Gygax Challenge Part 2

It's January of a new year.  This means a new beginning!  It's time to get working on things.  I know the hallowed halls of the 3 Toadstools pub & eatery have been awfully quiet.  I apologize patrons, It's been a bit of a thing.  I lost my mojo for gaming for awhile and wallowed in the muck of this forever pan.... you know what we are not going to talk about that are we!  What we are going to talk about is that I decided to redo the gygax challenge created by Mr. Ray Otus Plundergrounds • A podcast on Anchor

Ray set this all on fire a few years ago (maybe last year? no one is counting at this point).  If you would like to participate again go here: The Gygax 75 Challenge by Ray Otus (itch.io)

So without further ado, I restarted and this is what I've got.  

The Pitch

*the dree (druids) have seen dark omens. They fear the return of the horde.
*the people of straybal are celtic\viking albeit more civilized. Each hold is ruled individually. They follow ancient traditions
*magic is light and dark. Light (clerics) is nature influenced. Practiced by druids or dree. Dark is elemental practiced by sorcerers who are shunned.
*years ago the people of straybal fought off the hordes. There remains a guard tower near the river always watching. It is forbidden to cross it.
*no elves, dwarves or halflings…they died out years ago and are mostly fairy tales now.
*grimdark setting, low magic. People eek out a living in the harsh climate.

The Map

I have a few plans for the map, still working thru the details.  I haven't decided if I'm going to complete it yet.  I may work on it as the adventures progress.  I would like to put a mountain range and a valley to the north of the manor.  I need at least one other small settlement as well. 

The Inspiration 

Having just finished the Witcher season 2, this whole thing is very much in that vein.  I went ahead and created a mood board on pinterest here: Pinterest

My hope is to have this basically a Celtic society living in the northern reaches, they are a weee bit more civilized than vikings.  Although they still keep to the old ways as far as gods are concerned. 

Speaking of gods I'm pulling directly from the 2e Legends & Lore book

My hope is to complete the challenge and start running it by the end of Feb.  I will likely post a few more details about this whole process as the month progresses.   I know this is a little bit all over the place writing wise, but I think it will be fun! 

Long story short the idea is to be very grimdark, northern slightly civilized society dealing with Celtic monsters, folklore and religion.  I will likely throw a bit of He-Man in there for good measure. 

Elf trances

 James West is working on cool stuff. http://doomslakers.blogspot.com/2021/12/doomslakers-project.html

I remember starting this challenge in the g plus days. There's likely some posts on this blog from then. 

I dunno if I'm doing this but I started thinking about elves today. 

Elves don't sleep, mostly because of the cheer amount of coffee they drink. Instead they go into a deep caffeinated trance.

1.  Detect magic with 2 miles.

2.  Heal 2 + 1 hp per level

3.  Find source of food and water.

4.  Find a solution to the next quest or puzzle.

5.  One extra first level spell for the day.

6.  Increase save VS spells for one day. 

7.  Lightfoot gain sneak thief ability for a day.

8.  Gain power to turn undead for a day.

9.  Commune with elfin home or nature.

10.  Well that's as far as I got on my lunch break....

In other news, the art punk contest is complete and released. 

https://princeofnothingblogs.wordpress.com/2021/12/11/hype-no-artpunk-vol-1-is-out/

The start of a greyhawk campaign

 I just started a new 2nd edition campaign using the Blue greyhawk boxed set. I originally intended on running a 1st level adventure from the book. "tears at the orphanage" where the players need to go out a collect presents for orphans for an upcoming festival. The players totally blew holes in the adventure and didn't take bait Hahahah. I wrote up a few of the 30 artisans they were supposed to visit.

Gran mamier : makes snow globes. It takes 6 knocks before she answers the door. You can see her pulling back the curtains every knock, but disregards the outside. She eventually opens the door but is very skittish.

Brolach the baker : sweet treats for children. The shop is super busy and the PC's are asked to wait. It is suggested they have a sweet treat while they wait. The treats contain a hallucinogens and the PC's trip balls for a half hour.

Cobbler : makes wooden toys. The Oldman is desperately trying to move a large stump from the lane into his workshop. He refuses to give anything to the PC's unless they help him. He complains that the delivery men just left the stump, didn't even wait for a signature! He keeps trying to move it with all his might, but it won't budge.

