Showing posts with label Tanith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tanith. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Character Creation Challenge: Tanith Winters for Wasted Lands

 It's still cold outside. So another winter-themed character is needed, and nothing is more winter than the Winters family of witches and my current character, Tanith Winters.

Tanith is a great character to test for Wasted Lands. For starters, I have been playing her in both D&D/OSR clones and for three editions of Hyperborea. I also have used her in NIGHT SHIFT as part of the modern versions of the Winters family.

Tanith Winters sheets

Wasted Lands and Hyperborea have similar DNA and can be used to play very similar sorts of games. The biggest difference between them setting-wise is that the Wasted Lands takes place in the distant past, and Hyperborea is in the far future.

Both games are solid in their Old-School sensibilities and feel. Both games are a lot of fun for that Dark Fantasy mixed with horror overtones with more than a little influences of Howard, Lovecraft, and Smith. 

Tanith Winters
Tanith Winters

Class: Witch (Sorcerer) 
Level: 12
Species: Human (Hyperborean)
Alignment: Neutral
Background: Barbarian

Abilities
Strength: 10 (+0) 
Agility: 12 (+0) 
Toughness: 14 (+1) N 
Intelligence: 16 (+2) N
Wits: 12 (+0) 
Persona: 16 (+2) A

Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 5
Vitality: 53
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0

Check Bonus (A/N/D): +5/+3/+2
Melee Bonus: +1 (base) 
Ranged Bonus: +1 (base)
Spell Attack: +6
Saves: +5 to Spells and Magical effects (Sorcerer), +2 to Toughness saves (Barbarian), +1 to Cold (Touchstone)

Sorceress Abilities
Arcana, Arcane Powers (4): Familiar: Owl Psychic Power: Cryokinesis, Enhanced Senses, Supernatural Senses

Sorceress Spells
First Level: Arcane Darts, Chill, Protection from Good/Evil, Armor of Ice
Second Level: Create Wated, Cool Metal, Lock, Unlock
Third Level: Slow, Dark Lightning, Dispel Magic, Curse 
Fourth Level: Control Tempature, Life Drain, Control Ice
Fifth Level: Blight, Elemental Wall
Sixth Level: Invoke Weather, Disentergrate

Heroic/Divine Touchstones
1st Level: +1 Saves vs. Cold
2nd Level: +1 attacks w/ Cold
3rd Level: Magical Recovery
4th Level: Defense Cold
5th Level Ray: Ray of Cold
6th Level: Cold Immunity

Heroic (Divine) Archetype: Winter

Familiar: Snowy Owl, "Beira."

Gear
Cloak of Winter

Wasted Lands & Hyperborea

Both the Wasted Lands and Hyperborea scratch a similar itch for me. I would have to say that I can play many similar games with both games. The tenor is different enough that playing the same sorts of adventures do feel different.

I'd love to try out a set of adventures, maybe even featuring the Winters family, in both Wasted Lands and then millions of years later in Hyperborea. 

Character wise, this version of Tanith is great. Hyperborea has a few more choices in spells than Wasted Lands, but there is also a big difference in size of the rule books. Granted, the spells are also largely interchangeable.  

Links

You can get the Wasted Lands RPG and the NIGHT SHIFT RPG at Elf Lair Games.

Character Creation Challenge


Monday, January 2, 2023

Character Creation Challenge: Tanith Winters for NIGHT SHIFT

One of the questions I have been asked is, can I use my various witch books/traditions with NIGHT SHIFT witches?

The short answer is YES!

The longer answer is still yes, but there are ways to do it. 

Winter Witch & NIGHT SHIFT

There are a few things to consider. My various witch books will not go up to the spell levels that NIGHT SHIFT does.  Even at the highest, my OSR witch books are capped spell level 8. NIGHT SHIFT goes to 9.  NIGHT SHIFT witches get to choose their powers at 1st, 4th, 7th, and 10th levels (and every three levels after). My OSR witches get assigned an occult power at various levels, usually 1st, 7th, 13th, and more. 

So with this character creation challenge, I want to take on some particular examples. 

Since this is winter, let's start with the Winter Witch book.

