October Horror Movie Challenge: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

 Every year, I also watch a Godzilla movie. I mean these were the "Monster Movies" my dad and I watched. So this time I was joined by my oldest son to watch this. We had an absolute blast.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

Let's not pretend this movie is anything more than what it is, a big fight by giant Kaiju. This is the second Kong and Godzilla team-up, and they are going after another giant primate, The Skar King, and his pet dragon. 

Is this movie a horror? No, unless you count the horrors committed to the laws of physics here. But it is a fun romp with a great soundtrack.

Kong fights monsters, gets his butt kicked, and has to go get Godzilla as backup. Godzilla, suspecting something was up anyway, got supercharged by feeding on the energies of Tiamat (much to my son's delight and explaining why the big G was pink). 

I DO find the Hollow Earth very entertaining. While it makes as much sense as a gigantic Kaiju, it is still fun and reminds me I should write more Hollow Earth content.

This is not an Oscar-winning entry in the Godzilla franchise, but no one, least of all me, goes into these expecting that.

Featured Monster: White Dragon

The Kaiju/Titan Shimo is a white dragon in all but name. She doesn't have wings, but I can live with that. The Kaiju/Titan Tiamat does not have any resemblance to the D&D Tiamat, but maybe to the mythological Tiamat if you squint your eyes.

Shimo doesn't have wings, but she does make for a good White Dragon. There is a great bit where Shimo breathes frost into the sky to make it cloud over. It was not a damage-causing attack, but fun, all the same.

--

October Horror Movie Challenge 2024
Viewed: 2
First Time Views: 2

The Enchanted World: Dragons

 It has been a month since I have done one of these. My plan was NOT to do one during April with the whole A to Z thing, but today is St. George's Day and he rather famously killed a dragon. It is also still year of the Dragon and the 50th Anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons, so my choice was made for me.

This is also the second book in the series, after Wizards and Witches.

Dragons

by Editors of Time-LIFE Books, 1984 (144 pages) 
ISBN 0809452081, 080945209X (US Editions)

While I have mentioned the Eurocentrism of the other volumes, this one does a good job of presenting both European and Eastern dragons. It also has a bit of others from around the world. 

Chapter One: Chaos Incarnate

This covers the early tales of dragons, not just in medieval European myth but also the ancient tales of dragons like Apep, Tiamat, and the various monsters of Ancient Greece.  One of the things this chapter hits home is the dragon as a force of chaos and nature. In the case of many, like Tiamat, the dragon is a destructive force.  This is one (of the many) reasons why I always have Tiamat in my game as Chaotic Evil rather than Lawful Evil. Tiamat is even called the "Enemy of Order" and her myths are referred too as Chaoskampf. 

We hear tales of the Midgard Serpent and the dragon Nidhoggr, which gnaws on the roots of the World Tree.  These are not the dragons for mortals to deal with, but the domain of the gods. There were heroes that fought these creatures, but they were often demi-gods themselves. Like the tale of Cadmus who fought a dragon and built the city of Thebes where the dragon had once ruled. The dragon was cast into the sky to become the constellation Draco. 

We even get some Indian myths of Sesha, also known as Ananta the Endless, a multiheaded serpent that wrapped around the world. 

This chapter also has a wonderful Field Guide to Dragons. A visual guide to help you tell the differences between the amphiptère, the wyvern, the heraldic dragon, the lindworm or lindorm, and the snake-like guiver. It also has some habitats.

Chapter Two: Glittering Gods of the East

This chapter takes us East, mostly to China and Japan, where dragons had a very different role. They were spirits of the weather, air, and water. They were considered divine and had a place in a very ordered universe. Though not all were benevolent. They were still prideful creatures and could be offended. So offerings were made for rain, or even to keep destruction at bay.

In any part of the world, an angry dragon was terrible to behold.

We learn that these dragons fly not due to their wings, but the magic crests on their foreheads and many are the descendants to water snakes. Or maybe there are water snakes that are in fact baby dragons. 

These dragons are incredibly long-lived. It spends 1,000 years in its snake form, where it will grow feet and an elongated head with a beard. After 500 years in this form, it will grow antlers. After 3,000 years, it will reach its final form with a branch-like protrusions from its body. The oldest dragon is the Dragon King and it is 1000-feet long. 

Chapter Three: The Serpent Ascendant 

As with many of these books, there is a chapter that focuses on the Medieval era, which is where we get many of the tales we know today. This is that chapter.  

