Category Archives: Games

LL/AEC Rogues Gallery: More Fighters

Wherein your humble scribe presents another entry in his Labyrinth Lord/Advanced Edition Companion Rogues Gallery series. This time, it’s more Fighters. These characters are all 1st level, were granted maximum HP (Advanced Style), and have a bare minimum of equipment. They were all created with 3d6 for stats, more often than not in order. And, as is now commonplace, they all have some snappy headgear.

Gilby / Halfling Fighter 1 LG
Headgear: A tasseled black hood
STR 13 INT 10 WIS 5 DEX 13 CON 13 CHR 12
HP 11 AC 5 Gold 60
Short Sword, Sling & 10 Bullets, Dagger, Studded Leather, Shield

Aethyn Starwillow / Elf Fighter 1 NG
Headgear: A daisy-yellow hood decorated with Norse runes
STR 16 INT 7 WIS 10 DEX 14 CON 9 CHR 6
HP 10 AC 4 Gold 10
Long Sword, Short Sword, Longbow & 20 Arrows, Dagger, Chain Mail

Kir Bralghan / Human Fighter 1 CG
Headgear: An open-faced helm adorned with tusks
STR 14 INT 9 WIS 11 DEX 12 CON 13 CHR 16
HP 10 AC 3 Gold 77
Battle Axe, 2 Hand Axes, Banded Mail, Shield

Maarlyne of the River People / Human Fighter 1 LN
Headgear: Bare, showing his amazing curly mane
STR 14 INT 12 WIS 7 DEX 13 CON 10 CHR 10
HP 10 AC 3 Gold 7
Spear, Silver Dagger, Short Bow & 20 Arrows, Chain Mail, Shield

Parl Joost / Human Fighter 1 N
Headgear: Bare, showing his impressive dreadlocks
STR 15 INT 10 WIS 8 DEX 12 CON 13 CHR 11
HP 11 AC 5 Gold 29
Mace, Light Crossbow & 10 Quarrels, Scale Mail, Shield

Dek The Bonecrusher / Half-Orc Fighter 1 CN
Headgear: A metal skullcap
STR 15 INT 7 WIS 11 DEX 13 CON 13 CHR 10
HP 11 AC 4 Gold 24
Heavy Flail, Scimitar, Dagger, Short Bow & 20 Arrows, Chain Mail

Stylix Freyn, Future Warlord / Human Fighter 1 LE
Headgear: A full-visor style great helm adorned with multicolored feathers
STR 18 INT 11 WIS 7 DEX 15 CON 15 CHR 7
HP 11 AC 2 Gold 7
Morning Star, Dagger, Banded Mail, Shield

Hourrun the Selfish / Gnome Fighter 1 NE
Headgear: A pure white turban
STR 16 INT 11 WIS 5 DEX 10 CON 11 CHR 11
HP 10 AC 9 Gold 17
Short Sword, Silver Dagger, Chain Mail, Shield

Kine / Half-Elf Fighter 1 CE
Headgear: A fancy top hat
STR 17 INT 12 WIS 12 DEX 12 CON 10 CHR 6
HP 10 AC 9 Gold 30
Pole Arm, Longsword, Dagger, Long Bow & 20 Arrows, Banded Mail, Shield

LL/AEC Rogues Gallery: More Magic-Users

Wherein your humble scribe presents another entry in his Labyrinth Lord/Advanced Edition Companion Rogues Gallery series. This time, it’s more Magic-Users. These characters are all 1st level, were granted maximum HP, and have a bare minimum of equipment. They were all created with 3d6 for stats, more often than not in order. And, as is now commonplace, they all have some snappy headgear.