The Winter Witch

The Winters family is mentioned (but not detailed) in the NIGHT SHIFT core. They are a rival family of the Montblanc family in my "Ordinary World" setting/Night World.

The Winters are Winter Witches, and the Montblancs are Family Witches. They are bitter rivals but keep their hostilities out of the open. 

When adapting the Swords & Wizardry-based Winter Witch book, you can substitute the powers the NIGHT SHIFT witches can choose with the Occult Powers of the Winter Witches.

Winter Witches gain the following powers in NIGHT SHIFT.

1st Level: Immunity to Cold.  The cold never bothered them anyway.

4th Level: Cool Demeanor. The winter witch adds +1 to all her cold-based attacks and spell rolls.

7th Level: Wild Form. Assume the shape of any winter animal.

10th Level: Pass Without a Trace/Free movement. The winter witch can move freely in ice or snow on foot. Never slipping, never falling, never leaving a trace of movement. Treated as having stealth skills in the ice and snow of a Survivor of equal level. 

There are other powers like "Hyperborean Apotheosis" that the Winter Witch can use, but that should be only granted at the 19th level. 

Photo by Darya Sannikova from Pexels
Photo by Darya Sannikova from Pexels
Tanith Winters 
4th level Winter Witch

Strength: 10 (0)
Dexterity: 12 (0)
Constitution: 14 (+1) S
Intelligence: 13 (+1)
Wisdom: 14 (+1) S
Charisma: 16 (+2) P

HP: 15
Alignment: Light (for now)
AC: 9
Attack: +0

Fate Points: 1d6

Check Bonus (P/S/T): +3/+2/0
Melee bonus: 0 Ranged bonus: +0
Saves: +3 against spells and magical effects

Witch Abilities

Arcana, Supernatural Senses, Spells, Arcane Powers

Arcane (Occult) Powers
Immunity to Cold, Cool Demeanor

Skills
Research, Insight, 

Spells
First Level: Detect Magic, Protection from Evil, Sleep
Second Level: Knock, Suggestion

Tanith Winters is a young witch already making a name for herself among the Winters family. She has even attracted the attention of the family matriarch, Grandmother Winters.  This can be a good or bad thing.

Tanith lives in West Haven, where she has already encountered the members of the rival Montblanc family. While the Montblancs have more money and Earthly power, the Winters are an older family with more powerful magic. So at the moment, they are avoiding direct confrontation with each other. 

Other versions of Tanith can be found here, here, and here

You can get NIGHT SHIFT in print and pdf.  You can get my Winter Witch book in print and pdf here.

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Want to see more of the #CharacterCreationChallenge? Stop by Tardis Captain's Blog and the #CharacterCreationChallenge on Twitter for more! 

Character Creation Challenge


Tuesday, December 21, 2021

Winter Solstice and a Return to Hyperborea

Today is the first day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and last night I got my PDF copies of the new Hyperborea RPG, formerly Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea.  

Hyperborea has long been part of my "older, colder" version of D&D. And winter is a great time for it. This new version has a lot going for it and I can't wait to dig into it.  There is so much to like here.

It also is a good time to revisit the witch family, The Winters, and my favorite member Tanith.

I detailed Tanith for the 2nd Edition of the Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea RPG. 

Tanith Winters

Tanith Winters

Female Hyperborean Witch 12th level
Alignment: Neutral (but it is likely she will move towards Evil at some point)

ST 10 [+0 +0 2:6 2%]
DX 14 [+1 +0 3:6 8%]
CN 13 [+1 +0 80% 3:6 8%]
IN 16 [+1 75%]
WS 12 [+0]
CH 16 [+1 8 +1]

Age: 30
AC: 4
HD: 9+3
hp: 38
FA: 5
CA: 12
#Attacks: 1/1
Damage: 1d4 (dagger), 1d4 (sling)
SV: 11 (+2 Transformation, +2 Sorcery)
ML: 12

Abilities
Alchemy, Brew Decoction, Familiar, Read Magic, Scroll Use, Scroll Writing, Sorcery, Dance of Beguilement, Effigy, Henchmen, Broom Enchantment, LAdyship