Since our focus is mostly on Medieval Europe, we often link the Dragon to the Devil. This is in keeping with the notion held in Medieval times that the dragon was the bringer of disease, famine, and ruin. This chapter also has a great map of Europe showing where various dragons were spotted and when.

The section on Maidens and Dragons is great and discusses the complex relationship women and dragons had in these tales. There is the sorceress Marina and her pet dragon, the French Le Succubé (The Succubus) who rode a dragon, and the many maidens kidnapped by dragons. There is even the tale of Margaret of Bamburgh who was transformed into a dragon.

We even get a tale of the Tarasque who could not stand up to a Saint and her faith. 

Chapter Four: Rise of the Dragonslayer

It is St. George's day today, so only fitting we open up with the tale of St. George in this chapter. Maybe to most storied dragon slayer after Sigurd, who we also talk about later on in this chapter. 

We get a nice mix of dragon slayers from all over Europe and some of Asia. All usually have to deal with how pure and virtuous the would-be slayer needs to be. Often their reward was a maiden of equal purity and virtue. 

Even though this book is the same size as the others, it feels like a lot more is packed into it.

While many of these tales are known to us all (and that is the point) there are enough details here to still educate and entertain. This one is certainly a must read for any Fantasy RPG and in particular Dungeons & Dragons. I also see a lot of value here for players of more "serious" medieval fantasy games like Pendragon or Chivalry & Sorcerer. Even Dark Age Mage players can benefit.

Next time: We celebrate Walpurgis Night!

Monstrous Mondays: Dragon, Wood

 On Saturday, February 10th we ushered in the Chinese Year of the Dragon.  Since this is 2024, it is the Year of the Wood Dragon.

Reflecting on my last This Old Dragon, I have always tried to balance how powerful dragons need to be in an old-school game.   I want to keep dragons powerful but not so powerful that they make 1st edition Tiamat and Bahamut look weak. 

It is a balancing act. I also want to consider how much more powerful they get as they age. 

Dragon, Wood
Huge Dragon

Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Neutral [Chaotic Neutral]
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
  Fly: 180' (60') [18"]
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 7d8+28** (66 hp) (6HD to 8HD)
  Huge: 7d12+28** (74 hp)
THAC0: 8 (+11)
Attacks: 2 claws, 1 bite, + special
Damage: 1d6+3x2, 2d8+3
Special: Breath weapons (Choking Cloud), camouflage, dragon fear, low-light vision (120’), magic use, shape change
Save: Monster 7
Morale: 10 (10)
Treasure Hoard Class: Special

Habitat: Temperate Forests
Probability Asleep: 25% 
Probability of Speech: 90%
Breath Weapon: Choking Cloud
Spells: First: 3, Second: 3, Third: 1

Wood dragons appear similar to green dragons in general form but lack wings. They can still fly due to their innate magic. Their coloration is usually some sort of brown that looks like polished wood, accented with bits of green and yellow. This gives them a natural camouflage ability (75% hide outdoors) in their preferred environment, temperate forests.

These dragons can attack with a claw-and-claw-and-bite routine in dragon form. In human form, they can wield a weapon. In either form, they can use magic as a magic-user of the 6th level. 

Their breath weapon is a cloud of choking smoke. It requires a save vs. breath weapon or take damage equal to the dragon's current hit points. Save results in half-damage. The area of effect is 50 ft by 50 ft in front of the dragon, which has reduced vision to all but the dragon. Attacks are at -2 for the next round following the breath weapon attack.

Wood dragons are lively, dynamic creatures. They can be quite friendly, but their moods switch easily and quickly. Many pursue some artistic or academic endeavor that takes all of their time and focus. It is in this pursuit they are most likely to engage with others.  Like all dragons, they hoard their treasures, which are always related to their interests. So, instead of gold and jewels, it will be art, paintings, or books. 

Wood Dragon encounters both Green and Orange dragons in their home environments and finds both sorts unpleasant and distasteful.

This Old Dragon: Issue #134

 This weekend, Saturday, February 10, is the start of the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon. Very nice how it lines up with the 50th Anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons. So I cheated a little and went digging for a Dragon Magazine that featured Dragons. Not too difficult really. So lets head to the Summer of 1988. I just finished my Freshman year of college. I spent my summer working and calling this girl I had met in the fall, piling up a HUGE bill on my Sprint card. No worries, in just seven more years I'd marry her. George Michael dominates the airwaves. "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" hit the screens, and on the shelves and game tables everywhere was Issue #134 of This Old Dragon!

Our cover, "Sword of Dawn," is from Charles Vess. I have seen a lot of his work since this issue and I have always liked it. 