Stavros / Human Magic-User 1 LG
Headgear: A pea green hood w/ long tassel that has a figurine of a ship
STR 6 INT 17 WIS 10 DEX 15 CON 9 CHR 11
HP 5 AC 8 Gold 111
Staff, Silver Dagger, 4 Darts, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Enlarge, Jarring Hand, Sleep

Sylania Sunsong / Elf Magic-User 1 NG
Headgear: A hat, the brim of which comes to points at the front and back
STR 8 INT 15 WIS 5 DEX 8 CON 13 CHR 13
HP 5 AC 9 Gold 110
Staff, Dagger, Spell Book, Owl Familiar
Magic-User Spells: Feather Fall, Read Langauges, Summon Familiar

Kir Dannos / Human Magic-User 1 CG
Headgear: None, showing his balding head
STR 10 INT 15 WIS 12 DEX 12 CON 13 CHR 15
HP 5 AC 9 Gold 147
2 Daggers, 4 Darts, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Jump, Manipulate Fire, Shocking Grasp

Loric / Half-Elf Magic-User 1 LN
Headgear: A short, conical hat
STR 13 INT 14 WIS 11 DEX 14 CON 10 CHR 13
HP 4 AC 8 Gold 113
Staff, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Light, Mending, Shield

Gedrald The Fisher / Human Magic-User 1 N
Headgear: A large beret
STR 11 INT 17 WIS 9 DEX 6 CON 12 CHR 14
HP 4 AC 9 Gold 93
Staff, Silver Dagger, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Allure, Floating Disc, Shield

Zadlo of Ghen / Human Magic-User 1 CN
Headgear: A long, heavy, dark brown scarf
STR 13 INT 18 WIS 5 DEX 14 CON 13 CHR 7
HP 5 AC 8 Gold 35
Silver Dagger, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Burning Hands, Erase, Unseen Servant

Maeryn Dawnwind / Elf Magic-User 1 LE
Headgear: A multi-colored (black, brilliant copper, ivory white) hood with a single tassel ending in a figurine of a skull
STR 10 INT 13 WIS 12 DEX 12 CON 10 CHR 10
HP 4 AC 9 Gold 128
Staff, Dagger, 4 Darts, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Feather Fall, Identify, Manipulate Fire

Occarlon, Seeker of Damned Words / Human Magic-User 1 NE
Headgear: An open-faced classic samurai helmet
STR 12 INT 15 WIS 8 DEX 13 CON 11 CHR 12
HP 4 AC 8 Gold 69
Silver Dagger, 2 Daggers, Spell Book
Magic-User Spells: Floating Disc, Message, Magic Missile

Faar Draal / Elf Magic-User 1 CE
Headgear: Bare, showing his shaved & tattooed head
STR 12 INT 16 WIS 8 DEX 15 CON 14 CHR 8
HP 5 AC 8 Gold 80
Staff, Dagger, Spell Book, Quasit Familiar
Magic-User Spells: Hold Portal, Jarring Hand, Summon Familiar

Nogoloth: The Decanter Of Black Rain

Wherein your humble scribe presents an artifact that he whipped up for his sadly dormant Lovecraftian Fantasy setting, Nogoloth. Though written with Barbarians of Lemuria in mind, it shouldn’t be too hard to convert this blasphemous creation for use in your game system of choice. Let me know if you do. I’d love to see how you implement it.

Deep within the disused storage area of the Library of Forbidden Wisdom at Great University in Khaarm one might find a small chest – made of well-oiled, darkly-stained wood and appointed with silver and unknown, faintly luminescent gemstones – the lock of which has been sealed with the blood-red wax emblem of the High Academic himself, inscribed in which is a sigil of dire warning. Within this ominous casket one will find a simple copper decanter, unadorned save for the indecipherable mark of its original creator. If any in Khaarm know of this relic’s existence, they steadfastly deny all such knowledge if interviewed. I know, for I spoke to them all. Only the half-mad caretaker of the 3rd basement would even admit to the possibility of such an item’s presence within the archives. Yet I know it to be there, for I have seen it in my dreams.

In my dreams I have caressed the sturdy wood of this container, and I have thrilled at the impossible to describe feel of it. Somehow it is both soothingly warm and tantalizingly cool to the touch, as though it were recently unearthed from both desert and tundra simultaneously.

The first night I dreamt of the box I woke with a start just after my fingers traced its lines, aware of a powerful yet instantly forgotten phrase that had just fled my consciousness.