Spells
First level (5+1): Charm Person, Light, Scare, Shocking Grasp, Sleep, Write Spell
Second level (5+1): Darkness, Extrasensory Perception, Identity, Ray of Enfeeblement, Ungovernable Hideous Laughter
Third level (4+1): Continous Darkness, Slow, Phantasm, Wind Wall, Starlight
Fourth level (4): Freeze Surface, Moonlight, Mirror Mirror, Transfer Wounds
Fifth level (3): Cause Lycanthropy, Control Winds, Transform to Winter Wolf
Sixth level (2): Control Lycanthrope, Freezing Sphere

Languages: Common, Hellenic (Hyperborean), Old Norse, Speak with the Dead, Speak with Nature Spirits
Size: M (Height: 5'2", 114lbs)
Move: 40
Saving Throw Modifiers: Transformation +2, Sorcery +2
Secondary Skill: Weaver (almost all Winters women begin as weavers)
God: Lunaqqua

Snowy Owl Familiar ("Beira"): AL N; SZ S; MV 10 (Fly 80); DX 15; AC 7; HD 1/4 (hp 5); #AT 3/1 (claw, claw, bite); D 1/1/1; SV 17; ML 5; XP 11

Normal Gear
Winter robes, winter cloak, clothing, daggers (2), backpack, woolen blanket, chalk, ink and quill, polished steel mirror, incendiary oil, parchment (4), soft leather pouch (2), small sack (2), tinderbox, torches (2), wineskin (mead), writing stick, iron rations (one week), spellbook (contains all prepared spells), 1 gp, 5 sp

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Tanith has been an interesting character so far.  In the few games, I have run her she has become surprisingly power-hungry.  She seeks to control the Winters family which is going to bring her is direct conflict with Grandmother Winter.

With this new Hyperboria RPG out I am also going to explore her relationship with her god Lunaqqua.

Lunaqqua


Thursday, February 28, 2019

Tanith, Iconic Witch for Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea

When Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea first edition came out I loved it.  At the time I was also doing a bunch of reading of what I was calling "Beyond Appendix N", or similar authors and time periods, but with much more of an occult bend to it all.  Not "real" occult, but pop-culture occult.  I wanted to get a good feel for what people were reading at the time D&D was created to really capture the idea of a "D&D Witch".
A lot of that reading would later go into the making of my Swords & Wizardry witch classes.
But AS&SH was never far from my physical and mental reaches.

A Witch Shall Be Born

With the idea of old witch families and dark occult secrets passed down generations I started putting together some ideas, overtly for a different project.
So back in 2014-5 I jotted this down in some notes:

Winters
The Winter family is very, very old. So old in fact that many people believe that the season was named for them. As their name implies their magic comes from the use and application of cold.
In this family, only women can become witches.  Once a girl in the family turns 13 her hair will turn white and this is the sign that she must travel north to train with the ancient Grandmother Winters.  The girls return to the family a year and a day later with the basic knowledge of their family witchcraft.  Once returned they will continue their training with other women in their family.  Each year they all congregate at a location determined by Grandmother Winters, usually one of the larger homes of the family.  The family gathers to begin their celebrations on the Winter Solstice, the height of their power.
The family is common in the northern, colder climes.  They own lots of land, but their homes tend to be more primitive than the local homes. Longhouses are most common. Women are almost exclusively witches, with the occasional priest or even wizard.  Men tend to be barbarians, warriors or occasional bard.  They are masters of survival in the cold.   Witches gain the Chill Touch spell for free.
Dark Secrets: The Winters Clan often are associated with darker, colder gods like Chernobog.  Their men are often accused of lycanthropy, mostly as werewolves.
Clan leader: Grandmother Winters
Current PC: Tanith Winters

Tanith Winters was born.

Tanith became my first AS&SH PC witch.  She never got past 2nd level since I tend to be the Gamer Master rather than the player.  Later I converted her to Swords & Wizardry and she became my first play-test Winter Witch.

I figure this is a good time to bring her home to Hyperborea.

The new Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea now has a Cyromancer class.  Something that I didn't have when I made Tanith.  To use the Winters family in AS&SH2 I would have some of the men, a rare few, become Cryomancers. Most would be Barbarians or Huntsmen.
Members of the Winters family tend to be shorter and smaller than other Hyperboreans. It has to lead to the pervasive rumor that they are in fact "Elf-folk" and not really human at all.

