Author Archives: the venomous pao

Happy Stand-Alone-Aversary To Me!

Cthulhu Cake

Cthulhu Cake by raingirllori on Flickr

One year ago today I cut the cord from WordPress.com and launched this here “stand alone” iteration of StrangeStones.com. It’s been an eventful year, complete with several job changes and a period of savings-breaking unemployment (which, on the plus side, yielded much more content than I’ve been able to produce since rejoining the workforce, c’est la guerre).

I keep hoping I’ll be able to get back into a serious swing, but for the moment, all I have to offer is my charming demeanor and the occasional tidbit for whatever game catches my fancy at the moment. With any luck, the impending arrival of a shiny new (and deeply discounted) HP TouchBook will somehow make my life easier and I’ll be able to bang out even more fun stuff for your twisted little eyes to feast upon.

Meanwhile, why not spin your way through some of the Strange Stones back catalog, like the Demons of Adad Untash (demony goodness for Labyrinth Lord), the Labyrinth Lord Rogues Gallery, Tlactoztlan (a Meso American setting for Barbarians of Lemuria), my series of 5 Room Dungeons for Mini Six/Open D6, or the Downloads page (where, amongst the other artifacts, you can find regular reader G-Man’s outstanding BoL adventures)?

I won’t even attempt to predict the future of what you might find here at Strange Stones, but if the stars are really right and the Big C himself doesn’t come eat my soul, there might just be some more Nogoloth, November Company, and Narakam action headed your way. Or maybe just some stuff that doesn’t start with the letter N.

Cheers, amigos!

Mini Six Character: Dirty Dan McCallum

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for a theoretical Mini Six-powered western.

Arguably the nicest bounty hunter on either side of the Mississippi, Daniel McCallum earned his nickname because of his perpetually dust-covered clothes, not because of his demeanor. Dan has more than once let a bounty go free when there’s a good hard-luck story involved. Truth be told, Dan is a might bit gullible and word is starting to get out to that effect. Fortunately, McCallum doesn’t actually need the money he stands to collect from any given bounty – that money he stole from the Union Army payroll back in the Civil War keeps him quite comfortable. Of course, there’s always a chance that someone might put two and two together…

Daniel “Dirty Dan” McCallum
Just about the nicest bounty hunter in the west
Might 2D+2 Agility 3D+2
Wit 2D Charm 3D+2
Skills: Lifting 3D, Brawling 4D, Dodge 4D+1, Riding 4D, Pistols 4D, Lasso 4D, Streetwise 4D, Survival 3D, Tracking 3D, Con 4D, Disguise 4D, Animal Handling 4D, First Aid 2D+1
Perks: Wealthy
Complications: Skeletons In The Closet
Gear: Colt .45 (4D+1), Sawed Off 12-guage (6D), Bowie Knife (3D), Horse
Static: Dodge 13, Block 9, Parry 8
Strength Damage: 2D
Body Points: 32
Armor: Leather Longcoat (3)

BotA Character: Jong-Kyu, The Jade Horseman

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for Narakam, his Barbarians of the Aftermath setting.

Riding south from the shining city of Bu – the last bastion of science and technology in the outer realms – comes Jong-Kyu, the Jade Horseman. A powerful warrior with the heart of a poet and the calculating mind of a scientist, Jong-Kyu seeks to uncover the true, scientific history of Narakam. The Jade Horseman fears no creature of the wastes nor any science or magic possessed by the Varna or the Deva. This bold adventurer’s thirst for knowledge will bring him to the Gates of Wisdom and the Doors of Understanding, and though those temples be guarded by powers unguessed, Jong-Kyu will conquer them or die trying.

Jong-Kyu / Lifeblood 12 / Hero Points 5
Genotype: Pariah (Wastelander Human)
Attributes: Strength 2 Agility 1 Mind 2 Appeal 0
Combat Abilities: Brawl 0 Melee 2 Ranged 1 Defense 1
Careers: Barbarian 1, Beast Rider 1, Scientist 1, Poet 1
Boons: The Strong Survive, Slasher
Flaws: Honorable
Languages: Pariah, Varna
Equipment: Light Pistol (d6), Sword (d6+2), Very Light Armor (d3-1)

BoL Character: Paragon

Wherein your humble scribe presents a Barbarians of Lemuria character he put together based on the theoretical protagonist of the classic pinball games Lost World and Paragon.

Descending from the cave cities of the Golden Cliffs, to challenge the dragons of Pal, comes Paragon! Cursed with a chaotic touch of blood madness by the demon Gorgar after defeating the denizens of the Valley of Demons, Paragon stands out from the rest of humanity due to his powerful bat-like wings.

At the edge of the great waterfall, Paragon saved the life of Princess Balli, rescuing her from the slavering jaws of The Beast. Now, despite the reticence of King Faris, Paragon serves as her personal champion (and consort, oh yeah).

