXQCKZTIP6TP5g2PrtLvQd7LZeThzTyiXaifVeWk-cxbCVCgOMl15SQpKAth2r1Iig0BiRAHmLrDPt90c/s4032/IMG-1323.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4LsKkDCfVD4Eg4ZulRIZqagbAlFn_rbbh3tgid-3CYY2FJzm497sGTazbH3BCQoJtXJufxSuA7sQxc2OOO04cDM0Xhd6RAYcLM-8IrOa6j9DpXQCKZTIP6TP5g2PrtLvQd7LZeThzTyiXaifVeWk-cxbCVCgOMl15SQpKAth2r1Iig0BiRAHmLrDPt90c/s320/IMG-1323.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Version 3 of the rules, not the rules used in the above adventures. 150 hand-written pages.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5trkowNuijOGmFUTW0JRHUaHHE-Uh5X6jh0OcK-G_ygy4KGvW17UAmHE1EweZMGyYx1_TYIUZPoPLooolXSg-FkiUvXXvC0NZ5HnYH2AmTMdgZ05R_dk1gX8aAJpoHLp-n0mgWRAXEpR2Tewmpab5_p8_asRL35UjXwoD5o2PnB1YRxmUG0eXCCltU4iL/s4032/IMG-1324.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5trkowNuijOGmFUTW0JRHUaHHE-Uh5X6jh0OcK-G_ygy4KGvW17UAmHE1EweZMGyYx1_TYIUZPoPLooolXSg-FkiUvXXvC0NZ5HnYH2AmTMdgZ05R_dk1gX8aAJpoHLp-n0mgWRAXEpR2Tewmpab5_p8_asRL35UjXwoD5o2PnB1YRxmUG0eXCCltU4iL/s320/IMG-1324.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Including a section for Fantasy.</div><p>Who knows, maybe I'll organize, rewrite and publish someday.</p><p>Don't hold your breath.</p><p> </p></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-9992469400970968052023-06-18T06:59:00.000-07:002023-06-18T06:59:29.363-07:00Between Two Cairns Reviews: DATE OF EXPIRATION<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwuzBpeCMb8skGd1MDWOja6tC1D17SXvcc10SXfcF8zJ3CLY50neUTfPpN0g9LlIiyDqv388mV5hd5O62GigtE1aJ5ZNYVKSjOfG4FGAXq5Jy1FuxZhgGoug-CwhiG1Rglv3vR48bJeJd3Gg-dZUEDtOfCWuYF7MAVNT4WU1tGgg_SwPwky1Q6QnUI_g/s1650/DateExpCover2pagefront.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1650" data-original-width="1275" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwuzBpeCMb8skGd1MDWOja6tC1D17SXvcc10SXfcF8zJ3CLY50neUTfPpN0g9LlIiyDqv388mV5hd5O62GigtE1aJ5ZNYVKSjOfG4FGAXq5Jy1FuxZhgGoug-CwhiG1Rglv3vR48bJeJd3Gg-dZUEDtOfCWuYF7MAVNT4WU1tGgg_SwPwky1Q6QnUI_g/w309-h400/DateExpCover2pagefront.jpg" width="309" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.buzzsprout.com/2042709/13010189-date-of-expiration"><span style="color: #04ff00; font-size: x-large;">Between Two Cairns: DATE OF EXPIRATION</span></a></div><p><br /></p><p>A thoroughly in depth, entertaining, and glowing review of DATE OF EXPIRATION by Yochai Gal and Brad Kerr of <b>Between Two Cairns</b>.</p><p>Yes, the arrow on page 89 points inside the structure, a valid critique for sure.</p><p>And I absolutely LOVE the art of Bill Sienkiewicz -- right on target here!</p><p>Thank you guys!</p><p><br /></p><p> </p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-42343996892438633692023-06-14T13:39:00.001-07:002023-06-14T13:39:46.920-07:00Field Trip: John K. King Books Detroit<p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidUskaKVoS0YRIODC6SIw6Rc8yNgZGRTIg_rcwau69mV8VQoyB3XHiSlQBpvLzO7VddcrlU8GpBOEAcK2y8t1ohpGStwt3kWg3cKE6VuF_im4RJz5fxo-2lIH8tqvjfzeMn3Jngq-l3eBRaksv6GHDLzXod223CvXO6XgN6FTfG1-hz5LBrXwa5XouHg/s4032/IMG-1297.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidUskaKVoS0YRIODC6SIw6Rc8yNgZGRTIg_rcwau69mV8VQoyB3XHiSlQBpvLzO7VddcrlU8GpBOEAcK2y8t1ohpGStwt3kWg3cKE6VuF_im4RJz5fxo-2lIH8tqvjfzeMn3Jngq-l3eBRaksv6GHDLzXod223CvXO6XgN6FTfG1-hz5LBrXwa5XouHg/s320/IMG-1297.jpg" width="240" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One of the largest used book stores in the world lies about 20 minutes south of me in downtown Detroit, with a much smaller satellite about 20 minutes northwest of this one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">John K. King Books, here is the website: <a href="https://www.johnkingbooksdetroit.com/">https://www.johnkingbooksdetroit.com/</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRCZhV0Un50gfS-4pcXUnTa1viQrLUOT6HxkYvdTIAIRoEM0QZfYhqb_m5YKgFH9LjJJmCZwntFjLZxov6D8MDfOaovy1h7F0jHT4jrfTI2D-ZqF_-F4aiIHbopEu_Rc-3-UVs3aCD_bcdB3cfXWpctolcgxsVK7KzHgfbPkavgdfO3m-rCKO7LgWMYA/s4032/IMG-1298.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRCZhV0Un50gfS-4pcXUnTa1viQrLUOT6HxkYvdTIAIRoEM0QZfYhqb_m5YKgFH9LjJJmCZwntFjLZxov6D8MDfOaovy1h7F0jHT4jrfTI2D-ZqF_-F4aiIHbopEu_Rc-3-UVs3aCD_bcdB3cfXWpctolcgxsVK7KzHgfbPkavgdfO3m-rCKO7LgWMYA/s320/IMG-1298.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>View from the parking lot.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1KlDfgz7kCYh2ThXO6av_R9N7syf4z4Gg3zDNIBjZyVAwkWa1LiG4I0FJ6Mt42MYhjf-BfTw2kMcts-NKkKDvQ7z0yV-R5sBkgumr0KT6LpPjnCGOfBs-oIETQKMv1KkPZUQkDKwj_V9wouF7O0AfZ4U57Hy2zZaO8rYNn5RVMKokmTop5YzZ4QnKw/s4032/IMG-1299.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1KlDfgz7kCYh2ThXO6av_R9N7syf4z4Gg3zDNIBjZyVAwkWa1LiG4I0FJ6Mt42MYhjf-BfTw2kMcts-NKkKDvQ7z0yV-R5sBkgumr0KT6LpPjnCGOfBs-oIETQKMv1KkPZUQkDKwj_V9wouF7O0AfZ4U57Hy2zZaO8rYNn5RVMKokmTop5YzZ4QnKw/s320/IMG-1299.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>Just outside the front door.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMxAMsXJSr-E2QmSU-S5fZw1CumQJdqJPYhM-JHzTVek_XG-vsIE-GMJFxkcNSOsYqZdzylbERfMQZ5ueENNFtCYO7a6VJbT2CAl61uPff7diZOgkZvfKA3WwgN4mBaxRFmww0uDR5awhflZU2rryP9WNV4CgWdGGr1O1FfNumnKjZRSF8sCpIDK3OQ/s4032/IMG-1307.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMxAMsXJSr-E2QmSU-S5fZw1CumQJdqJPYhM-JHzTVek_XG-vsIE-GMJFxkcNSOsYqZdzylbERfMQZ5ueENNFtCYO7a6VJbT2CAl61uPff7diZOgkZvfKA3WwgN4mBaxRFmww0uDR5awhflZU2rryP9WNV4CgWdGGr1O1FfNumnKjZRSF8sCpIDK3OQ/s320/IMG-1307.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Burroughs section. More Tarzan books than you'll ever see in the same place. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcEO78q_LvZuPGTogjB3jztGHwbQWsy_NwL5bOppiM4RO5UTqav2MEM2CuIyWDeaQLV7c8by09JmcwtYIcpE4vtidrbt8_x61Cmfp_-Toog8lqlejgJCwm8VxjMuJjFKrMvnP7KV4LwzLVRZyC5SueO1UJEB9Qo5YzqyXBT-JoPKK0M48nkn6GkyXp6Q/s4032/IMG-1308.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcEO78q_LvZuPGTogjB3jztGHwbQWsy_NwL5bOppiM4RO5UTqav2MEM2CuIyWDeaQLV7c8by09JmcwtYIcpE4vtidrbt8_x61Cmfp_-Toog8lqlejgJCwm8VxjMuJjFKrMvnP7KV4LwzLVRZyC5SueO1UJEB9Qo5YzqyXBT-JoPKK0M48nkn6GkyXp6Q/s320/IMG-1308.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh01aL-C0sRmplAZM3OK47B_QWDSHyGpOOus1Clbg3W6L7caEMiq7EvWVtwMdER9Wl0RuulIac3cgOfcQKzSlYBmREi9aqBEc6EcOIY4HVYf5jqJ0KA3gzB4aPrU2qvAkYVZHU-Nu2Sut0eRykqG8d3jh6NK6lSaMGG00xoR--p4lAkvYUWpDRNZBPbVA/s4032/IMG-1306.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh01aL-C0sRmplAZM3OK47B_QWDSHyGpOOus1Clbg3W6L7caEMiq7EvWVtwMdER9Wl0RuulIac3cgOfcQKzSlYBmREi9aqBEc6EcOIY4HVYf5jqJ0KA3gzB4aPrU2qvAkYVZHU-Nu2Sut0eRykqG8d3jh6NK6lSaMGG00xoR--p4lAkvYUWpDRNZBPbVA/s320/IMG-1306.jpg" width="240" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Most endcaps look like this.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVY5toSZ-hgT7gkbl-y19b8tYIgdyiO-FyiLOrQsoNQdKAE59vF5GIXZRCmak_0RqBvaqmcizFlGvCofBjuVnM1pPSAwoNRcW4se53mOUgQcl2GY1J0MXizv1qOcw2o-0YdGmJ4hhmvTCM-qtqG_EpC6N0LgtZbtkIvj5PQMGRL47Qicudsh5PCy-gfQ/s320/IMG-1304.jpg" width="240" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">One of the Fantasy aisles. Some of these shelves have books behind books. The dust is thick.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ_wk3gR3-ywyfEDiEsovYbqPojFhbpgI_OLf70imwfdMUr7tWy7-Pc1DZ-U_rsRFVXfvHAqGZlBnPSsiBvaZI366GcTmFyUyGoYfgXsOAx9Y-JhzM_5ah3I15TOQ6WMw8DC8D-z_yHWE2V_kl62aoo6SSIab9XYzAHeNLdpTUGgvuvK4F5JNdXqazRA/s4032/IMG-1305.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ_wk3gR3-ywyfEDiEsovYbqPojFhbpgI_OLf70imwfdMUr7tWy7-Pc1DZ-U_rsRFVXfvHAqGZlBnPSsiBvaZI366GcTmFyUyGoYfgXsOAx9Y-JhzM_5ah3I15TOQ6WMw8DC8D-z_yHWE2V_kl62aoo6SSIab9XYzAHeNLdpTUGgvuvK4F5JNdXqazRA/s320/IMG-1305.jpg" width="240" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">There was a glass case on the other side, but I saw no games.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhICNlAEHN4Jat4mM1-Z0Nuic2ujjEV-CbswT5Yl5f55q02oZcevlsTB7LP8Sl6AXA6kpupFU8FfZJlWxnqyOf-bbzHwJHgq_01k7fY7nwdX7ocxcV-ipE9_-Hxs-cJHKEXaUQdlzJ0ltQgKiKKTDugBJOtsUaDqdUu5zS5OMxZEJliFHB0ErpjTOQ89g/s4032/IMG-1303.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhICNlAEHN4Jat4mM1-Z0Nuic2ujjEV-CbswT5Yl5f55q02oZcevlsTB7LP8Sl6AXA6kpupFU8FfZJlWxnqyOf-bbzHwJHgq_01k7fY7nwdX7ocxcV-ipE9_-Hxs-cJHKEXaUQdlzJ0ltQgKiKKTDugBJOtsUaDqdUu5zS5OMxZEJliFHB0ErpjTOQ89g/s320/IMG-1303.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Just to give you an idea of the scope, one of the perimeter aisles on the third floor. You receive a map of the layout upon entry.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOyz8LVs2ZyI7AB1g3YO5n6mkNcnQtcaSc18OU6qtNQ_nNvxk8tO0BLLdD9zAUgxN7pM-_GyhS7Wk4AGlParjcmDpgEb1xOm_JtdFk997vA1AnNxvPTA4rqmwhoMUn9uRol5tUzOBIB6UXAaRcF2NdsWd3j0uho9GfDrMQJbH1MnTx3BXh6jmp5c1M6g/s4032/IMG-1302.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOyz8LVs2ZyI7AB1g3YO5n6mkNcnQtcaSc18OU6qtNQ_nNvxk8tO0BLLdD9zAUgxN7pM-_GyhS7Wk4AGlParjcmDpgEb1xOm_JtdFk997vA1AnNxvPTA4rqmwhoMUn9uRol5tUzOBIB6UXAaRcF2NdsWd3j0uho9GfDrMQJbH1MnTx3BXh6jmp5c1M6g/s320/IMG-1302.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Found no Tolkien here nor there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHZdDuylCX_EEpRjMq4n6PG86uAsARlSP98HBIaifAKZ-dl0By3gKSzvvEjpEwrUxN6yhZ4G_UXxoph0U4HIwK2a7sMOS1A1MooQUKIWhX1pbQ3uRjBGTLrFGEktDW-X87fXr1x4W__mHTTavPUCKAPebWV-TBLuAB__fyJZHILw5NEqD2KtDo0JrdtQ/s4032/IMG-1301.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHZdDuylCX_EEpRjMq4n6PG86uAsARlSP98HBIaifAKZ-dl0By3gKSzvvEjpEwrUxN6yhZ4G_UXxoph0U4HIwK2a7sMOS1A1MooQUKIWhX1pbQ3uRjBGTLrFGEktDW-X87fXr1x4W__mHTTavPUCKAPebWV-TBLuAB__fyJZHILw5NEqD2KtDo0JrdtQ/s320/IMG-1301.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Tons of old DAW books scattered throughout.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEHAqD9_2XQmbx5H_5xMyeAiz1WTLy7HrQlIAie2s-LmGA__enCADadLarOGJ4hbbVdHNYEsSj5sTujZ-vmu8yBLk-_9PQSLRTPnr6dfII_V3W8Kf9DQ1V37QV7XXZ6CODze4UgArZjfYqU3dRdR0VvI0Dl0BdImft-aWk-Y8i7bYleFVF1ZgIeN-ZA/s4032/IMG-1309.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEHAqD9_2XQmbx5H_5xMyeAiz1WTLy7HrQlIAie2s-LmGA__enCADadLarOGJ4hbbVdHNYEsSj5sTujZ-vmu8yBLk-_9PQSLRTPnr6dfII_V3W8Kf9DQ1V37QV7XXZ6CODze4UgArZjfYqU3dRdR0VvI0Dl0BdImft-aWk-Y8i7bYleFVF1ZgIeN-ZA/s320/IMG-1309.jpg" width="240" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Glass case stuffed with books. Is that a copy of the Necronomicon? The Book of Skelos?