Tailor : fancy hair accessories and wristbands. The tailor is hard of hearing and thinks the PC's are trying to rob him. He yells till the night watchmen show up.

Merchant : she can't remember agreeing to giving away presents to orphans. It may take some convincing but she will eventually give the PC's money to buy gifts, expecting change back.  She claims she has no time to do it herself. She will feed the PC's biscuits. 

I'll post a rundown of what has happened soon. It's been pretty hilarious. It's become a bit of an evil campaign. 

Troika! - ISMs (A sneak peak)

I have 2 projects currently on the go, which I've been trading off writing each.  The following are excerpts for the Troika! project.  

Locations

The Cottage of Bullwark the minotaur:  From a distance the cottage is quite noticeable.  It stands on the edge of ploughed fields and is double the size of any normal cottage.  The doors are eight feet tall.  Living here is Bullwark, a minotaur of grand renown.  In the past he was a great adventurer, now in his retirement years he tends to his wheat fields and flock of sheep. He has recently sold off most of his fleece and hay, and is living the good life of a job well done.  He can be found relaxing in a grandiose hammock behind his cottage.

Village Encounters

1)  Drunken disorderly soldier accosting a merchant for more pay.

2)  Thief trying to pawn a mysterious gem.

3)  A street brawl.

4)  Dog chasing a cat.

5)  Building on fire.

6)  Funeral procession.

7)  Merchant having trouble trying to load a cart.

8)  Magical duel.

9)  A lady being carried off by thugs.

10)  Town crier – rumour mill

11)  Preacher.

12)  Fortune teller.

13)  Traveling circus.

Forest Encounters 

Grove of the fore fathers:  4 wooden statues, busts of former leaders.  Fox, Mouse, Badger & Bear.  (Blessings can be receive here by paying one gold piece in an offering plate.  One plate below each statue).  Adds temp stamina and restores luck.

A few backgrounds

Foxian Ranger

You are the last of the famous redwood rangers.  Quick with a bow and arrow.  Your home is the forest, and you have a love for growing things. 

Skills:  Tracking 1, Trapper 1, Archery 2, Sneak 2, Climb 1. 

Possessions:  Bow, Camouflage Cloak 

Bear Brawler

You made a name for yourself wrestling, the reward was always a jar of fresh honey. 

Skills:  Strength 3, Weapon Fighting 2, Swim 1

Possessions:  Club, nice pillow for napping, jar of honey (a luck potion!).  

Raccoon Pilferer

If it’s shiny or smells good (or bad) you want it, usually by nefarious means. 

Skills:  Secret Signs 1, Traps 1, Sneak 1, Climb 1, Awareness 1, Locks 1, Slight of Hand 2, Acrobatics 1. 

Possessions:  Lucky dagger, lock picks, large sack. 

White lightning

 I've been re-reading my old 2e books, and I want to start planning a campaign.  But more importantly I want to re-start my DM binder and start filling it with things, world building, npcs etc.  One of the most important things in my brain is to pick a system when you start designing stuff (honestly its this weird ADD thing... its probably not that important).  

Couldn't sleep last night as my brain was filled with D&D ideas.  Here's the train of thought before bed: 

1.  5e group really hasn't had much time to play latetly, all good.  But its been leaving me thinking that I need a creative outlet for the upcoming winter months.  I just bought witchlight (review forthcoming). 

2.  I decided to post on a few forums "looking for players".  The plan would be discord only, as I'm not the best with roll20. 

3.  I started thinking about working on a small area to start with for a 2e campaign.  Nothing grand.  Just like in the bx rules, create a homebase, a dungeon and go from there.  

Made a decision to work on a map today after I got home from work.  I wanted it to be in the style of: 

https://samwise7rpg.blogspot.com/2020/08/lotfp-maps-part-2.html?m=1

and this: https://sites.google.com/view/dragonsmarch/home

specifically this: https://sites.google.com/view/dragonsmarch/whispglow-sw-basic?authuser=0

then I read this post this evening: https://theymightbegazebos.blog/2021/10/25/the-tale-of-two-dm-notebooks/

Wound up with something a little bit more Tron like: 

I've often talked about how If I ever run another game it would be very rules light because my brain just can't do number crunching anymore.  