On subsequent nights my dream lasted longer, and growing ever bolder in the dream I reached a point where I sliced the seal and opened the container, revealing the decanter within. Last night, as I slept, my dreamform sipped directly from the copper vessel, which was full despite not having been filled by human hands. When I awoke this morning, I felt a thirst I have never felt before. I had a taste for a draught that does not exist in the world of men. So powerful is this longing, this desire, this lust, that tonight I will abandon my dreams and make my way to the Library to rescue that which is rightfully mine from the depths of its imprisonment by the fools who call themselves seekers of wisdom.

It shall be mine again.

The Decanter Of Black Rain

The Decanter Of Black Rain pours forth pure void essence, which when consumed by sentient creatures grants them 2 Arcane Power (as the Power of the Void boon) but also reduces their Lifeblood by 1 point. After the bonus AP are used, the drinker’s maximum AP is reduced permanently by 1 point. Only by drinking from the Decanter again can the user of the Decanter elevate his AP back to its original (+2) value. This process continues, with Lifeblood and Arcane Powers continuing to diminish as outlined above as the Decanter continues to be used. Once an individual’s LB or AP have been reduced to zero by use of the Decanter he will be drawn into the Decanter itself, where his consciousness will merge with the void.

LL/AEC Rogues Gallery: The Iron Triumvirate

Wherein your humble scribe presents a trio of heroes from the City of Iron: an Elementalist, a Necromancer, and their otherwordly Fey companion. The writeups for these delightful Labyrinth Lord classes – and in some cases many of the spells they have access to – can be found at the aforementioned City of Iron. These characters are all 1st level, were granted maximum HP (Advanced Style), and have a bare minimum of equipment. They were all created with 3d6 for stats, more often than not in order. And, as is now commonplace, they all have some snappy headgear.

It’s well known that the City of Iron produces some odd adventurers. Perhaps it’s something in the rust-red water that flows in the River Vaign. Perhaps it’s got something to do with the odd gods who are worshipped there, like Assedh and Hegg. Or maybe it’s due to all of the magical research that goes on there. Whatever the cause, this small group of treasure-seekers has embarked on a great journey that could bring them fame & fortune or ignominious defeat. Their fate is in your hands now, gentle reader.

Mariax Terrlinium / Human Elementalist 1 CN
Headgear: Metal Skullcap
STR 6 INT 17 WIS 9 DEX 9 CON 14 CHR 13 HP 5 AC 9 Gold 133
 Quarterstaff, Silver Dagger, Spell Book
Elementalist Spells:
1st level: Summon Lesser Elementine, Seasong/Windsong/Firesong

Drakoth the Black / Human Necromancer 1 LN
Headgear: Three-Tasseled hat
STR 11 INT 15 WIS 13 DEX 12 CON 12 CHR 8 HP 4 AC 9 Gold 113
 Quarterstaff, Silver Dagger, Spell Book
Necromancer Spells:
1st level: Skeletal Servitor, Command Undead

Çurael / Fey 1 N
Headgear: Conical, plumed helmet
STR 14 INT 17 WIS 9 DEX 10 CON 10 CHR 7 HP 8 AC 9 Gold 35 
Long Sword, Short Bow & 20 Arrows, Chain Mail, Shield
Fey Spells:
1st level: Auditory Illusion, Doppleganger

The Reprints

Surely you’ve read by now that, come April, Wizards of the Coast will be releasing reprints of the AD&D Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide, and Monster Manual.

This is exciting news, even if I’m not entirely sure that I’m interested in purchasing reprints. I mean, I don’t need them. I’ve got my original books and I picked all of the old AD&D books up as PDFs back when WotC was selling them at RPGNow. I’m also not quite sure how I feel about the idea of new “commemorative” covers for these editions, but that will ultimately depend on the covers once we see them.

I’ll cop to having balked at the prices when I first saw them late last night, but in retrospect they’re not at all unreasonable. Assuming the books are solidly put together, that is. I’m inclined to believe they will be, of course. But it’ll be awfully hard to beat the bindings that were done on the originals. Those things might as well be wrapped in titanium!

So that’s that. It’s definitely a nice thing to have happen. And very surprising. Now if only WotC would put PDFs of all the old material back on sale. That would be truly awesome.