Yes. I named her for Tanith Lee.

Tanith Winters

Base Stats

Female Hyperborean Witch
Alignment: Neutral (but it is likely she will move towards Evil at some point)

Languages: Common, Hellenic (Hyperborean), Old Norse, Speak with the Dead, Speak with Nature Spirits
Size: M (Height: 5'2", 114lbs)
Move: 40
Saving Throw Modifiers: Transformation +2, Sorcery +2
Secondary Skill: Weaver (almost all Winters women begin as weavers)
God: Lunaqqua

ST 10 [+0 +0 2:6 2%]
DX 14 [+1 +0 3:6 8%]
CN 13 [+1 +0 80% 3:6 8%]
IN 16 [+1 75%]
WS 12 [+0]
CH 16 [+1 8 +1]

Snowy Owl Familiar ("Beira"): AL N; SZ S; MV 10 (Fly 80); DX 15; AC 7; HD 1/4 (hp 5); #AT 3/1 (claw, claw, bite); D 1/1/1; SV 17; ML 5; XP 11

Normal Gear
Winter robes, winter cloak, clothing, daggers (2), backpack, woolen blanket, chalk, ink and quill, polished steel mirror, incendiary oil, parchment (4), soft leather pouch (2), small sack (2), tinderbox, torches (2), wineskin (mead), writing stick, iron rations (one week), spellbook (contains all prepared spells), 1 gp, 5 sp

1st level Witch

Age: 14 (1 year and a day since training with Grandmother Winters)
AC: 9 (heavy cloak of winter)
HD: 1
hp: 5
FA: 0
CA: 1
#Attacks: 1/1
Damage: 1d4 (dagger), 1d4 (sling)
SV: 16
ML: 9
XP: 20

Abilities
Speak with the dead; Speak with nature spirits; Brew Poison (once per month) Ingestible I; Brew Potion 1/month (a hallucinogen, a paralytic, or a soporific);  Read Magic; Read Scrolls; Scribe Scrolls; Familiar (Snowy owl);

Spells
First level (1+1): Sleep, Write Spell

Gear and Magic: Scroll (detect magic), wineskin (sapphire wine*),  amulet of undead turning (TA 3),

5th level Witch

Age: 19
AC: 4
HD: 5
hp: 19
FA: 2
CA: 5
#Attacks: 1/1
Damage: 1d4 (dagger), 1d4 (sling)
SV: 14
ML: 10
XP:  200

Abilities
Speak with the dead; Speak with nature spirits; Brew Poison (once per month) Ingestible I, Ingestible II, Ingestible III; Brew Potion 2/month (a hallucinogen, a paralytic, or a soporific);  Read Magic; Read Scrolls; Scribe Scrolls; Familiar (Snowy owl); Brew Philtre 1/month; Dance of Beguilement; Effigy

Spells
First level ( 3+1): Charm Person, Shocking Grasp, Sleep, Write Spell
Second level (2+1): Darkness, Extrasensory Perception, Ray of Enfeeblement
Third level (1): Phantasm

Gear and Magic: Scroll (detect invisible), potion of healing, antidote, wand of freezing, ring of feather falling, amulet of undead turning (TA 3), Bead of Force, Defensive Bracers (AC 4)

9th level Witch

Age: 24
(add one point of Intelligence, IN 17, +one level 3 spell, 85% chance to learn)
Age: 19
AC: 4
HD: 9
hp: 35
FA: 4
CA: 9
#Attacks: 1/1
Damage: 1d4 (dagger), 1d4 (sling)
SV: 12
ML: 12
XP: 1,500

Abilities
Speak with the dead; Speak with nature spirits; Brew Poison (once per month) Ingestible I, Ingestible II, Ingestible III, Ingestible IV, Ingestible V; Brew Potion 3/month (a hallucinogen, a paralytic, or a soporific);  Read Magic; Read Scrolls; Scribe Scrolls; Familiar (Snowy owl); Brew Philtre 1/month; Dance of Beguilement; Effigy; Witch's Apprentice