Then I stumbled onto this interesting post, which is basically suggesting that If you blow away all the optional rules you are playing a basic version of D&D.  Which I like!  

https://www.reddit.com/r/adnd/comments/oxa9mz/why_you_should_try_add_2e_without_optional_rules/

Which has lead me to realize that I should infact create a https://www.reddit.com/r/adnd/comments/qb69hz/2e_rules_reminderplayer_handout/

for any newbies or as a reminder of what the "house rules" will be.  

Now while I'd like to use and work on my 10 monster setting.  I think what I'm going to fill my DM binder with is just some traditional fantasy stuff.  I was thinking about the Gygax Challenge last night, and maybe using that as a bit of inspiration to get writing in the binder.  I likely will at some point.  However what was really making me wonder was my very first games of D&D, and my first writing.  Where did it come from?  In the gygax challenge you are supposed to note your references for your world.  In mine I was talking about Xanth, and strange fantasy novels that I've read over the years.  But what did 14 year me know about fantasy back then? 

What was my initial appendix n? 

fighting fantasy books (The green spined ones), the art from the 2e books, Forgotten realms setting, dragonlance novels, he-man, GI joe (I was a huge fan, not sure if it counts, but this is my blog so I guess?).  

I'll take a picture of my binder when I have time. 

Tomorrow's plan write up a 2nd edition Artifact.  The day after write up an NPC (Bullwark the minotaur). 

Nifty OSR Products Oct 1

YEAH! It's October! Here's hoping we don't have snow on Halloween this year.  Currently we are actually above normal temps, but that can change in an instant. 

Rather than finding the newer OSR stuff, I decided to do a bit more of a deep dive this morning to see what I could find. 

Scourge of the Demon Wolf

Three died. They were mauled beyond recognition. The Baron sent his huntsmen to kill the beasts and for a fortnight they tramped across the countryside. Between their whoring and drinking they killed twelve wolves, parading their skins through the village. They were hung on poles as trophies of victory. Then the huntsmen left, the beasts slain, the village saved… so we thought.

As the fields turned golden under the summer sun the killings began again. Four more died. Then the Baron's man, the bailiff, was killed on the high meadow in sight of Mitra's Temple. His screams could be heard well into the village. He was only identified after we reassembled the pieces.

With the priest's help I wrote a report to our liege, the Baron of Westtower. My report ended with,

There will be no harvest until the beast is slain and the killings stopped.

A 72 page adventure compatible with the Swords & Wizardry  rules and a setting supplement to the Majestic Wilderlands. detailing a small barony, a complete fantasy village, a conclave of mages, a crossroads hamlet, and a camp of wandering beggars.

GET IT

Talespinner magazine, Issue One

Talespinner is a magazine dedicated to roleplaying gamespublished by Ganesha Games (Tales of Blades and Heroes, Familiars RPG). Playable materials are double-statted for Labyrinth Lord (tm) so they can be used by players of "Old School" games. In this issue:

Three short fantasy adventures ("The Crystal Heart", "Knock on Wood", and "The Crumbling Tower", all for low-power player-characters);

 

Swimming Rules for TBH;

New character types for Familiars RPG;

Monster Menagerie: Swamp Trolls (for TBH and LL);

The Martial Artist archetype for TBH;

Sneak Peek: Heroes of the Tales (TBH supplement);

Alternative Initiative rules for TBH;

GET IT

Attack of the Frawgs

"The thing I love about Stephen Newton's Attack of the Frawgs is that you think everything's fine. This is just another adventure. Everything's cool. Nothing too unusual. Nothing crazy. Good ol' vanilla fantasy.  But when the frawgs hit the fan... all bets are off. Best "holy shit" reveal I've seen for DCC yet." 

GET IT 

Hex Crawl Chronicles 3: Beyond Black Water (Swords and Wizardry)

When the game was invented and sold in a little woodgrain box, the author told us a required supplement was an Avalon Hill game called Outdoor Survival. This was a wilderness survival game that consisted of a hexagonal map system that players would travel around, trying to find their way back to civilization, all the while trying not to die of thirst or get eaten by bears. This game map was used as the first wilderness "hex-crawl" for what eventually became D&D. Later, Judges Guild took this to a whole new level with the Wilderlands series. For many years, hex crawling was just the way the game was played. This series brings that back, or supplements existing games that use that system of travel.

GET IT

The Purple Worm Graveyard

It is said that when the largest and most ancient of purple worms know that the time of their death is near, they make their way through rock, earth, and water to the legendary Purple Worm Graveyard.