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdVDzp4VjZLHmTgNLceP8BBJlK4V29TX7LjJTM9Ef8vmz-8I-j-ToCXhXa9ITBjE4oLvNpscFLeVsQXGYKvswE41VlNZku5dPKa9GXrE-3zuCMaNXQA5hg4pmCgvMLymIDiPzjzjigq3U6gKajxiwDpCidTPhpIw8Muft-_XadYmw_E5hwPbd5WDajzA/s4032/IMG-1300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdVDzp4VjZLHmTgNLceP8BBJlK4V29TX7LjJTM9Ef8vmz-8I-j-ToCXhXa9ITBjE4oLvNpscFLeVsQXGYKvswE41VlNZku5dPKa9GXrE-3zuCMaNXQA5hg4pmCgvMLymIDiPzjzjigq3U6gKajxiwDpCidTPhpIw8Muft-_XadYmw_E5hwPbd5WDajzA/s4032/IMG-1300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdVDzp4VjZLHmTgNLceP8BBJlK4V29TX7LjJTM9Ef8vmz-8I-j-ToCXhXa9ITBjE4oLvNpscFLeVsQXGYKvswE41VlNZku5dPKa9GXrE-3zuCMaNXQA5hg4pmCgvMLymIDiPzjzjigq3U6gKajxiwDpCidTPhpIw8Muft-_XadYmw_E5hwPbd5WDajzA/s320/IMG-1300.jpg" width="240" /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Even the stairs have books.</div><br />This was just a scouting mission; I bought nothing. Was kind of hoping to stumble into some Appendix N classics or some Clark Ashton Smith material. They could have been there. Your Holy Grail could be in there and you would never know.<p></p><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-79217835874824423202023-05-31T10:12:00.000-07:002023-05-31T10:12:34.435-07:00Three Hearts And Three Lions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07W_g5CSSynKlVYu6b7WGTciUEguncQ3fBXmLP-tuXPKjfwq3aeT1AVtbbXZFharMrtBJARRB9mOwMyaDRt9vVj5sb1YEUNjKzSAEXgftcSmYqvMK1yODIrBeph8NDd3BLUOPLIGwBvIzKNWT2_pShnSycEQjdT_X--gUZKhWdiUQlEwq5Iv1KPgXIA/s1560/Scan_20230531b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1560" data-original-width="1232" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07W_g5CSSynKlVYu6b7WGTciUEguncQ3fBXmLP-tuXPKjfwq3aeT1AVtbbXZFharMrtBJARRB9mOwMyaDRt9vVj5sb1YEUNjKzSAEXgftcSmYqvMK1yODIrBeph8NDd3BLUOPLIGwBvIzKNWT2_pShnSycEQjdT_X--gUZKhWdiUQlEwq5Iv1KPgXIA/w316-h400/Scan_20230531b.jpg" width="316" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>One of the inspirations for D&D as listed in Appendix N.</p><p>Poul Anderson, <i>Three Hearts and Three Lions</i>,<i> </i>1953/1961.</p><p>You have:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li> a paladin and his loyal and fierce warhorse</li><li> a shady witch</li><li> a dwarf (probably a ranger)</li><li> the exact swanmay from monster manual II</li><li> the land of Faery</li><li> devious and seductive elves</li><li> Law vs. Chaos</li><li> a fire-breathing red dragon</li><li> an ogre/giant and it's cursed purse of gold</li><li> Morgan le Fey</li><li> a werewolf</li><li> lay on hands is mentioned</li><li> a magician and his invisible servant</li><li> a Saracen knight</li><li> a beautiful but treacherous nixie, monster manual accurate</li><li> druids mentioned.</li><li> cannibal barbarians </li><li> flint and steel and the need of a torch-bearer</li><li> a roughly 10x10 passage at the back of a cave</li><li> a mini dungeon crawl</li><li> the exact troll from the monster manual</li><li> the wild hunt</li><li> and a sword of destiny.</li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiBiu1fZhos7Lt7vbCjwTbwQTv5eDG-AZ0_Zginun-JmVsHuOAxVCVnOzPPr0p7cXUdxdOuD_fcBLK1GjyHUoog8Wg39LEc8FGkxxcxhPGRRGuIn5TWulsf6AB59rM1u2tIZ7SdaHdOlCB5SAyoqkGmeC4FKVsb8zxgS8tVhgiHCdg--3cbGpMzHidEw/s540/21315340._SY540_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="334" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiBiu1fZhos7Lt7vbCjwTbwQTv5eDG-AZ0_Zginun-JmVsHuOAxVCVnOzPPr0p7cXUdxdOuD_fcBLK1GjyHUoog8Wg39LEc8FGkxxcxhPGRRGuIn5TWulsf6AB59rM1u2tIZ7SdaHdOlCB5SAyoqkGmeC4FKVsb8zxgS8tVhgiHCdg--3cbGpMzHidEw/s320/21315340._SY540_.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Great cover! There shouldn't be any plate mail though and the dwarf should have white hair.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhChGxmd-P5OIEDOm_JGiYfRERvRXM9t-o-dRQkObT-q35S6ofOur0xflMuTalHDhaDdiGdADZ7SsEulyY8XQWgG1P4jx9NKxficDnaMK8eDllUIkMYqxeuoJN2X_S3bMjKVNH1ErUxCLzZAImNPDMRIThHwwu8wxg8VU0CtOe2siHgAzBrQyXsTWfAyA/s3264/img_2076.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhChGxmd-P5OIEDOm_JGiYfRERvRXM9t-o-dRQkObT-q35S6ofOur0xflMuTalHDhaDdiGdADZ7SsEulyY8XQWgG1P4jx9NKxficDnaMK8eDllUIkMYqxeuoJN2X_S3bMjKVNH1ErUxCLzZAImNPDMRIThHwwu8wxg8VU0CtOe2siHgAzBrQyXsTWfAyA/s320/img_2076.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Unfortunately, this cover is much more accurate.</div><p></p><p><br /></p><p>Cons:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>I find, Holger, unlikeable. Whines to himself too much. Can't stand protagonists that feel sorry for themselves, even a little.</li><li>Didn't like the real world connection and Holger's scientific solutions to problems. Cursed gold coins are radioactive. Defeats a dragon by throwing water in its mouth. Would have preferred this story if it was simply about a paladin with amnesia, from wound or spell.</li><li>Morgan le Fey and the swanmay arguing over Holger like junior high brats nearly killed my desire to keep reading. This scene was downright stupid. I expect better from Morgan le fey.</li><li>Not really a con, but the Saracen Knight seemed pointless, or incomplete, maybe I missed something. Strictly to make Holger jealous of the swanmay?</li></ul><div>Pros:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Plenty of darkness and adult themes despite some silliness, even the old hag at the beginning wants the hero. Werewolves eat babies. There's human sacrifice. Combat is surprisingly brutal compared to the tone of the book. Action scenes were good.</li><li>The nixie, troll, and swanmay are direct verbatim inspirations for their D&D counterparts. The troll fight was fierce and followed a mini dungeon-crawl. The nixie scene was awesome (except for the magnesium dagger, conveniently acquired earlier.) The swanmay, while flying, would change to human form and fall, then change back to swan just in time for the thrill of it, reminding me of a trapeze artist -- very creative and insightful of the author. </li><li>The werewolf scene stands out, almost too much, as if it belongs in another book, but good none-the-less. Paladin almost becomes Inquisitor here.</li><li>No wasted space, like all older fantasy, gets right to it, unlike the thousand page epics that sprang up in the late 80s/90s that were mostly hot air.</li></ul></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p>I finally read <i>Three Hearts and Three Lions</i> because I've been reading Brian N. Young's, <i>Codex Celtarum</i>, for Castles & Crusades where Poul Anderson is briefly mentioned and I figured it was high time... BTW, The <i>Codex Celtarum</i> is probably the best D&D source on Faery out there. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmhwJH6Z9AabRcOv0x9zTcUH15kV1OIKr_A6PNRz3gSvDe_APAUHKqJs-pq6iJmNQBGxzJpK0-QvPeeAUNeZ5DUsq4sxwVqRmqyFuA8rqJ87H4de4py60gdwlPyDUel3gsxWJDII14bkSdvs6jeVSddp9qY5PpdO7YoCGzu5cIWIAdEBdN3beuiMZqg/s500/CodexCeltarum.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="398" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmhwJH6Z9AabRcOv0x9zTcUH15kV1OIKr_A6PNRz3gSvDe_APAUHKqJs-pq6iJmNQBGxzJpK0-QvPeeAUNeZ5DUsq4sxwVqRmqyFuA8rqJ87H4de4py60gdwlPyDUel3gsxWJDII14bkSdvs6jeVSddp9qY5PpdO7YoCGzu5cIWIAdEBdN3beuiMZqg/s320/CodexCeltarum.jpg" width="255" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-38986268627602883962023-04-26T21:31:00.000-07:002023-04-26T21:31:29.811-07:00THE SOULFORGE<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrfDa81Ygp35Y0o05WdJDiQMOE2F2xJNQepUiJby5NyHrjpvZmlas_klSii88NrUgkkDtAGfSal6HA2a28gQ4h_cztm66iByVv7xXqhZjtVWROGhUhUCZyNkR-TxT9_ZfZXdUDAfh-XQrRktWBQK7TvSx8ePwQN922TA4HnAxd-lID-hwMfVrfVxRr7w/s944/Scan_20230426bcd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="752" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrfDa81Ygp35Y0o05WdJDiQMOE2F2xJNQepUiJby5NyHrjpvZmlas_klSii88NrUgkkDtAGfSal6HA2a28gQ4h_cztm66iByVv7xXqhZjtVWROGhUhUCZyNkR-TxT9_ZfZXdUDAfh-XQrRktWBQK7TvSx8ePwQN922TA4HnAxd-lID-hwMfVrfVxRr7w/w319-h400/Scan_20230426bcd.jpg" width="319" /></a></div><p>Wherein I chronicle my doomed attempts as Raistlin Majere in his Test at the Wayreth Tower of High Sorcery...</p><p>Raistlin Majere:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Hit Points: 9</li><li>Reasoning: 4</li><li>Agility: 3</li><li>Presence: 2</li><li>XP: 6 (can be spent to improve rolls, but will be judged by how many remain)</li></ul><div>1st Level Spells Available: (specific components must be collected to cast most spells)</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Burning Hands</li><li>Charm Person</li><li>Hold Portal</li><li>Push</li><li>Comprehend Languages</li><li>Magic Missile</li><li>Sleep</li></ul><div>2md Level Spells Available:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Audible Glamor</li><li>Invisibility</li><li>Mirror Image</li><li>Detect Invisibility</li><li>Darkenss 15'</li><li>ESP</li><li>Web</li></ul></div></div><p></p><p>This is from THE SOULFORGE, choose your own adventure style AD&D book by Terry Phillips. Be warned, I'm recording decision by decision and roll by roll. Spoilers will follow.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimOm9oKlYrsXKF2DAaUdPN34TGyknlZtTnLdRKMZsF87wn6ULiUi8Hy2Xgxki4DzUObUTBNqisoC8PRQ3BTCyhz9isEtZw-h2z-2Ogk3ZMaNDCiWgFXaWifitLQuSgwj5vLDNeaLEj2DXU-HtMeAurJoHpv4MALe4DgD0Lp6fXP8tt0qoDz6_F2guM_w/s4032/IMG-1284.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimOm9oKlYrsXKF2DAaUdPN34TGyknlZtTnLdRKMZsF87wn6ULiUi8Hy2Xgxki4DzUObUTBNqisoC8PRQ3BTCyhz9isEtZw-h2z-2Ogk3ZMaNDCiWgFXaWifitLQuSgwj5vLDNeaLEj2DXU-HtMeAurJoHpv4MALe4DgD0Lp6fXP8tt0qoDz6_F2guM_w/w300-h400/IMG-1284.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p></p><p>First decision after traveling for a month through the Kharolis Mountains with my twin brother, Caramon as an ominous forest appears out of nowhere, I know what lies ahead, he does not, I choose partial honesty as opposed to foolery.</p><p>He doesn't like the truth, doesn't like the danger he senses and I'm forced to make a Presence Test (roll d6 and add it to my score to beat a number (this test is 7) I roll a total of 5...