A Great List Of TFT Clones

The incomparable Narmer over at Dynasty Zero has put together a great list of TFT clones. You should be sure to check ’em out. TFT (The Fantasy Trip, if you don’t know the acronym) was the first game that I truly loved. I played it way more than I ever played any form of D&D when I was a kid. It completely dominated my youthful geekness (alongside Traveller) and is, in my opinion, one of the finest RPGs ever produced. It’s a cryin’ shame that it was never more widely known.

TFT is also, in case you’re not familiar with this part of RPG history, the progenitor of GURPS. It’s also much, much better as far as I’m concerned. It’s lighter, faster, and much more fun to play than its unwieldy offspring. And though I have no need of a clone of it, I highly recommend giving the game serious consideration if you’re looking to add something new to your repertoire.

AFF Rogues Gallery 2: Magic Users!

Wherein your humble scribe, upon returning to topics that actually interest him, presents four characters for Advanced Fighting Fantasy 2 – one for each of the available magic systems in the game. These folks were all rolled up randomly (per the optional rules in Chapter 11), and have a bare minimum of equipment.

Tharin Ringmaker / Human / A Craftsman With A Certain Knack
Skill 8 Stamina 9 Luck 11 Magic 4
Talent: Familiar (Udo the Grey Parrot)
Special Skills: Magic – Minor 2, Crafting – Metalwork 2, Swords 1, Strength 1, Law 1, Evaluate 1, World Lore 1, City Lore 1, Religion Lore 1, Dodge 1, Common Speech 4
Magic Points: 8
Cantrips: Burn, Extinguish, Glimmer, Hear, Mend, Noise
4 gp
Short Sword (1/2/2/3/3/3/4), Leather Hauberk (0/1/1/1/1/1/2)

Kentrick / Human / A Wizard From The Sticks
Skill 7 Stamina 6 Luck 8 Magic 5
Talent: Focus (Oaken Staff)
Special Skills: Magic – Minor 2, Magic – Wizardry 2, Magic Lore 2, Staves 1, Thrown 1, Animal Lore 1, Healing 1, Fishing 1, Hunting 1, Awareness 1, Trap Knowledge 1, Bargain 1, World Lore 1, Forest Lore 2, Religion Lore 1, Common Speech 4
Magic Points: 14
Cantrips: Enhance, Entertain, Mend, Mistake, Noise, Push
Spells: Wall, Counterspell, Force Bolt, Sleep, Ward, Open, Light, Illusion
8 gp
Staff (1/2/3/3/3/3/4)

Cylise Witchborn / Human / A Peasant Sorcerer
Skill 8 Stamina 13 Luck 5 Magic 6
Talent: Natural Mage
Special Skills: Magic – Sorcery 2, Polearms 2, Bows 1, Animal Lore 1, Dodge 2, Healing 1, Sneaking 1, Con 1, World Lore 1, City Lore 1, Religion Lore 1, Common Speech 4
3 gp
Spear (2/2/3/3/3/4/5), Leather Hauberk (0/1/1/1/1/1/2), Small Shield (0/0/0/0/+1/+1+2)

Kaenin Farool / Human / A Senior Priest of Telak
Skill 9 Stamina 8 Luck 5 Magic 6
Talent: Holy
Special Skills: Magic – Priestly 2, Clubs 2, Law 1, Leadership 1, Etiquette 1, Religion Lore 2, City Lore 2, Awareness 2, World Lore 1, Common Speech 4
Priestly Abilities: Bravery, Smite vs. Evil Humanoids, Heal, “For The Glory Of Telak!”
11 gp
Mace (2/3/3/3/3/3/4), Breastplate (0/0/0/1/2/3/4)

This group doesn’t really make much of an adventuring party, I’m afraid. But any one of them would be a useful addition to a party that contained some non-magical folks, I believe.

In other news, my copy of Out Of The Pit arrived in the mail today. So with the AFF “monster manual” on hand I’m that much closer to feeling like I might be ready to give the game a run. Still no definitive thoughts on whether or not I’m prepared to brave the wilds of online play. I’ll keep you all posted on that as things continue to develop.

A New Edition Of D&D? Meh.