What bold adventures will Paragon face in the future? Will the king tire of his daughter’s infatuation with the untamed barbarian? None can say, except perhaps for the foul Gorgar, who still has plans for the bat-winged warrior…

Paragon / Lifeblood 14 / Hero Points 5
Attributes: Strength 2 Agility 1 Mind 1 Appeal 0
Combat Abilities: Brawl 1 Melee 2 Ranged 0 Defense 1
Careers: Barbarian 2, Tracker 1, Champion 1, Noble 0
Boons: Flight (Bat Wings), Hard to Kill
Flaws: Berserker Rage
Languages: Golclish, Pallian
Equipment: Sword (d6+2), Battle Axe (d6+4), Light armor, d3 (Battle Harness, Helmet)

Swords & Sorcery Pinball

Remember pinball? The folks at Pinballz Arcade in Austin sure do. They’ve got some great older games, including a Star Trek: The Motion Picture-themed machine and one for the Six Million Dollar Man. But the coolest stuff had to be these crazy late 70s/early 80s fantasy-flavored games.

Lost World and Paragon appeared to be part of a series featuring the same horned-helmet wearing barbarian who just happened to be gifted with leathery, green bat wings. I wanna play that guy. Actually, there might just be an entire setting that could be built from the names and situations show on these pinball machines. I’ll have to go back to Pinballz with more of an eye towards making notes sometime.

Sadly, the Gorgar machine was out of order today. But it’s bound to be aces, too.

Mini Six Character: Meudwy Caerwyn

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for Anglia – the 100 Years War/Dark Fairy Tale England setting he busted out on the unsuspecting Mini Six players a few weeks back. Will anything further come of it? Who the hell knows? 🙂

Meudwy Caerwyn, or Caerwyn the Hermit, makes his home in a cave nearly a day’s walk east of Dinas Tylluan. This strange old man – not unfriendly, just very odd – avoids the company of men whenever possible, preferring instead to spend his days talking with the beasts and birds of the valley. He hunts when necessary, but more often subsists on hearty root vegetables he finds in the nearby forest. Caerwyn loves to tell the story of the time he mistook the fairy ring for regular mushrooms and the bickering that took place amongst the pixies when they found their meeting place had become a delectable stew. The hermit doesn’t quite know how close he came to death that night, which might explain why he sleeps so well at night.

Meudwy Caerwyn
Hermit Mage Dinas Tylluan
Might 2D+1 Agility 3D+1
Wit 4D Charm 1D+1
Skills: Stamina 3D, Bow 3D+2, Dodge 4D+1, Magic 5D, Language: Fey 4D+1, Tracking 4D+1, Hunting 4D+1,
Perks: Sorcerer
Complications: Mad as a hatter
Gear: Bow (2D+2), Knife (2D)
Static: Dodge 13, Block 7, Parry 7
Strength Damage: 1D
Body Points: 32
Armor: Heavy Furs (2)
Spells: Beast Tongue, Heal

Fight On! #12 Is Out

Fight On! #12 Hey, look! Fight On! #12 is out. Yours truly just happens to have an article in this one. It’s my full(er) treatment of Planet of the Apes style apes as a race/class for Mutant Future.

This issue is dedicated to James M. Ward of Metamorphosis Alpha (and countless other things) fame, so its 88 pages are chock full of mutants, androids, robots, pure strain humans, and god knows what else. There’s a bunch of Rules variants, tables, adventures large and small, science fiction and fantasy, races, classes, monsters, spells, magic items, NPCs, history, opinion, and lore in there, so consider grabbing it. The fact that your humble scribe has a piece contained within is just an added bonus 🙂

Happy Birthday, Neptune!

Neptune as seen by Voyager 2 (image from NASA)

Neptune as seen by Voyager 2 (image from NASA)

As of today, Neptune – my second favorite planet (of the ones upon which I do not live) – marks the completion of its first full orbit around the sun since our earthly eyes discovered its existence. It’s a cool “Hooray science & mathematics!” type of story, if you don’t know it.

I hope El Santo Negro and some other brave luchas will save us from the Neptunian MonsterMen if they ever show up!

Mini Six Character: Eldryn of Kent

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for Anglia – the 100 Years War/Dark Fairy Tale England setting he busted out on the unsuspecting Mini Six players a few weeks back. Will anything further come of it? Who the hell knows? 🙂

A hardened veteran of many campaigns against the French, Eldryn of Kent settled down upon reaching his 46th year and now serves as a the captain of the guard for the inland trade center of Creighton. The sandy-haired, grey-eyed Eldryn possesses a few scars, but his handsome features remain mostly as they appeared when he was a younger man. Though unmarried, he enjoys the attentions of many of Creighton’s wealthier merchant’s daughters. An accomplished soldier and leader of men, it is generally assumed that Eldryn will eventually be named mayor of the town. Even those who should by all rights despise the man find that they are instead completely taken with him. How it is he came to know so much of the language of the fairies of the wood is a story even the gregarious captain himself never seems to get around to sharing.

Eldryn of Kent
Captain of the Guard in Creighton, Anglia
Might 2D+2 Agility 2D+2
Wit 2D+2 Charm 3D
Skills: Lifting 3D, Dodge 3D, Brawling 3D, Sword 3D+2, Longbow 3D+2, Riding 3D, Military Scholar 3D+2, Healing 3D, Language: Fey 3D, Command 4D
Perks: None
Complications: None
Gear: Longsword (4D+2), Longbow (4D+2)
Static: Dodge 9 (10), Block 8 (9), Parry 11 (12)
Strength Damage: 2D
Body Points: 30
Armor: Chainmail (+6) , Shield (+1 to static defenses)