</p><p>He refuses to let me enter the haunted woods. I hop on my horse and make an Agility Test. I succeed, which means I'm about to cast a spell... I choose <i>Charm Person</i> because certain spells require components that I have not collected. There's no roll here, but the story dictates that Caramon tackles me before I get the spell off. His feelings are hurt and he ties me to my horse and takes me home, my dreams of high sorcery are over! That quick.</p><p>Take Two... (wherein I pretend my initial Presence Test succeeded...)</p><p>Caramon reluctantly agrees to enter the woods and says I need his protection, something I resent, but then I start to feel guilty as I begin to worry for <i>his</i> safety. And so, I'm called upon to make another, easier, Presence Test, which I succeed.</p><p>We proceed into Wayreth, but the woods are terrifying and oppressive, we are both spooked as the foliage seems unpassable and the things that lurk in the shadows... I have to make a Reasoning Test to resist fleeing in fear. Here, the book hints that I might wish to spend XP to help the roll. I don't, but succeed anyway, saying to my twin that it's all part of the protection spell that keeps the forest hidden, we'll be fine, after all, we were invited. And then... the forest parts and a massive ogre-dog appears and launches itself at me for an attack. I need to pass a 7 Agility Test and decide to spend 2 XP to help my roll, which it does, I succeed by 1!</p><p>XP: now 4.</p><p>We jump from our horses using them for cover from the beast. Caramon dances before it, blade in hand while I cast a spell... Burning Hands and Magic Missile are my only real options as both do not require components (I don't know why I set off on this journey without spell components, perhaps I used them up on the way?) I choose Burning Hands which will bring me dangerously close to the beast. It yelps in pain and swipes at me with it claws sending me flying to the ground.</p><p>HP: now 7.</p><p>Caramon then takes this opportunity to jump on the beast and send his blade straight through it's skull into the ground. Then, another path opens up in the woods with ice cold voices taunting us that our flesh will be ripped from our bones. Do we retreat? I say no... Caramon reluctantly follows. The woods grow colder and spookier. Caramon mutters something about not trusting mages. Does he trust me? Our horses are spooked. I fail an Agility Test and I'm thrown to the ground.</p><p>HP: now 6.</p><p>An ethereal red-robed figure appears and I ask if he is to guide us to the tower. Caramon barks an insult and the figure insults us back. Caramon draws his sword and here comes another Presence Test. I'm spending 2 XP and it helps. My twin calms down a bit.</p><p>XP: now 2.</p><p>This spectral minion approaches, hand aglow in spell-craft and I feel fear, but Caramon attempts to intercept and I don't let him. I instruct Caramon to stand aside as fear consumes me. I must make a Reasoning Test of 9, which isn't even doable. I turn and flee and trip over a root. Then I find myself frantic and weeping at my failure. The figure leaves, but not before giving my twin a message for me...</p><p>I am not worthy to <i>even</i> take the Test, perhaps I can return one day, but for now I fail, deemed a witless dunce and a coward. I'm devoured by misery as my dreams of high sorcery have (once again) come to an end.</p><p>As has my desire to keep reading. </p><p>And so Raistlin's Test will continue as vague a mystery to me as it was in the original novels. I know a book was ultimately written, but I have no interest in Dragonlance beyond the original 3 (or 6 if I'm feeling generous.)</p><p>Some things are best left unknown.</p><br /><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-25261379703196555842023-03-24T11:47:00.000-07:002023-03-24T11:47:09.814-07:00You Can't Play As Conan, But...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhsS9pvDvwDHsSnD_RpwN7S8vH9yq9aXtCUPtZ2HY7lJClJ94CJ1d2i81SusCQrZYH7-wTzR060WQu39tMxf13l1T1rLztAQGprwWIDeDGhcXqxvvK0JqJiQhBzJPGhEbHp3cpU8H_pqHa3V9t2YMkgWtOoA8SDl4q4eTTcfRCvzdkYmlFyWpEoDOww/s1384/Scan_20230324b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1340" data-original-width="1384" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhsS9pvDvwDHsSnD_RpwN7S8vH9yq9aXtCUPtZ2HY7lJClJ94CJ1d2i81SusCQrZYH7-wTzR060WQu39tMxf13l1T1rLztAQGprwWIDeDGhcXqxvvK0JqJiQhBzJPGhEbHp3cpU8H_pqHa3V9t2YMkgWtOoA8SDl4q4eTTcfRCvzdkYmlFyWpEoDOww/w400-h388/Scan_20230324b.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>...you can play as one of his companions.</p><p>Conan has plot armor. He can't die. He won't die. Ever. Unless Howard willed it, in which case, it could only happen once. The same goes for Elric, Aragorn, and any other famous heroes whose worlds people like to game in. In order to showcase this, publishers often gave these protagonists bloated stats (just look at Elric in some of Chaosium's books) when all they really had to do was put an asterisk after their name that signified -- plot armor.</p><p>Role-Playing in these worlds never really worked for me. Much of the fun in D&D is creating your own world anyway. But gaming in Hyboria, not the same without Conan, because without Conan, who cares. Hyboria is<i> his</i> playground. Without Conan, Stygia simply becomes Egypt. Aquilonia becomes France.</p><p>Dragonlance was the closest we came to gaming in the world of novels. And yes, we had many of the modules, but never played them, we just liked referencing the stats. What eventually happened was we took ideas, like the Towers of High Sorcery and the tree town of Solace and came up with our versions for our worlds.</p><p>It's why I never got into the Star Wars RPG by West End Games, though I bought the book, I quickly traded it to my brother for his D&D books. (Star Wars is the one thing I loved as a kid that I now legit feel is the stupidest thing around.)</p><p>Anyway...</p><p>You see, you will never measure up to the iconic characters. You will always feel like wannabes, like supporting crew.</p><p>So play as them.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOK-et8ytGQV7UPc0iftepr5KfJrUBnfk_P4f9KULJFEbGIIiGeLUx4s6-C-6q6oHx9xHIg3tX0Wyiiv3NWnJ_1B59nPS8T1cH-6yjNojLDXTNwtrkFDfYKz8SmoBdmsr9ukKbDYw-4oOyBMJ0kesvSJ9AN5pMf8D9o4zEEoBuuerUpEP0CNXTqZWVfg/s4032/IMG-1268.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOK-et8ytGQV7UPc0iftepr5KfJrUBnfk_P4f9KULJFEbGIIiGeLUx4s6-C-6q6oHx9xHIg3tX0Wyiiv3NWnJ_1B59nPS8T1cH-6yjNojLDXTNwtrkFDfYKz8SmoBdmsr9ukKbDYw-4oOyBMJ0kesvSJ9AN5pMf8D9o4zEEoBuuerUpEP0CNXTqZWVfg/s320/IMG-1268.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p>The Savage Sword of Conan the Barbarian, Issue 133, Feb, 1987. Features the story, <i>Winter of the Wolf</i>. This was the first issue of Savage Sword I ever bought and I was hooked... for awhile at least. It was this magazine that eventually lead me to dive into Howard's original stories, which until then, I knew very little about. By 1987, Savage Sword wasn't so savage -- still pretty violent, but the nudity was gone. At the time, I had no idea how cool the earlier issues were (70s/early 80s) and I should have been exploring the Warren horror mags, but, I wasn't.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkChQToCNTwjEFT8tTM-7pNnH_7koNFFy42J0W7APnNSWsRGqtNtdswQb7F1FVMCsrzA_GijB-0x44r_t2DmfZWtAxMtdwKMR21quGUIwIRTPp4bXeZqLw5m_5PZBSlcQtUiIS4vE0Sxlp4T6e65sVowowGgoq_WRdlzE8MmfvKp6KzgPpoK8fQpcU4w/s4032/IMG-1269.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkChQToCNTwjEFT8tTM-7pNnH_7koNFFy42J0W7APnNSWsRGqtNtdswQb7F1FVMCsrzA_GijB-0x44r_t2DmfZWtAxMtdwKMR21quGUIwIRTPp4bXeZqLw5m_5PZBSlcQtUiIS4vE0Sxlp4T6e65sVowowGgoq_WRdlzE8MmfvKp6KzgPpoK8fQpcU4w/s320/IMG-1269.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p><i>Winter of the Wolf</i> -- I was cautious about revisiting this story; it has a mystique in my mind and I didn't want that ruined. It held up, the mystique stays, but I did notice some errors that aren't relevant here.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0HVEjsLUouIYb4vVbxMTz5pth7w3y9NwmRDVDAeCI8mKaiGv4IssWN6KDCW10j5A-AobuqPrtXrX43ppmfM7k5rKowaxOoTAsMFwDQ1BQEGqjLekCakG7jaT0RBTO-mgyXrrJv3St6kRKLApAe7AY9IPHQff8k6Lu1Ezom2Zn1H44WLp7__J43eutw/s4032/IMG-1270.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0HVEjsLUouIYb4vVbxMTz5pth7w3y9NwmRDVDAeCI8mKaiGv4IssWN6KDCW10j5A-AobuqPrtXrX43ppmfM7k5rKowaxOoTAsMFwDQ1BQEGqjLekCakG7jaT0RBTO-mgyXrrJv3St6kRKLApAe7AY9IPHQff8k6Lu1Ezom2Zn1H44WLp7__J43eutw/s320/IMG-1270.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p>Summary: Conan and some Gundermen are part of a royal hunting expedition in the winter months. It goes poorly, the nobles are killed. Conan and the others decide not to return to Aquilonia proper, as they would be blamed for the deaths, so they head on and soon they are hunted by a pack of wolves which are actually, sort of, werewolves. They seek refuge in a fort manned mostly by farmers, led by a chieftain with a wicked daughter. Stuff happens. Eventually, when everyone is drunk, the fort is overrun by wolves and of course Conan is the last man standing.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYkav1TrYyyLEXQfjnOYnpKv0QeZKYl46JNyzR73d2RnvbQSRogLOLs13pIp3mK_q1IAGCc2rE2X-gkA6sIQBosCk8482eJMljvD_5YMIDUTZ2nuwjk_YmU_xrW_cdhG_T0-Wt34IRiJPqLhD1C4lYU-5hvJkbHE1LD9_4VkSBQsTQSKNWZah-X1Y8_A/s4032/IMG-1271.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYkav1TrYyyLEXQfjnOYnpKv0QeZKYl46JNyzR73d2RnvbQSRogLOLs13pIp3mK_q1IAGCc2rE2X-gkA6sIQBosCk8482eJMljvD_5YMIDUTZ2nuwjk_YmU_xrW_cdhG_T0-Wt34IRiJPqLhD1C4lYU-5hvJkbHE1LD9_4VkSBQsTQSKNWZah-X1Y8_A/s320/IMG-1271.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p>Because, he has plot armor.</p><p>D&D characters don't have plot armor. They're not <i>supposed</i> to anyway. (Modern story-gamers probably beg to differ. Why do they even roll dice?)</p><p>But, what if you were one of the Gundermen?</p><p>Conan will survive the <i>Winter of the Wolf</i>... but will you?