I don’t like saying “meh.” I don’t even like the concept of “meh.” And yet, the news (Forbes, New York Times) that WotC is officially working on a new edition of D&D pretty much makes me go “meh” even though I don’t want to. I’m so far removed from anything resembling “official” D&D – I haven’t played a “current” edition of D&D since a brief and ill-fated 3rd edition campaign in 2001-2002, and prior to that it would have been some 1st edition AD&D stuff in ’84 or so – that this really doesn’t mean all that much to me. Except that the signal-to-noise ratio online just got worse as a whole new group of people fire up their outrage and angst engines to complain that their edition has been slighted.

Meh aside, I’ll pay attention to what develops. I might even try to weigh in on the process if anyone in my gaming group expresses an interest in poking at the playtest stuff when it becomes available (which is pretty unlikely, since we’re all happily playing BRP, BoL, Labyrinth Lord/Mutant Future, Mini Six, Advanced Fighting Fantasy, or what-have-you). And I do wish this venture well – at least if it succeeds it might shut up the “RPGs are dooooomed!” crowd some.

Oh, and I do like where Jeff Rients is taking this. Seems like something that a more motivated (and optimistic) individual than I might even try to set up an online petition for…

p.s. Does anyone else find it amazing that both Forbes and the New York Times are covering this? That just seems unfathomable to my inner twelve-year-old geek.

Naming Fictional Chinese Provinces

Gianni is at it again! This time he’s provided a set of tables for generating names for fitional Chinese-esque provinces. The man knows his stuff and is awesome for sharing his knowledge with the rest of us geeks who, let’s be honest, would probably throw a couple of random Chinese-sounding syllables together and wind up naming a province “Dog Excrement.” Or something even worse. Go check it out if you’re interested!

AFF: Priestly Magic

So I fell asleep whilst^* reading the section on Priestly magic in the “new” Advanced Fighting Fantasy last night. I don’t often fall asleep reading things because I’m generally aware enough of my need for sleep that I put the book down and turn out the light. But just pondering the various permutations of deities in several of the various pantheons I’ve dreamt up for fantasy worlds over the decades and how I’d implement them in AFF kept me going long after I should have stopped.

Priests (at least those who spend points on Magic – I suppose it’s entirely reasonable to assume that not all priests can channel the divine power of their god) get access to four “magic” powers: three that are drawn from a common pool and one that is unique to their god. These powers are officially useable once each per day, though it’s possible (by spending Luck) to use a previously used power once more each day (but never thrice). It seems a little harsh to put that much of a limit on things – especially healing – but I also kinda like the capping. It keeps priests from going all miracle happy since they don’t have other “random” limits on their ability to do these things (i.e., no casting rolls and no Magic Point pool to manage). I still think I might tweak the rules a little bit, but that’s a topic for a different time. And I should probably run at least one game with the established rules in place before I go hotrodding the system.

There are a large number of Titan-specific (Titan is the default AFF world, in case you didn’t know) deities described, each with his or her own unique power explained and the three “common” powers associated with him or her delineated. The common powers include things like healing, creation of food & water, protection from (deity-specific enemy X), smite (deity-specific enemy X), and so on. The unique powers are quite varied, with things like “detect lies for X turns” and “cause a terrible disease in a target” and “will never be attacked by (deity-specific totem animal)” and so on. There aren’t any official guidelines for creating unique powers for your own pantheon’s gods, but a little studying of the existing unique powers should make such a task fairly trivial in the end.

I’d love to knock out a couple of gods right now, but alas the book is at home whilst I am at work. Oh, what I wouldn’t give for a PDF of AFF just to be able to refer to when I’m not near the book. But the publishers don’t appear to have made such a thing available. Silly publishers! 🙂

In the meantime, let’s just say that a god of wine seems like an ideal candidate to grant his priests the ability to create food & drink, instill bravery (or perhaps hostility) in individuals, and possibly to cause a debilitating inebriation (or hangover) in foes. It’s tempting to try to shoehorn some kind of healing in there as well, but hey, there’s limits that must be respected here.

^*The hazards of reading a book written by a Brit is that it starts to colour your language.

Strange Stones

a nerdy rpg blog