The graveyard is said to lie somewhere in the barren Rockspyre mountains, but its exact location is unknown. Now and then an adventuring expedition sets out on a hunch or clue seeking the graveyard. Most return empty-handed and dispirited. Some never return.

But a few, just enough to keep the legend alive really, come back with whispered tales of subterranean fields littered with a fortune in purple ivory, unguarded and ripe for the take.

The Purple Worm Graveyard is a short dungeon crawl adventure that's best for levels 1-4. The adventure has 15 entries and is designed to provide a variety of challenges for a new adventuring party or one-shot game. It's got fabulous treasures, cunning monsters, dangerous traps, and ancient mysteries for players to discover and explore. It's written using the Labyrinth Lord rules, but will work with any dungeon crawl adventure game.

GET IT

Shadowbrook Manor

This Labyrinth Lord adventure is suitable for characters of levels 1-3, and is usable with similar basic or advanced fantasy role-playing games.
Once a powerful proponent of Law, the Archmage Tazimack the Red was eventually driven mad by a fear of mortality. As he slipped into insanity his retirement home began to reflect the chaotic bent of his mind. Long after Tazimack's unnaturally animated body has disintegrated, his manor house remains as a shadow cast by a twisted intellect. Can the characters bring order to this chaos?

GET IT

Creatures of the Tropical Wastes (Mutant Future)

Do you need more monsters and mutations for your postapocalyptic, sci-fi, or fantasy game? If so, Creatures of the Tropical Wastes is what you are looking for!

Fully compatible with Mutant Future - as well as Labyrinth Lord and other games that use the familiar and easy-to-use "Basic" role-playing game rules introduced in the 1970s - this collection includes:

* A Foreword by Derek Holland, author of several licensed Mutant Future sourcebooks.

* 50 new creatures, including the mysterious Ahas Folk, the insidious Egret Puppeteer, and the fearsome War Baboy.

* 30 new mutations, including numerous Plant mutations.

* Official Mutant Future Poison and Radiation Tables for convenience of reference.

* Original illustrations by fantasy artist Sharon Daugherty

GET IT

End of September update

The current 5e group I'm in is made up of co-workers, we've been playing online every other week for awhile now.  We are currently in Ravinica which is a lot of fun.  My first PC died mostly because I didn't really like him, and we needed a healbot/thief.  What I'm really diggin about these folks is the following:  We are fast and loose with the rules (ie no one is looking up things in a rule book).  We spend a lot of time giggling and roleplaying.  

Having used roll20 and google hangouts (or whatever its called now) I have to say Discord is probably one of the best options for doing non irl table top stuff.  Minus the whole map thing (which I'm sure there is a work around).  I noticed the other day on youtube a tutorial about playing nerd games using discord.... hold on for my google fu, ah here we go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Yg-GyrcccI

The other day on a total lark, and I mean total lark (I never buy things for myself, and I never buy things without researching them) I went ahead and bought "The Wild Beyond the Witchlight" for 5e. 

OH NO! SHANE'S LEFT THE OSR! 

Nah not at all kids!  Don't worry.  This is actually the FIRST real thing I've bought for 5e other than the starter set.  I was gifted the DMG and PHB from a previous group.  

Do not fret good folks, I actually just downloaded this amazing organizational software for writing: https://bibisco.com/

I'm trying to nail down the Gygax 75 challenge into a real thing.  I'm currently amalgamating ideas that I had written on the blog and in other various places (like notebooks and random google drive and libreoffice files).  The one thing I did wrong when I started the challenge in the first place was that I didn't decide on the sytem (sometimes I get analysis paralysis).  That and my ADD kicked in and I switched gears like I always do.  The good news is this software allows me to jump from thing to thing quickly.  As long as I maintain some focus on the overall idea.  

I'm trying to write something every morning for 15 minutes. 

Whether its shit or not. 

I'll hire an editor hahah. 

In other random news, I think I'm going to try and get some kinda roll20 western marches, marsh's? marshmellows? type game thing happening.  What my thought this morning was, was to basically use all the awesome online generating tools to build a hexcrawl and then let the players be in the drivers seat. 

Could be fun? 

It could also be my brain having the morning coffee kick in.

Mostly its because I'm not currently DMing a game, and that muscle is something I need to flex once in awhile.  

Anyways I'm off to work.  

Good news I restrung my strat yesterday and I've got it down to about 8 minutes.  That's almost pit crew level!