</p><p>You wanna play in Hyboria? You're a part of Conan's saga, not yours. Take any adventure, any D&D group, insert Conan (NPC). He cannot die, but <i>you</i> can. If Conan's hit points reach zero, he is knocked unconscious and left for dead or captured. Maybe he escapes. Maybe you rescue him -- maybe you die trying -- such is often the case. Your goal -- to see how long you survive as a companion to the mighty Cimmerian. You could build a whole campaign centered around Conan and his many companions, but HE is the main character, not you. In the end, most of your characters will have died and Conan will have ridden off, perhaps with a bag full of jewels, alone or with a half-naked woman.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_-y-1_MP5q_OirFGvtYNjvE323WdML1XwFHV8O7rNhxbNEqmLSQV7_Z4Hqwu3My2K6g5XxKs2dTVJeQ7iVvKUoS7-SGC0Svwh3To3dmDODZVDISLyRKqaX7eejCF10stMVbi6UWQat1l3XzOTkqIvBEDpeghO2pgZu5d1Zcx4bAa-DD7X25MQqztMw/s4032/IMG-1272.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_-y-1_MP5q_OirFGvtYNjvE323WdML1XwFHV8O7rNhxbNEqmLSQV7_Z4Hqwu3My2K6g5XxKs2dTVJeQ7iVvKUoS7-SGC0Svwh3To3dmDODZVDISLyRKqaX7eejCF10stMVbi6UWQat1l3XzOTkqIvBEDpeghO2pgZu5d1Zcx4bAa-DD7X25MQqztMw/s320/IMG-1272.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p>Such as it should be.</p><p>By Crom!</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-65060818713441841312023-02-28T13:52:00.001-08:002023-07-26T17:14:46.362-07:00Strontium Dog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6o78Xuol3LcdfGlveng_BZoV666sMBWU_CYD47f0QUkfqLh7KTLZinG7Y1j3zfMKbU4fup_QqPB6MOwvSyq7gs9PjB8tc_AVdXT9oVErepa7ylH5biwc99ALvdMLKLg3tv0IDtWU52zqaEA1KKbPVEZ9_oVKnkd8pNSrTdKOzeXaiFYzbriYvVEEZBg/s2156/Scan_20230227b.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2156" data-original-width="1480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6o78Xuol3LcdfGlveng_BZoV666sMBWU_CYD47f0QUkfqLh7KTLZinG7Y1j3zfMKbU4fup_QqPB6MOwvSyq7gs9PjB8tc_AVdXT9oVErepa7ylH5biwc99ALvdMLKLg3tv0IDtWU52zqaEA1KKbPVEZ9_oVKnkd8pNSrTdKOzeXaiFYzbriYvVEEZBg/w275-h400/Scan_20230227b.png" width="275" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">We'll call her Petal.</div><div><br /></div><div>Strontium Dog, the 2000 A.D. comic series set in the near future of the Judge Dredd universe. A world poisoned by three nuclear exchanges. A world of oppressed mutants. Dog eat dog in every sense. Space travel is a thing. Dimensional and time travel are things. Sorcery is a thing. Aliens exist and every single one of them is every bit as bad as we are. It's violent, it's gritty and there's a touch of dark humor. A post-apocalyptic spaghetti-western where the only way a mutant can get ahead, or rather, just keep up, is by bounty hunting the worst of the worst.</div><div><br /></div><div>Beautiful.</div><div><br /></div><div>Mongoose tackled Strontium Dog along with Judge Dredd as part of it's Traveller line of books. Now called 1st Edition Mongoose Traveller as they've moved on to the 2nd Edition of their version of the game.</div><div><br /></div><div>Speaking of this...</div><div><br /></div><div>The Mongoose Traveller 1st Edition Core Rulebook is one of the most perfect RPG rulebooks in existence. That's the black book in the picture below. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7k6Dep02AtW4FLyNbLKsGQRDx7ptDa5sssMyiaOos4EYzSXSiv8puW0JE5IyYbcVdgcXXIjgZoZS7oanNTig8PaJDH-CohKoURwekM7woqCUtEJpJMWNlQEUnpE9HaAJPbvNNC8zIYCa5y7JF45sHx8AwZvuXjEK7ed5YZxz6UrXs4x9Y-9W-sTahow/s4032/IMG-1256.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7k6Dep02AtW4FLyNbLKsGQRDx7ptDa5sssMyiaOos4EYzSXSiv8puW0JE5IyYbcVdgcXXIjgZoZS7oanNTig8PaJDH-CohKoURwekM7woqCUtEJpJMWNlQEUnpE9HaAJPbvNNC8zIYCa5y7JF45sHx8AwZvuXjEK7ed5YZxz6UrXs4x9Y-9W-sTahow/s320/IMG-1256.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>The Mongoose Traveller 2nd Edition is also a nice book with some nice, but not altogether necessary, rules additions like -- boosts and banes, destructive damage, consolidated skills -- no more battle-dress as vacc-suit handles it all, and a new prisoner career.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCjmUs6ocMvv_INKexykfT5ezEAd0W_3Z-O2kzcreFigtEV7-Eiy7KtmhleU7rOHdEMGQvXosejE8CKkQKrJaeLfr09N3zIjGs6NR4eSzMekoDz-Vn55Pn0FUrUHi5osMaKaeR_r712pRfiji9AAmdRHnNTGHk3xVjK8J57wZzdjGIe4hZ-kMvzUd2w/s2183/Scan_20230227%20(2).png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2183" data-original-width="1700" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCjmUs6ocMvv_INKexykfT5ezEAd0W_3Z-O2kzcreFigtEV7-Eiy7KtmhleU7rOHdEMGQvXosejE8CKkQKrJaeLfr09N3zIjGs6NR4eSzMekoDz-Vn55Pn0FUrUHi5osMaKaeR_r712pRfiji9AAmdRHnNTGHk3xVjK8J57wZzdjGIe4hZ-kMvzUd2w/s320/Scan_20230227%20(2).png" width="249" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">An older, incomplete character sheet of mine.</div><div><br /></div><div>The mutants in this game are supposed to be weird. Funny how stories about mutants who are supposed to be grotesque and deformed always have good-looking main characters, human looking mutants with only subtle mutations like Johnny Alpha, Durham Red, Cyclops, Jean Grey, etc. It's the surrounding cast that aren't so lucky. In this game, there's a very strong chance that <i>your</i> mutant will be quite bizarre. Petal, the one I just rolled up, has feathery stalks for eyes. The tables didn't <i>exactly</i> give me this, but as is often the case with tables, you improvise. With her eye-stalks, she can see into your soul, hypnotize you, and see dimensional rifts. Her stats ended up being average and she has no melee skills, but, she did manage to acquire the coveted<i> jack-of-all-trades</i>. I originally also rolled that her right leg below the knee was backwards, but when drawing, I forgot about it, so, never mind.</div><div><br /></div><div>The mutants of Strontium Dog are discriminated against mercilessly. They are the garbage of society, forced to live in gutters and ghettos. They pay more and get less. Many have such severe mutations that they won't make it very long. Either way, short miserable lives, discrimination, and genocide are their lots in life. A few, with a modicum of skill and toughness are lucky enough to eek out a living as Strontium Dogs -- Mutant Bounty Hunters working for the Search and Destroy Department, scouring the galaxy for criminals wanted dead or alive...</div><div><br /></div><div>A certain, ultra-woke gaming company would call this setting "problematic." </div><div><br /></div><div>I call it awesome.<br /><p> </p></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-49117827689439575712023-01-21T08:11:00.002-08:002023-01-21T08:11:55.349-08:00Just Saying...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHlz1-fnqqVzEbjoT53HCAIoGVanzqIadRjAy7qghbhI2gfqtHyKKPJrhGBy-ugwiQLtmot63dNd2OXPt3IAImMGI47g8ahHsR6vTFbReNtCcJh2T1M81YYF3UPMTFEgZyYna4P9wJwE0dASP3JcTobwHIgRNaRObarU0kNtjFLLm_FFL6vXYCU7H_jA/s1564/wotc3%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1472" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHlz1-fnqqVzEbjoT53HCAIoGVanzqIadRjAy7qghbhI2gfqtHyKKPJrhGBy-ugwiQLtmot63dNd2OXPt3IAImMGI47g8ahHsR6vTFbReNtCcJh2T1M81YYF3UPMTFEgZyYna4P9wJwE0dASP3JcTobwHIgRNaRObarU0kNtjFLLm_FFL6vXYCU7H_jA/w376-h400/wotc3%20(2).jpg" width="376" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-9083867112973879462023-01-01T20:13:00.000-08:002023-01-01T20:13:14.588-08:00A Rifter's Best Friend<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Y851udl5_IoB4z05RohwTpKCmKM6JSB5nm91HYW93GqOv0vklOJFcbX14O4_JxAH2rs-vXUs3hi1hWEbJw0UC4oj_oAUjTGBxW9N_tBMLXhybqPn2HtZlqSBnyezlr0hSNKHITSlZGgpeAYfhWfbpLz-PCWwwc1nTumxOug96zqwIRAoqrxeyLTwRA/s2124/dogboy%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2124" data-original-width="1180" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Y851udl5_IoB4z05RohwTpKCmKM6JSB5nm91HYW93GqOv0vklOJFcbX14O4_JxAH2rs-vXUs3hi1hWEbJw0UC4oj_oAUjTGBxW9N_tBMLXhybqPn2HtZlqSBnyezlr0hSNKHITSlZGgpeAYfhWfbpLz-PCWwwc1nTumxOug96zqwIRAoqrxeyLTwRA/w223-h400/dogboy%20(2).jpg" width="223" /></a></div><p>There's nothing more loyal than a Coalition State Dogboy... anywhere... on earth... in space... another dimension... another reality. Nowhere. Nowhere, will you match this brand of devotion. The dog. The uplifted dog. The genetically modified dog. The Dogboy.</p><p>He'll sniff out your enemies. Natural. Supernatural. Doesn't matter. His sense of smell is one million times stronger than yours. And, he just might be psychic too. So magnify those senses by another million. He knows he's just a mutt. He knows you're superior. He knows you love him. He knows all of you love him. He knows you will die for him. Because you know he will die for you. In all of this he is content.</p><p>Just let him off his leash every now and then. Let him fight for the Coalition. Let him protect mankind. Let him protect you.</p><p>It's what he does.</p><p>Welcome to 2023.</p><p></p><p><br /> </p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-30990345823773495272022-12-30T10:52:00.005-08:002023-01-03T14:41:27.380-08:00Praise The Fallen PoD Amazon<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3DH0j_vAtCzDvJfvuZjFqmNrwKEZxfDcUSRbOIVPJC3W2gWdPzfzvTmEk5uFBXwTK_hWO-M5jzBHDp-3XqI4bFk3xasSPOe8aDMavYR-r45OGJ7c4pDOkjFa4XW_KZQRcBD25CRaykidwhCoI0Q3uakOt1NfH4uQyRsQb-c6R69ptbqvOYq3Z3JLmg/s4032/IMG_1185.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3DH0j_vAtCzDvJfvuZjFqmNrwKEZxfDcUSRbOIVPJC3W2gWdPzfzvTmEk5uFBXwTK_hWO-M5jzBHDp-3XqI4bFk3xasSPOe8aDMavYR-r45OGJ7c4pDOkjFa4XW_KZQRcBD25CRaykidwhCoI0Q3uakOt1NfH4uQyRsQb-c6R69ptbqvOYq3Z3JLmg/w300-h400/IMG_1185.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p></p><p>Several of you have been asking for this and it's probably long over do. I had to add a few things just to make it long enough for KDP printing, such as: A title page, contents page, player maps, 8 pregens -- nothing fancy, just simple stats with some art that I've never published (heavy on female dwarves, but dwarves feature, so, it fits) a page for notes, my B/X character sheet, and the original Fallen sketch. Comes to about 25 pages (the minimum is 24.)</p><p>I thought about reformatting the whole thing, but figured the charm is in the original presentation. I did however, sharpen up the arrows, making them easier to read as they cross over black areas. I accidently set the cover on matte finish as opposed to glossy, and have decided to leave it thus because it reminds me of the "void" theme throughout.