Spells
First level (5+1): Charm Person, Light, Scare, Shocking Grasp, Sleep, Write Spell
Second level (4+1): Darkness, Extrasensory Perception, Identify, Ray of Enfeeblement, Ungovernable Hideous Laughter
Third level (3+1): Continous Darkness, Slow, Phantasm, Wind Wall
Fourth level (2): Freeze Surface, Moonlight
Fifth level (1): Cause Lycanthropy

Gear and Magic: Scroll (detect magic), wineskin (sapphire wine*), sapphire necklace, platinum ring, potion of healing, wand of freezing, wand of lightning bolts, ring of feather falling, ring of warmness, amulet of undead turning (TA 3), Defensive Bracers (AC 4), Crystal Ball, Horn of Valhalla

*sapphire wine is made by the Winters family. It is very strong and used as a bartering item between northern clans.

About
Tanith Winters was born on a very auspicious night. It was midnight on the Winter Solstice during a full moon.  She was born with a full head of blonde hair and bright blue eyes.  So notable was her birth that Grandmother Winters herself came to southern lands (though still considered the north by most others) to see this new babe.  To everyone's delight, she proclaimed that she would train this child when she came of age (13) and to everyone's gasps she also promised babe to her own grandson for marriage.  The grandson, Azhrarn, was already as a teen a powerful Cryomancer and was considered to be one of the most handsome men produced by the Winters clan. He was also a notorious rake and already showing signs of the family curse of lycanthropy.

Tanith grew and learned witchcraft from one of the most powerful witches in the world.  While she grew in power and womanhood her cousin Azhran also grew in power, but also more evil.  After her intial training Tanith took up with a group of adventurers in an attempt to delay her fate.  She knows that it is only a matter of time before Azhrarn finds her. She hopes that she will also be powerful enough to face him on her own terms.

Thursday, August 25, 2016

RPGaDAY2016: Day 25

In your opinion, what do you need for a satisfying character?

All I need is a good concept I want to explore.

In particular when creating a character I might have some archetype or even some stereotype I want to explore.

Currently, the character I am working on is an NPC for various project. She is a witch (of course, but so are my projects), but comes from an ancient line of witches.  Something like the Mayfair witches from Anne Rice, but a lot less incest.

Tanith Winters is a member of the ancient Winters family of witches.  She might be the powerful one yet, no one is sure.  But I plan to find out.
Like all of the Winters witches Tanith is pale, with white hair and favors darker clothing.

I am basing her look a little off of Taylor Momsen, the actress and lead singer of The Pretty Reckless. Yes she was also "Cindy Lou Who" in the live action How the Grinch Stole Christmas movie.

The name is a nod to both the novel "Tanith" by Jack D. Shackleford and the author Tanith Lee.

Lately for characters, I have been putting together Pinterest boards to collect ideas, mostly images, about the character.

Here is Tanith's:

Follow Timothy's board Tanith on Pinterest.

I also have boards for other characters as well.

http://www.brigadecon.org/rpgaday2016/


Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Witch Families

Want to share something I have been working on here and there.  Not all of it is ready for prime time yet.

In my world witchcraft tends to run in families, mostly along the female line, but not exclusively so.  I also have a Tradition of witchcraft known as a Family Tradition.  I thought it might be nice to detail some of the families in my games.


The hardest part about dealing with Family Tradition witches and the rest of world is alignment.  By their nature they tend to be cohesive, large units that work for their own common good.  So it would not be too far out to say they are "Lawful" or even "Good".  But they also tend to disregard laws they feel do not apply to them, so "Chaotic" or even "Evil" would work.  At best they are amoral or have a different set of morality. They are loving to their own members, but can also be cruel and even kill member that don't live up to certain standards.  What I am looking for here is a set of complicated relationships that are not easily defined on an alignment axis.  Groups that can be ally in one moment and an enemy later.

To start I have three major witch families with a fourth as a mystery.