</p><p>Why not PoD at DriveThruRPG? I've never figured out how to do covers on DriveThru. Amazon is so much easier. </p><p>Now, <i>Praise The Fallen</i> has been printed before. There's a beautiful layout of it in <i>KNOCK!</i> #1, but that is hard to come by and much pricier.</p><p>So...</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BR231TL3"><span style="color: #fcff01; font-size: x-large;">Praise The Fallen Amazon Link</span></a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-28228052485817256872022-12-19T14:51:00.001-08:002022-12-19T16:57:30.829-08:00Artist Tribute: Alfonso Azpiri<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgnT34llJfpx5D5NchkcEsf5NuSzimm_iQd27dhYz6flK49SuIugfyOX30URgHlKYj_1YhYcaX1AnkQfrDpWO3Iw0yfSBFQJOyr68KtjgGB3119RGV8smC8-5p2Cbb03rviYIqqdZ_oLInBMXE24xl2YU0dO20QsHisjRq4J_9a5CYC9hxzd6sRCD1Q/s2148/TravellerGirlb.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2148" data-original-width="1236" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjgnT34llJfpx5D5NchkcEsf5NuSzimm_iQd27dhYz6flK49SuIugfyOX30URgHlKYj_1YhYcaX1AnkQfrDpWO3Iw0yfSBFQJOyr68KtjgGB3119RGV8smC8-5p2Cbb03rviYIqqdZ_oLInBMXE24xl2YU0dO20QsHisjRq4J_9a5CYC9hxzd6sRCD1Q/w230-h400/TravellerGirlb.jpg" width="230" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I don't consider myself as having gotten good at drawing figures until about 14 years ago. 2008/2009 was when I had my break through moment. And I credit it to this guy: Alfonso Azpiri. It was his art that helped me crack the female code. Up until then, like most dudes, I only drew dudes. Now I seldom draw dudes.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Spanish Azpiri (1947-2017) understood female beauty better than most. His art was mainly of the "adult" variety and quite frankly, it can be mesmerizing. If you were a reader of <i>Heavy Metal</i> magazine, you probably encountered his stuff. It was by studying his work that I realized, it's all about the face. I know, shocker, we know this from real life. But if you can draw a beautiful face, errors elsewhere will be forgiven, overlooked. </div><div><br /></div><div>And God Damn, do the Spanish have a knack for art. Most of the great Horror magazine artists from the 70s/80s (Vampirella and such) were Spanish.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">My Azpiri collection.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_p1YI9BiUTpHHb60p3T7zfl3ATw5UebbVDlBCaSA7NtL4HvoIh0XELsZplfwFUJe53PN04PzJHxJHwtiY0s5Alh8KcQ_w05fXtK4-zcUVQ2BlPySnMOlBRpVoSYvTxxu4JburiMSAoOpOVU7lMHP8O4btpzoBLCnKC7UcGVJrbO2DEniGOTx56Nr6Bw/s4032/IMG_1179.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_p1YI9BiUTpHHb60p3T7zfl3ATw5UebbVDlBCaSA7NtL4HvoIh0XELsZplfwFUJe53PN04PzJHxJHwtiY0s5Alh8KcQ_w05fXtK4-zcUVQ2BlPySnMOlBRpVoSYvTxxu4JburiMSAoOpOVU7lMHP8O4btpzoBLCnKC7UcGVJrbO2DEniGOTx56Nr6Bw/w300-h400/IMG_1179.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">Lorna was his most famous character.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDLGP5A6rNPyyE6rPh7TICt-8Rc-c6mF_MxRdEdqRzlgtTiJW2TLC1OZEryyPLQpa3jrO-niTRPUbuuevMQ1d3xaqdYlq-2srvoGytANvK4BZnDbAzoV51mnuxAFhRXRPOD2Fdoh5kF6pZeIP2fmUOhPJjSol-BqmTWcnGxETY5m5PgR5YLpw4sN4MnQ/s1920/thumb-1920-403257.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDLGP5A6rNPyyE6rPh7TICt-8Rc-c6mF_MxRdEdqRzlgtTiJW2TLC1OZEryyPLQpa3jrO-niTRPUbuuevMQ1d3xaqdYlq-2srvoGytANvK4BZnDbAzoV51mnuxAFhRXRPOD2Fdoh5kF6pZeIP2fmUOhPJjSol-BqmTWcnGxETY5m5PgR5YLpw4sN4MnQ/w400-h250/thumb-1920-403257.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">An amazing Batgirl.</p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiclCUPUL_0tObpZh1gs9UjF1tKfagzPtog_afjDCjYqwwZptuvAgzsUiq5meMkRseCoGuZRvd2H2tSalyKkMHENN5xEfsG8ml1PeV2JjOZ5twpmH7M4rRY4KWXGHpRHK0i3kr3cCIGobZkgfC7dimGwv7OTo9SXfDVgTx48N5vxN1ECUWpMesmep1KAw/s543/batgirl-comic-art.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiclCUPUL_0tObpZh1gs9UjF1tKfagzPtog_afjDCjYqwwZptuvAgzsUiq5meMkRseCoGuZRvd2H2tSalyKkMHENN5xEfsG8ml1PeV2JjOZ5twpmH7M4rRY4KWXGHpRHK0i3kr3cCIGobZkgfC7dimGwv7OTo9SXfDVgTx48N5vxN1ECUWpMesmep1KAw/w295-h400/batgirl-comic-art.jpg" width="295" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Gorgeous.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UwLAHwiq91MJzPj1SL4xpIAFEZ6aOokZiAuGHXKmqmhRmdW_tX9KNJIAqMy-lt69q678t5njq-ByYqSijbpYrRwdyYsSrBCXp_LY6DuwlFViOc-bAqdSjDuAXU8RwGlVhl89FCYuIs71N_F7_Eoq9G-ji_Iee0ezT7Ty8DjyNffBpGPKAXaBvMH6zA/s1065/Cn4z8a9l_1809201918251gpadd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="713" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_UwLAHwiq91MJzPj1SL4xpIAFEZ6aOokZiAuGHXKmqmhRmdW_tX9KNJIAqMy-lt69q678t5njq-ByYqSijbpYrRwdyYsSrBCXp_LY6DuwlFViOc-bAqdSjDuAXU8RwGlVhl89FCYuIs71N_F7_Eoq9G-ji_Iee0ezT7Ty8DjyNffBpGPKAXaBvMH6zA/w268-h400/Cn4z8a9l_1809201918251gpadd.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And he could draw a bad-ass Conan too.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaG80B-wgycNwvV3jayqgwNck5rgPWaO-Fq5IY9hCIuCgYJXz1NYy8lLkRRGBMk0B9LHhsU5FzsI2MOy8zxJMyJIk68jy3Of4Q704K1Msbz6J19Xv-yqx0YnapCHb02rHQlHpBENBL2R47nIR1fFk7cYh9IAZE087_3Y9R2SrpoAcqx5hGLYlndxNEGQ/s949/conanazpiri.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="700" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaG80B-wgycNwvV3jayqgwNck5rgPWaO-Fq5IY9hCIuCgYJXz1NYy8lLkRRGBMk0B9LHhsU5FzsI2MOy8zxJMyJIk68jy3Of4Q704K1Msbz6J19Xv-yqx0YnapCHb02rHQlHpBENBL2R47nIR1fFk7cYh9IAZE087_3Y9R2SrpoAcqx5hGLYlndxNEGQ/w295-h400/conanazpiri.jpg" width="295" /></a></div><br />Thank you, Azpiri, I salute you.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>P.S.<div>I'm finally working on another book, one that is 100% compatible with the letters B and X. Not just an adventure.<br /><br /><p></p><p> </p></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-32739778213323103232022-11-16T17:48:00.000-08:002022-11-16T17:48:16.301-08:00The Monsternomicon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4bzY6TYKO-ZfF7sE_WB349XL2mSJJlkBZAMzsPNVqGNthCn3VmpEZDtgRUK7cpzeeMH3GwTWYfSZKJiGgxJTONlDZTlgnmzZZV6Y413u-g5xgwkTJfBQxN18ZatFJrgizzYryIrhGFYuWevOI2Zh2ErBEbgdCkj-xrA6P8qYIWGTgpexMKGTp7jDiqg/s2120/ironkingdomschick%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2120" data-original-width="1336" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4bzY6TYKO-ZfF7sE_WB349XL2mSJJlkBZAMzsPNVqGNthCn3VmpEZDtgRUK7cpzeeMH3GwTWYfSZKJiGgxJTONlDZTlgnmzZZV6Y413u-g5xgwkTJfBQxN18ZatFJrgizzYryIrhGFYuWevOI2Zh2ErBEbgdCkj-xrA6P8qYIWGTgpexMKGTp7jDiqg/w253-h400/ironkingdomschick%20(2).jpg" width="253" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>Not gonna say too much here, but, the <i>Monsternomicon</i>,<i> </i>is one of the best monster manuals ever made...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUjppXl6cMKFXR_Q7trUBjEe68TUYgexQMzdf2m8j4ZLHE6p3cDbK6sMYSD9ieZfEretvljGS2wPVA0C771ONCIasLw123nXSxBzBCFdAibmWn2kYUPRx3OIasAWOyOoE7BwiS4jMa5GbQrFXaawnHz9SoN6HtLYx63KXR47QEzEGaftsR6K60iuZsCQ/s4032/IMG_1130.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUjppXl6cMKFXR_Q7trUBjEe68TUYgexQMzdf2m8j4ZLHE6p3cDbK6sMYSD9ieZfEretvljGS2wPVA0C771ONCIasLw123nXSxBzBCFdAibmWn2kYUPRx3OIasAWOyOoE7BwiS4jMa5GbQrFXaawnHz9SoN6HtLYx63KXR47QEzEGaftsR6K60iuZsCQ/s320/IMG_1130.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyBGNRd98LyQL5kvuIJZkTev-OpHOoi8NwWHxBAK_71f9GdzlLOFf7ydGFuM1gRX3Xq6RCFKIVdWkvBI_qiZqxWvB1oQx76tNPG5Sta404MOvXO6xFTbvaaX1I3lfsGIFI9eo50e8mViY2utB3jOpalUHf-xflUUb9vMiaOw-NSlO8ZkIslL7p4RYx7g/s4032/IMG_1131.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyBGNRd98LyQL5kvuIJZkTev-OpHOoi8NwWHxBAK_71f9GdzlLOFf7ydGFuM1gRX3Xq6RCFKIVdWkvBI_qiZqxWvB1oQx76tNPG5Sta404MOvXO6xFTbvaaX1I3lfsGIFI9eo50e8mViY2utB3jOpalUHf-xflUUb9vMiaOw-NSlO8ZkIslL7p4RYx7g/s320/IMG_1131.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MryJAISbxo3mU7onOLOAzxFaMG80JgTFE7qDt5GpC8ccphlzClUzbxPMuqyrPTsoN_X6bPNpt8H7_i_VvXKidiBwiNRVAVvKv18QTnId4ZShGuJeHMU07rDMGGoc2dlk1qurW5I4IyjPeZyQyO7aizmqjo9kL_oXM7_p_I_IhXVEeszF-JuyW13d-g/s4032/IMG_1132.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MryJAISbxo3mU7onOLOAzxFaMG80JgTFE7qDt5GpC8ccphlzClUzbxPMuqyrPTsoN_X6bPNpt8H7_i_VvXKidiBwiNRVAVvKv18QTnId4ZShGuJeHMU07rDMGGoc2dlk1qurW5I4IyjPeZyQyO7aizmqjo9kL_oXM7_p_I_IhXVEeszF-JuyW13d-g/s320/IMG_1132.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwg_zmCNAwwwvOyQ0QO1OY7lRvHmBri2ci-aPp1iYb7zonPdUaoKwX5UEF4VL_dO8v5kPU27SlY7dKZLRDt8Fw24925NJ6DgzRTSOYlnQAg6NU2yJBwRreZypk_CtlPFim9dtaYeMbxe8P1IjngdOy3egcKyOFhtvQuSg_yM_76m-x7vEjuPqChsyTIg/s4032/IMG_1133.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwg_zmCNAwwwvOyQ0QO1OY7lRvHmBri2ci-aPp1iYb7zonPdUaoKwX5UEF4VL_dO8v5kPU27SlY7dKZLRDt8Fw24925NJ6DgzRTSOYlnQAg6NU2yJBwRreZypk_CtlPFim9dtaYeMbxe8P1IjngdOy3egcKyOFhtvQuSg_yM_76m-x7vEjuPqChsyTIg/s320/IMG_1133.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvAUhPBYYHlS4mXRbQ0tvBriniIrrPOHDFhl3LmtficIC3PomUFyo8Gcr8uAlChzIQjOsgXGg0uL8RTrK0ph_zCKhep7JhfB9kZeKT8QgjTnKpIE2F2t13D9MpWYNWK0IFYSMc_xt_RNFcLei49Vrvfw11mAEPSU1UO9OmQzv-2pcdp4o0HJX9hvhIg/s4032/IMG_1134.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvAUhPBYYHlS4mXRbQ0tvBriniIrrPOHDFhl3LmtficIC3PomUFyo8Gcr8uAlChzIQjOsgXGg0uL8RTrK0ph_zCKhep7JhfB9kZeKT8QgjTnKpIE2F2t13D9MpWYNWK0IFYSMc_xt_RNFcLei49Vrvfw11mAEPSU1UO9OmQzv-2pcdp4o0HJX9hvhIg/s320/IMG_1134.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgml6Bdk_3eVpAByfT_c1NBKqzSgj7iDMUIB7kqIkUO55xl-N0tphvqTW6rMd47VFn4Pc_bdszu6gixzkItCMJBm7f8KVLvCSs92_ky2Yqz36tEWEs96KnqaAAcYrY9-w_vLxkcpBMMEfR6ve5xsh4RVfWSkn3jFFSa4foSiXoi2uJIQww7YlQHqjFZRw/s4032/IMG_1135.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgml6Bdk_3eVpAByfT_c1NBKqzSgj7iDMUIB7kqIkUO55xl-N0tphvqTW6rMd47VFn4Pc_bdszu6gixzkItCMJBm7f8KVLvCSs92_ky2Yqz36tEWEs96KnqaAAcYrY9-w_vLxkcpBMMEfR6ve5xsh4RVfWSkn3jFFSa4foSiXoi2uJIQww7YlQHqjFZRw/s320/IMG_1135.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAj9eeZIdnji30Dsai9htj0pjg_qJnvG7DhrIHfeulnrVn58ZgU-doKcOUSEkvfJEkmW6TC7ahfMfX9s64uplEXmvVX-43Rw1cUlmhZ7npNN2EYivBpXr25psqcAsKZYXGEkhyte0uAFuNVBdenFFfX6-rbDZPTMRSUDzIgkJw8zQUBFjkiTYJmAxdng/s4032/IMG_1136.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAj9eeZIdnji30Dsai9htj0pjg_qJnvG7DhrIHfeulnrVn58ZgU-doKcOUSEkvfJEkmW6TC7ahfMfX9s64uplEXmvVX-43Rw1cUlmhZ7npNN2EYivBpXr25psqcAsKZYXGEkhyte0uAFuNVBdenFFfX6-rbDZPTMRSUDzIgkJw8zQUBFjkiTYJmAxdng/s320/IMG_1136.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFDsLh2vcRvAlce0ZPPa1jAlmJwwjTmOhdF8WuqEZhYSNh2-BcMMoWGpWHUiiFVoqMXP9ylRV8VypfWWjbQIE9YPCzf1aKv-QPVVtzyKj8gZDfPyHIUaSkwuwnaQBmOZxp2P-_Xw8JExyqto21fZuZ4ohsX-vGAK-5TLcq0zkphr51uf33Jr8imkDMQ/s4032/IMG_1137.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFDsLh2vcRvAlce0ZPPa1jAlmJwwjTmOhdF8WuqEZhYSNh2-BcMMoWGpWHUiiFVoqMXP9ylRV8VypfWWjbQIE9YPCzf1aKv-QPVVtzyKj8gZDfPyHIUaSkwuwnaQBmOZxp2P-_Xw8JExyqto21fZuZ4ohsX-vGAK-5TLcq0zkphr51uf33Jr8imkDMQ/s320/IMG_1137.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />The art is superb.<div><br /></div><div>The monsters are viscous.<br /><div><br /></div><div>The lore is awesome.</div><div><br /></div><div>Iron Kingdoms is bad-ass.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /></div></div></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-84479286742562478552022-11-05T11:53:00.003-07:002022-11-05T11:53:40.636-07:00The Shadow Kingdom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwokv-p4y-ikUvfxz2XsFVZV22VGTNzXQO6NC0JZXhuwa6RaO1oueI6LNd6_PF1g5IdLyOU91zzjd-b_ROfDf-B8biLm-SqJCVOt8YosU3kVE8BqhtcjpYuUc3kIOcrZ2HnMM1yrOCbO3AnOvbjiNWl8edQD0X1uUEmA8J6s5c5IIMYy9DJHJy9sDskA/s1944/Brule%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="1396" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwokv-p4y-ikUvfxz2XsFVZV22VGTNzXQO6NC0JZXhuwa6RaO1oueI6LNd6_PF1g5IdLyOU91zzjd-b_ROfDf-B8biLm-SqJCVOt8YosU3kVE8BqhtcjpYuUc3kIOcrZ2HnMM1yrOCbO3AnOvbjiNWl8edQD0X1uUEmA8J6s5c5IIMYy9DJHJy9sDskA/w288-h400/Brule%20(2).jpg" width="288" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Brule the Spear-slayer!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I don't read fiction much anymore, other than gaming material, my mind simply wanders too much, but, I found myself thinking of Howard, and every now and then, I need a little fix. So I grabbed volume II, KULL, of the BAEN, Robert E. Howard series, and re-read (it's been years) the story, <i>The Shadow Kingdom</i>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Wherein, King Kull learns that his court has been infiltrated by shape-changing lizard men from ages long past. Now, this concept -- that reptilian men ruled the world long ago, with the remnants of which, striving to regain control or actively pulling strings from the shadows -- is a common <i>Sword & Sorcery</i> trope. Where did it come from? Howard? Elsewhere?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYqK1pXLEtY73yqIduErrNFkeXP6ncdKWgH96BrGrCHoJ2kSOZQbyP2RP_belmoO5lDjR95i9RNkl7xR2QDezmSoIvGV23sWO_zbckbydv3BFwx93wP4vogXS_Y7WISPvcDrunM4rkAVAfwxG8Wgj9EJmRBd8wDrkX2vMsXZaskwd94xRbLirf8ufGA/s3720/IMG_1103.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3720" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYqK1pXLEtY73yqIduErrNFkeXP6ncdKWgH96BrGrCHoJ2kSOZQbyP2RP_belmoO5lDjR95i9RNkl7xR2QDezmSoIvGV23sWO_zbckbydv3BFwx93wP4vogXS_Y7WISPvcDrunM4rkAVAfwxG8Wgj9EJmRBd8wDrkX2vMsXZaskwd94xRbLirf8ufGA/s320/IMG_1103.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">This hangs on my living room wall. Signed by Ken Kelly, 37/200. Arguably my favorite picture (if there is such a thing.) This painting is an amalgamation of the stories, <i>The Shadow Kingdom</i> and <i>By This Axe I Rule! </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>By This Axe I Rule!</i> would be re-written by Howard several years later as the Conan story <i>The Phoenix On the Sword</i>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaCmfEixB7NaclBjTZudu7fAZfiqCyx7cBKE9chwQUXHVcZr-rxP-3JlS46KHGahnlV57FWsFcr1rPdYmdfcMOSvJaDw--TNnPi4x5eM5Er9bD7p0YKK-kfjBdc1Abz4ppgEswu_JZjRkg5HPAj0VwaaZHDbAY9huK4FuNcSLaKUbi1EsGW2pfQKxCfg/s4032/IMG_1104.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaCmfEixB7NaclBjTZudu7fAZfiqCyx7cBKE9chwQUXHVcZr-rxP-3JlS46KHGahnlV57FWsFcr1rPdYmdfcMOSvJaDw--TNnPi4x5eM5Er9bD7p0YKK-kfjBdc1Abz4ppgEswu_JZjRkg5HPAj0VwaaZHDbAY9huK4FuNcSLaKUbi1EsGW2pfQKxCfg/w400-h300/IMG_1104.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Valka and Hotath! Now these are book covers!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The story begins with King Kull astride a horse watching a military parade. Kull is an Atlantean usurper of the Valusian throne. An outsider, a true barbarian. In so many ways, the proto-Conan. But, where Conan concerns himself with women, wine, and plunder, Kull only concerns himself with kingship (though he too, had an adventurous past.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Kull then takes an audience from a proud Pict (Picts and Atlanteans are ancient enemies) and agrees to come alone to dine with an elder, Pictish ambassador. The ambassador toys with Kull, almost speaking in riddles, playing age against youth (though Kull isn't exactly a youth) and vaguely warns him. He says to be on the look out for a Pict who wears a dragon armlet and to heed his message.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As Kull rides back to his palace in the dead of night, with a lone Pictish escort, there are several paragraphs focusing on this ancient city and how its towers mock him:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span> "How many kings have we watched ride down these streets before Kull of Atlantis was even a dream in the mind of Ka, bird of creation? Ride on, Kull of Atlantis; greater shall follow you; greater came before you. They are dust; they are forgotten; we stand; we know; we are. Ride, ride on, Kull of Atlantis; Kull the king, Kull the fool!"</span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span>Kull is truly a man out of place, in Valusia, as well as with his own Atlantean customs.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And so, Brule, sneaks into the palace, straight to Kull and proceeds to unravel the illusion of security. Enter the reptilian shape-changers... I won't spoil much more than that, but it's not a long story, in fact, the end comes surprisingly quick.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAM-bqOpFKe4CxYFEp7ew9_k7pvVqiUt30gHxhfkgRkGnwyzt-3K9VoQtE4xJH2DTGjStkkNRbpZktOeuMMELnSkTb_A_VPN9Bh6ViP1N1W8u1HwiQT2ZkkxUzqBBOKX1CPsMirj6Bxxw6f-jsVhMhn0QvCVtkLMy9ilM6edAyDTFcdQvF_CW7Ls12hQ/s4032/IMG_1106.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAM-bqOpFKe4CxYFEp7ew9_k7pvVqiUt30gHxhfkgRkGnwyzt-3K9VoQtE4xJH2DTGjStkkNRbpZktOeuMMELnSkTb_A_VPN9Bh6ViP1N1W8u1HwiQT2ZkkxUzqBBOKX1CPsMirj6Bxxw6f-jsVhMhn0QvCVtkLMy9ilM6edAyDTFcdQvF_CW7Ls12hQ/s320/IMG_1106.jpg" width="240" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Near the bottom of this page, as Kull stares off in a trance, deep into the past, we get a clear vision of Howard's grim view of man:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span> </span>"Against a gray, ever-shifting background moved strange nightmare forms, fantasies of lunacy and fear; and man, the jest of the gods, the blind, wisdomless striver from dust to dust, following the long bloody trail of his destiny, knowing not why, bestial, blundering, like a great murderous child, yet feeling somewhere a spark of divine fire..."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The jest of the gods.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And another use of the word <i>dust</i>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvt8il5uY_p6K4M9eAYhmu3RqRIAqQoLHgNMDjM4pVsUOrzK1QvgG22dqZvxWX0H8bfTGGGhSwgP8G0_QArhO_pBORYy7dwaO5Q4fd4Mk6MOfGaUpYR7ZY67NTQkMsNynsYDETqi4o5bqCGtaXJ1Jxyf5Lrc27RNwDDatEmA-SBoqd4JHzHzQ7qbHDQ/s4032/IMG_1105.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvt8il5uY_p6K4M9eAYhmu3RqRIAqQoLHgNMDjM4pVsUOrzK1QvgG22dqZvxWX0H8bfTGGGhSwgP8G0_QArhO_pBORYy7dwaO5Q4fd4Mk6MOfGaUpYR7ZY67NTQkMsNynsYDETqi4o5bqCGtaXJ1Jxyf5Lrc27RNwDDatEmA-SBoqd4JHzHzQ7qbHDQ/s320/IMG_1105.jpg" width="240" /></a></div></div>As Brule (the Pictish, Spear-slayer!) guides Kull through secret passages in Kull's own palace, they discuss ages past. This entire page, and some on the next, is Brule speaking while standing over the body of a reptilian imposter. The beginning few sentences struck me the most:<div><br /></div><div><span> </span>"They are gone," said Brule, as if scanning his secret mind; "the bird-women, the harpies, the bat-men, the flying fiends, the wolf-people, the demons, the goblins-- all save such as this being that lies at our feet, and a few of the wolf-men. Long and terrible was the war, lasting through the bloody centuries, since first the first men, risen from the mire of apedom, turned upon those who then ruled the world. And at last mankind conquered, so long ago that naught but dim legends come to us through the ages."</div><div><br /></div><div>There is something incredible about Howard speaking of harpies and demons and goblins, all at war with man. Imagine if Howard had written about that age! </div><div><br /></div><div>These words tease awesomeness; a hint of primeval violence, even darker times, and a stronger dose of <i>fantasy</i>. These words ignite one's imagination! It leaves you wanting more, but ultimately, it is up to you to fill in the blanks. Too often these days, things are over-explained and all loose ends are tied. That is boring nonsense.</div><div><br /></div><div>No matter what you create, let there be mystery and unexplored depth.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is especially true for D&D.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>The Shadow Kingdom</i>, excellence in fiction.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-10648841236021366432022-10-29T22:16:00.000-07:002022-10-29T22:16:08.392-07:00On 2nd Edition...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6B_GqhjayJyOobB5k9pDsAhViMXu-8YpJLdZga0etdxRb_-7gdx5qwv8NlqP2ruiu-Lri6oU7Ti0NNyfhOEzPidO3E_Vn0bjt6bxbxpZyAJHNwonV49VQGq08fpghkEgw1xzPlY8sXW-8/s1600/LadyofPainc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1148" data-original-width="1216" height="377" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6B_GqhjayJyOobB5k9pDsAhViMXu-8YpJLdZga0etdxRb_-7gdx5qwv8NlqP2ruiu-Lri6oU7Ti0NNyfhOEzPidO3E_Vn0bjt6bxbxpZyAJHNwonV49VQGq08fpghkEgw1xzPlY8sXW-8/s400/LadyofPainc.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">If you haven't read this, do so.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Read it carefully, it is very good...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://beyondfomalhaut.blogspot.com/2022/10/blog-osr-module-o5-2e-is-still-not-old.html">http://beyondfomalhaut.blogspot.com/2022/10/blog-osr-module-o5-2e-is-still-not-old.html</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I was reminded of a piece I wrote on 2nd Edition, three years ago, when I was still very new to the scene. For whatever reason, I never hit "publish." Thankfully, I saved it, as it is very relevant right now...</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Begin Original Post</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Written in November, 2019.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Back when I was still double-spacing between sentences.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">AD&D 2nd....the Lost Edition?</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">