Winters
The Winter family is very, very old. So old in fact that many people believe that the season was named for them. As their name implies their magic comes from the use and application of cold.
In this family only the women can become witches.  Once a girl in the family turns 13 her hair will turn white and this is the sign that she must travel north to train with the ancient Grandmother Winters.  The girls return to the family a year and a day later with the basic knowledge of their family witchcraft.  Once returned they will continue their training with other women in their family.  Each year they all congregate at a location determined by Grandmother Winters, usually one of the larger homes of the family.  The family gathers to begin their celebrations on the Winter Solstice, the height of their power.
The family is common in the northern, colder climes.  They own lots of land, but their homes tend to be more primitive than the local homes. Longhouses are most common. Women are almost exclusively witches, with the occasional priest or even wizard.  Men tend be barbarians, warriors or occasional bard.  They are masters of survival in the cold.   Witches gain the Chill Touch spell for free.
Dark Secrets: The Winters Clan often are associated with darker, colder gods like Chernobog.  Their men are often accused of lycanthropy, mostly as werewolves.
Clan leader: Grandmother Winters
Current PC: Tanith Winters

Mont Blanc
The Mont Blanc family is also very old.  The claim is they came down from a mountain that had been blessed (or cursed) by their gods. The Mont Blanc family on the surface is a rich, philanthropic  family.  They have married into royal families across the lands and many heads of state can claim at least partial relationship to the Mont Blancs.  Not all members have the power of witchcraft, but there is a core family of the "purest blood" that all members are powerful witches, male and female alike.
Theirs in an ancient form of witchcraft passed down through the generations.
What isn't in doubt about the family is that they are rich beyond most kings and queens and likely more powerful.  The current family patriarch is Pierce Mont Blanc, an 80-year-old witch of great power and formidable personality. Though the power is shifting to the young twins Kimbra & Kelleigh.  Their gathering time is Walpurgis Night, the eve of May.
Dark Secrets: The family is the center of dozens of rumors, each darker than the last.  They are believed to worship, even consort with demons.  It is also rumored that they also possess the largest collection of occult books and artifacts in the world.  It is claimed, in more hushed tones, that the family practices selective breeding in their own ranks. Marrying young women off to older men for their fortunes if they have no ability for the craft, or inbreeding those that do show signs to concentrate the power their blood.
Clan leader: Pierce Mont Blanc
Current PCs: Kimbra & Kelleigh, and Katherine Mont Blanc

Caliban
The Caliban family is cursed, so it is said.  They believe to have come from a near human monster that spawned a race of witches known as the Witchbreed.  Unlike the Mont Blancs and the Winters, the Caliban have no lands and no wealth to call they're own.  What they lack in wealth though they make up for in numbers.
While many of the members of the Caliban family can be monsters to look at, each is also well spoken, eloquent and highly intelligent.  They are often accused of being monsters, and some have embraced that role. Some though instead prefer to remain outside of society and away from those that would do them harm.
They appear to be leaderless, but there is a rumor of an ancient hag named Sycorax that rules over them and can call them to her. It is believed they all gather together on Mid-Summer's eve.
Clan leader: Sycorax, mother of Caliban and all his offspring.

There are other, lesser families, in my world as well.
There is a rumor of a fourth large clan, the Gwyddonod, but they were destroyed by the other three.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

October Movie Challenge: The Devil Rides Out (1968)

I swear I had seen this movie.  I knew the story, I knew about the stellar performance of Christopher Lee in one of his few turns as a good guy.  An intense good guy, but a good guy all the same.  So when I sat down to watch it last night imagine my surprise when I realized I had not seen it at all.
I think I was confusing it with another Christopher Lee movie.


In any case The Devil Rides out is fantastic.  A nice little battle with the forces of evil.
Hammer based on the book by occult writer Dennis Wheatley. It would not be the last time that Hammer and Christopher Lee would collaborate on a Dennis Wheatley tale, this time putting Lee back in the role of bad guy for To The Devil A Daughter.

The feel to this movie is very much like the book Tanith. In fact the book of The Devil Rides Out was one of the influences on Tanith.  Each features a central character named Tanith and also deals with rural England paganism and/or satanism.

There is so much here for a game. Occult secrets, cultists, magical battles.  You can also do worse than model your clerics after Lee.   Plus I am dying to role up a new witch named Tanith that may or may not be involved in devil worship.

This reminds me how much I love Hammer Films.

Stats
6 Watched / 4 New



Monday, March 30, 2015

Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge: March Reviews

Here are the reviews for March for the Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge.