Several months ago I found myself thinking about<b> AD&D 2nd Edition.</b><b> </b> Of all the editions, this one seems to get talked about the least. Browsing the web, I came across an old reference to it as the <i>Lost Edition</i>.<br />
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Is it?<br />
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This is <b>literally</b> true for me, as it's the only edition that I no longer possess. I loaned out the books mid 90's, never got them back, but my interest in gaming waned at the time, so.....</div>
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When 2nd Edition came out I was in high school. It seemed then, that a new edition was due. We couldn't wait. The big new innovation: <b>THAC0</b>!!!!<br />
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<b>THAC0</b> came to exist as a whipping boy.</div>
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No Monk, no Assassin, no Half-Orc. I completely forgot this happened. They were added in a later product I didn't own. Of those three, I really only cared about the Assassin.</div>
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Deities no longer had full stats; you could no longer kill a God, just their Avatar, and Specialty Priests were born. We were cool with this at the time, but in retrospect, it helped kill the <i>Sword & Sorcery</i> aspect of D&D. There was an over-all grounding of the game into something more, <i>real-world</i>. This was reflected in the art, which depicted realistic cultures and the challenges of slaying a dog-sized dragon.</div>
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Forgotten Realms was quickly becoming the main course. Many of you <i>like </i>the Realms and that's cool, I wanted to, it just never came together for me. The original Grey Box was nice though, great Keith Parkinson cover art, but that style didn't carry forth very long. The art, as 2nd Edition grew (especially with the novels) quickly devolved into photographic paintings of the out-of-shape authors themselves, dressed in Renaissance Festival fluffy-shirts and feathery caps.....ugh.<br />
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Demons and Devils became Tanar'ri and Baatezu. I hated this and consider it the single worst aspect of 2nd Edition. A serious over-reaction to the Satanic Panic that was, by then, already winding down. There we were, loyal players defending the hobby, and the designers capitulated to people that didn't, and never would, actually play the game. And ironically, the new kid on the block did everything D&D was ever accused of, and then some...<br />
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Enter, <i>The</i> <i>Masquerade,</i> and overly gothed-out people, sitting in <i>proto</i> coffee shops, counting ten-sided dice, lamenting the loss of their souls..... </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I bought very few 2nd Edition modules. An adventure came with the DM's Screen (I think) and man did it suck. All story, fit for locomotion. But the 90's were all about story. I had friends that were trying to emulate novels.....they should have just <i>written </i>novels. </div>
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But the settings......Planescape......Dark Sun. Incredible!!! Well conceived, well written, well presented with gorgeous art. Tony DiTerlizzi's art <i>was</i> Planescape. Brom's art <i>was</i> Dark Sun. I stopped buying Planescape books when they stopped using DiTerlizzi's art, but most of it was out by then.<br />
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Splat books galore! The Complete This, The Complete That. I never bought any of these. </div>
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In many ways, the game was the same. Saving Throws were still old-school, class-based, roll over this number, poison, paralysis, etc. Armor Class was still descending. Spells and weapons now had speed factors, which added granularity to combat. Proficiencies (introduced in late 1st edition) became par for the course.<br />
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We loved it, I'd be lying if I said we didn't.<br />
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So, why is this the lost edition? Or is it not? (Someone reading this right now is saying, "Dude what the hell are you talking about, I've been playing 2nd Edition all along!?!?!") It's definitely the edition that I <i>hear</i> the least about (aside from 4th of course.) Is it because it's the middle child, crunched between 1st and 3rd, not quite a fulcrum? Or the end of the beginning, too old-school for the <i>modern</i> gamer, yet not old-school enough for the true grognard?<br />
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Maybe it's too tied to the 90's, a decade people have yet to wax nostalgic for. Before then, D&D was Heavy Metal and Pentagrams, Iron Maiden posters, Black Sabbath and Black Magic. SWORD & SORCERY!!! Things changed in the 90's. Metal became Grunge, Demons became Tanar'ri, Vampires became Heroes. In every medium, the focus became "<i>character development</i>."<br />
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Old school mechanics tempered by <i>storytelling</i> may have tainted 2E. And yet I remember when 5th Edition was in the works, there seemed to be a consensus that the edition it should emulate the most was 2nd (which I don't think it does at all, I view 5th Edition as a simplified hybrid of 3rd and 4th.)<br />
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No doubt there are many players out there that still love it, but other than THAC0 and settings, 2nd Edition does seem kind of.....forgotten. (There is a clone out there, but the name escapes me.)<br />
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So for awhile there, I found myself browsing the internet for good copies of those <b>2nd Edition</b> books......(oh yeah, not the ugly, black-covered "2.5" edition.)<br />
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Had I bought those books again, would I have cringed? Is there some hidden turd I forgot about? Or perhaps I'd be blown away and feverishly start creating 2nd Edition content.....<br />
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But why even bother now that we're well into the enlightened Age of the OSR, DIY D&D, especially when I already own so many "editions" including great games created by other bloggers and OSR enthusiasts, not to mention my own ability to create?<br />
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We'll see.....<br />
<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">End Original Post</span></div>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">That "clone" I spoke of is called <i>For Gold & Glory. </i>I never bought it or the 2nd Edition books.<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The intro module was called <i>Terrible Trouble At Tragidore</i>. I still have it in a box, and, holy shit was it stupid. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Planescape had so much potential. The Blood-War was dumb; you shouldn't ever know that much about demons and devils, they should be vague and terrifying and evil to the core. I loved the art and I'm convinced it is the main reason for Planescape's success. Sigil, conceptionally should/could have been the greatest city/mega-dungeon of all time. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Some people say Dragonlance was the true beginning of the end of old-school... at least Dragonlance had phenomenal art. Yes, art will always be a part of the equation for me. The art experience of 2nd Edition Core and the books/novels that followed was atrocious. This was mainly a product of the times though. Throughout the 80s, fantasy art became sterilized. Nudity disappeared. The fabulous paintings of the 70s and early 80s were no more, driven away by the church-lady and the corporate desire to be family-friendly.<br /><div><br /></div><div>I would love to see the AD&D hardcovers reprinted with the art of Frank Frazetta and the likes of Simon Bisley... unabashedly, unapologetically, strong and sexy! This would be the greatest thing of all time. Based on that alone, I would play nothing else.</div><div><br /></div><div>As I said in my last post, it is up to you to un-bland D&D.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Gabor is right, the <i>spirit</i> of 2nd Edition is not old-school... but what you do with it can be.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>
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GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-91595754144459165482022-10-27T20:42:00.000-07:002022-10-27T20:42:11.825-07:00Clerics!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZukmxor7M5SaK_it-9JxZHd0l4Zy6hgrBabJy25jHlPe2ItWuKoiYdogyQG9k8MAHnJ-cKNJzBrLc24lQBp7edyd7TUxWgr3PqoaLZTbGjiCTPn2fkFHh_d7in6M-vP2j0byddZRWseN8m1IJjRQLAk1TA3NN8bklwPGzsHoyiRcqrC6xS2PeEpUOw/s1888/clericcross%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1888" data-original-width="1388" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZukmxor7M5SaK_it-9JxZHd0l4Zy6hgrBabJy25jHlPe2ItWuKoiYdogyQG9k8MAHnJ-cKNJzBrLc24lQBp7edyd7TUxWgr3PqoaLZTbGjiCTPn2fkFHh_d7in6M-vP2j0byddZRWseN8m1IJjRQLAk1TA3NN8bklwPGzsHoyiRcqrC6xS2PeEpUOw/w294-h400/clericcross%20(2).jpg" width="294" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">It is up to you to un-bland D&D.</span></div><p>Clerics are so uniquely D&D (which is the first place I even encountered the <i>word</i> cleric.)</p><p>Righteous warriors.</p><p>Bane of the undead.</p><p>Healers of pain.</p><p>Fanatics! Zealots!... At least there's the <i>potential</i> for such flavor.</p><p>So MEDIEVAL. Oh how modern D&D has forgotten (more likely -- abandoned/disowned) it's gritty medieval roots -- too European. (Actually D&D is a mixture of Medieval Europe and American Sword & Sorcery.)</p><p>I can't imagine D&D without clerics.</p><p>I want no part of D&D without clerics.</p><p>The MACE is their weapon. What better to crush bone? And as skeletons are the foot-soldiers of evil... </p><p>The undead... <i>turn</i> them you say? Suppose turning undead merely held them at bay, slightly cowering, as if from a bright flash of light, not destroy or cause them to flee. Kind of like the old Hammer Horror movies such a notion is actually based on where <i>turning</i> is usually something you do as <i>you</i> are trying to flee.</p><p>Suppose, clerics simply did more damage to undead. Double damage. And this can even increase with levels. So, they're still a weapon and undead are still a threat. In B/X, skeletons are made obsolete as soon as you have a 2nd level cleric... that's no fun.</p><p>In my imagination, clerics will always explicitly be a Roman Catholic styled class. I know, specialty priests and all that. And what of <i>weird</i> D&D, <i>Dying Earth</i> as opposed to Medieval Europe? Well you do you. But, I like having the Church, and demons, and witches, and black magic, and plagues, and crosses. All built on top of the <i>ruins</i> of the ancient, <i>weird</i> stuff... </p><p>Sects devoted Saints, Angels, Apostles... </p><p>And yes, CROSSES, not generic, good guy, holy-symbol crap. Actual crosses. And blood spilled in the name of those crosses. Wars and inquisitions. Saints and sinners. Heretics! There is a reason demi-humans live in the shadows of man... with <i>some</i> plotting their violent return.</p><p>And no spells. Spells are the realm of black magic (though some wizards may beg to differ, speaking of formulas and such.) Just prayers. And no spell books... <i>Holy Missals</i>.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Of note: We always treated cleric spell knowledge like magic-users, meaning, you knew what you knew and didn't get to pray for whatever spell you wanted that day. But, if you think about it, a cleric should be able to pray for anything at any time. Their "spells" are direct pleas to their God for help with a very specific problem. Why clerics have to prepare spells is beyond me, <i>unless</i> it involves making sure they have properly memorized a prayer, of which, looking at the real world, there are hundreds, all serving a different purpose. How much time spent to memorize all of those? Most people, who know any, only know a few. </li></ul><p></p><p>I love the concept of a squad of clerics, all clad in plate and chain, coifs are a must as well as a common tabard, delving deep to purge the unholy. A medieval crew, not unlike <i>this</i> book: <i>VAMPIRE$</i>.</p><p>The type of flavor, devotion, and fanaticism I want, <i>Warhammer</i> does better, <i>Sisters of Battle</i> and such. It is up to you to un-bland D&D.</p><p>Just some ruminations as I scratched pen to paper.</p><p><br /></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921278807882002991.post-91694294198697147192022-10-20T06:40:00.000-07:002022-10-20T06:40:44.570-07:009th Grade Lunch Hour Campaign<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoOo4pHmIXKBIgDCy5ZzOeNY_cpEotf9ELNhxQ3676Juj2YtbeT0I5nN330DpfjfKg5p9tjZUAlCZCYCzrBa1qkbhl-7x5CS0US4XSPzK_rjDRBh4zZxtFD7sqvfgTBEMYAlz98CWvzIb3xeUVON7JCLum0HFhcMn31_CJFEg2I1ryO-JjlrVbMFYjw/s1712/DMme%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1712" data-original-width="1232" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoOo4pHmIXKBIgDCy5ZzOeNY_cpEotf9ELNhxQ3676Juj2YtbeT0I5nN330DpfjfKg5p9tjZUAlCZCYCzrBa1qkbhl-7x5CS0US4XSPzK_rjDRBh4zZxtFD7sqvfgTBEMYAlz98CWvzIb3xeUVON7JCLum0HFhcMn31_CJFEg2I1ryO-JjlrVbMFYjw/w288-h400/DMme%20(2).jpg" width="288" /></a></div><p>This was the beginning of the heart of my early D&D years (1987-1991). AD&D specifically.</p><p>In the first semester of the first year of high school, we all had the same lunch period (a half-hour labeled either A, B, or C.) </p><p>The same school at the same time as a certain rapper named Marshal.</p><p>The year was 1987. (I was introduced to the game back in 1983 with the Mentzer Red Box.)</p><p>Players ranged in number from 3-5 depending on the day. The main three consisted of a thief, a mage, and a cleric. I, of course, was the DM. </p><p>Now, there were no dice. This was the 80s, this was stealth mode. We weren't afraid of the, <i>Satanic Panic</i>, but we <i>were</i> afraid of being labeled dorks, so dice bouncing around the lunch room was out of the question. (There was a secret society aspect to D&D in the 80s that has been forever lost.)</p><p>I had a page full of dice-ranges written down, a few charts per die type, for example, there were three or four d20 tables that looked like this:</p><p></p><div style="text-align: center;">1:2</div><div style="text-align: center;">2:16</div><div style="text-align: center;">3:12</div><div style="text-align: center;">4:11</div><div style="text-align: center;">5:6</div><div style="text-align: center;">6:20</div><div style="text-align: center;">7:1</div><div style="text-align: center;">8:17</div><div style="text-align: center;">9:13</div><div style="text-align: center;">10:19</div><div style="text-align: center;">11:3</div><div style="text-align: center;">12:7</div><div style="text-align: center;">13:14</div><div style="text-align: center;">14:8</div><div style="text-align: center;">15:4</div><div style="text-align: center;">16:5</div><div style="text-align: center;">17:10</div><div style="text-align: center;">18:15</div><div style="text-align: center;">19:18</div><div style="text-align: center;">20:9</div><div><br /></div><div>I would pick a number on a chart then ask for a number from the player to determine their roll. Every so often, I would create new charts to prevent the players from figuring out successful numbers. Such a system depends on trust. Sometimes we would just flip a coin. (Interestingly enough, the year before, in 8th grade, myself and a different group were already experimenting with dice-less role-playing, something that did not stick with me.)</div><div><br /></div><div>We had a basic world map, hand drawn on a blank sheet of white paper. We all took turns adding things to it, including additional pages that were taped on. Basically, the world grew with pages of mountains and forests and castles and towns as we passed the map around in between sessions. This was mainly done by myself and the guy who played the thief... speaking of: He was a real world kleptomaniac who would go around stores after school solely for the thrill of stealing. His ultimate dream for his character was to find a, <i>ring of invisibility</i>, his, <i>precious</i>, something I withheld from giving to him for quite some time. He had to earn such an artifact. Often he would ask if he was close to getting one. Often, I would say no. But eventually, in the hall, at my locker, I don't remember, I let slip the place it might be hiding, and the quest was on.</div><div><br /></div><div>What I remember of the mage was that he wanted to be able to spin his staff like a martial artist. I eventually let him achieve this unlikely skill. He also once had a dream where I resembled <i>Dungeonmaster</i> from the D&D cartoon.</div><div><br /></div><div>The cleric wasn't what you would call a gamer but played anyway. His "rolls" were always the luckiest and his character progressed the fastest to the slight annoyance of the others. He passed his <i>Test of High Sorcery</i> long before the mage did.</div><div><br /></div><div>The players started out as a group, but eventually split up and scattered to different parts of the map on their own personal quests. Everyday they would each get 5-10 minutes of time as I went from player to player to player and back again. As I mentioned above, both the cleric and the mage had to undergo <i>Tests of High Sorcery</i> at various towers (a heavy influence from Dragonlance here; can't wait for WoTC to ruin <i>that</i>) and the thief was obsessed with infiltration missions, oh how this guy reveled in being a thief.</div><div><br /></div><div>I drew no dungeons, there were no maps beyond the world map. All I had were scant notes and prompts as to what might happen. Everything else was in my head. Never again, would I play the game this way. And never again would I play outside of my, or a friend's, house.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was all cool, but by December I was burned out, and beginning in January (2nd semester) I would pass the reins on to another friend who now shared our lunch. This angered <i>everyone</i>, because honestly, none of them cared much for this guy. They would call me at home or meet with me secretly in the hallway, begging me to take back the reins. They complained that he was turning the game into a fairytale... in my absence, something happened involving flowers, that was their breaking point. He simply didn't have the same source-material pedigree that the rest of us had.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, I took control again and promptly went on to fail algebra.</div><div><br /></div><div>Game on!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p></p>GraphitePrimehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09421744270267400827noreply@blogger.com1