First up this month is a continuation of last month.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Ok this is the book where everything changes. The saga of Harry Potter stops being a "boy's adventure" and becomes something deadly serious.  We are treated to generous helpings of lies, betrayal, pain and death. Time to grow up Harry and face your enemy face to face.
This is also the book with so much more in it that the movie.  So much in fact that entire characters, plot lines and development was missing from the movie. I marvel at that fact that the movie script writers were able to do.
In any case this middle point of the Harry Potter books raises the bar.
Witch Count: Hundreds if not thousands.

Bewitching Brews and Devilish Desserts: A Collection of Cocktail and Dessert Recipes
This free book by Roxanne Rhoads ("Sex and the Single Witch").  It's a neat little book where various Modern Supernatural authors submitted a drink or dessert recipe from their witch characters.  A cool idea really.
Witch Count: a few dozen.

Tanith by Jack D. Shackleford
This is a classic tale of British occultism.  What makes it "British", well there is the dark underlying current of something old and evil pervading every page.  There is also plenty soft core smut that it feels like a Hammer Horror film.  Plus there is that cover.  It is from the great Chris Achilleos, so it really invokes the feel of the old White Dwarf/Heavy Metal covers.  The scene is lurid and right out of the book.  The cover talks about "demonic possession", but really this is about one witch battling another for the control of yet a third witch.  No demons to speak of really. There is a lot of well researched details on various rituals; but Shackleford has a name for himself in this sort of supernatural fiction.  Enough that I want to check out more of his work.

Without getting into details or spoilers I think it might be an interesting story to come back to today, see where some of the characters in 2015 vs 1975.  The characters of Tanith and Virginia are really interesting and I'd would have loved to know more about them to be honest.
I should also stat up the Woodwose for a system or two.

Witch Count: 3 (or 4 depending).

Books read: 8
Current Level: Maiden: Read 6 – 10 Witchy Books

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

October Challenge: Red Riding Hood


I'll admit it. I am a sucker for dark fairy tales.  I mean fair tales in their original, un-Disney form are pretty freaking dark.  But any time you can bring one of those back and put them on the screen then that is aces in my book.  If you can do it and get Gary Oldman in to be in the cast then even better.

But despite all of that good stuff we get something like Red Riding Hood.

Red Riding Hood (2011)
I was very excited for this one when it came out.  Then all the bad reviews came in and well I truthfully kind of forgot about it. Since a few others were also covering this one for the Challenge I figured I give it a go.
To begin with, RRH is not a bad movie, it is just not a good one either.  Amanda Seyfried is very attractive, but dull in the titular role.  I didn't get the sense that she was ever afraid or actually in love with this guy she was supposed to be in love with.  Or anything really.
Gary Oldman though was at his scene chewing best as the creepy Father Solomon. Honestly the man can play anything.

Of course there is a werwolf in this one; seems to be the thing to do these days, make the "big bad wolf" into a werewolf.  Makes me wonder what they would do with the "Three Little Pigs"?  I know.  A movie about three cops, one played by Harvey Keitel and maybe the other by Omar Epps. That are chasing a perp when the moon rises and now the cops are being chased by the Big Bad Werewolf. Have not worked out how the houses of Straw, Sticks or Bricks work into it yet.  I know!  That is their last names.  Keitel is Lt. Brickson, Epps is Det. Sticks (or something).  Hey. It is not the dumbest thing I have come up with this week. We need a comic relief guy for Straw.  Maybe James Franco.  Anyway.......

So in the movie they actually made in Hollywood. We do get get a hunt, an old witch (maybe) and creepy father/daughter relationship.  Again, there was a lot of potential here. I can't say wasted, just never fully realized.

It could be I was expecting something like Tanith Lee's "Red as Blood", a book that I always thought about when seeing the poster for this movie.


As expected the Tanith Lee story is much better.

Tally: 19 movies, 17 new.

Game Material: In a classic D&D adventure the PCs come a small village on the edge of a "haunted" forest. They are constantly attacked by wolves, till the PCs show up, and then the deaths start.  Will they discover to true wolf before they are burned at the stake.  Afterall it can't be the kind little girl or her old weak grandmother.