Letters let us know that this is the 12th Anniversary issue of Dragon Magazine, so it's a nice milestone to be sure. 

Forum gives us some ideas on modifying the Magic-user to make it less prone to dying early on. Others debate the merits of the Experience system.

We get to our main feature right away. Dragons!

The Dragon's Bestiary gives us seven new dragons from various authors including Dragon VIP and the father of the Realms, Ed Greenwood. They are all interesting to be honest, and I'd like to see new versions of them. Had there been a Monster Manual III, they would have been it. 

Ed Friedlander is up with Give Dragons A Fighting Chance, which aims to make dragons much scarier. Something that started with Dragonlance and continues to today. He discusses physical attacks, making better use of dragon spellcasters, and better tactics. He uses the example of Razisiz the Blue Dragon from the DMG p. 81. Both in his "regular" stats and his beefed-up version here. A few recommendations for previous articles that cover similar ground are also mentioned.

An advertisement for an AD&D computer game, Pool of Radiance, is next. Get it for the IBM-PC and Commodore 64/128.

Friend of the Other Side, Vince Garcia, is next with Serpents and Sorcery. This article is all about getting more out of the spell-casting powers dragons have and making good use of their spells in their local environs. Really good article that you can still use today. 

Lords & Legend was a sometimes feature with various personalities. This time it is Dragotha the Undead Dragon from module S2 White Plume Mountain. He would make an appearance again in the 3e days, but his 1st Edition AD&D stats and background are given to us here by William Simpson. 

Greg Sharp gives us a good one, The Ecology of the Red Dragon. I am surprised that there were not more Ecology Of articles about Dragons. They are some of the biggest creatures in the game, and yet they don't feature very often. 

This issue is already falling apart, so I can go ahead and do this without worry.

Skip Williams is dispensing wisdom again in Sage Advice. This time, covering a lot of character questions. 

Bazaar of the Bizarre is usually a favorite feature of mine. But this one not so much. It has a bunch of "less than serious" items, and honestly, it feels like an April feature that they could not fit in. I would have rather seen more dragon-related treasures. 

Another friend of the Other Side, Bruce Heard, is up with some errata, clarifications, and more for the Orc Wars game they had back in issue #132.

Jame Brunet has our short fiction piece, "Eyes of Redemption."

TSR Previews covers Summer 1988. Lots of Marvel Super Heroes, some Dragonlance, and Top Secret.  The Bullwinkle and Rocky Role-Playing Party Game is up for June. I didn't understand the fascination with Bullwinkle and Rocky then, and I still don't. Keep in mind that when this game was released, there had not been any new B&R content made for 20 years. I mean, I am not completely immune to the effects it had on pop culture, but it seems like an odd choice. Yes, I would later learn why this game was made, but back then, it made no sense to me. 

Arcane Lore from D.F. Fjellhaugen gives us some cleric spells for healing.

The official Origins Awards ballot for 1987 is next. What were your choices?

This year was an odd one where Gen Con and Origins were held together in 1988. 

Dennis McLaughlin has some sniper rifles for Top Secret in Sighting In. Likely this could all be converted to other games if needed.

Part of my The Game Wizards is cut out.  Looking at my Dragon CD-ROM, I can only guess the previous owner wanted the picture of the Godzillia-like monster.

Ah. How can you tell it is the 80s? The fascination with all things Japanese. Hell, I even read Shōgun that summer. The Role-Playing Reviews from Jim Bambra covers Bushido, the AD&D Oriental Adventures, and the RuneQuest Land of the Ninja.  "Oriental" is now considered to be an archaic term at best and pejorative at worst. I will not debate that here. In fact, what I am most interested in here now is how 1988 Dragon was talking about Gary Gygax. So how are they? Well, while the plainly visible cover says "Gary Gygax" right on it, his name is never mentioned in the review. Design is credited to David "Zeb" Cook, who, in all likelihood, did do the lion's share of the work on it. Again, not going to debate here and now, but maybe if I ever do review it myself.  The article largely focuses on how closely the various products are linked to real feudal Japan. Bambra mentions that by making Kara-Tur a fictional land using influences from Japan, China, and Korea you can side-step some of these issues.

Catching Some Rays by Daniel Salas deals with radiation damage in Gamma World. 

The Lessers (Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk) are back in The Role of Computers with Dream Zone, Strike-Fleet (Naval Simulator), and The Pawn (adventure) get the most coverage. 

David Edward Martin, another friend, is up with more powers for the Marvel Super Heroes game in The Ultimate Addenda's Addenda.

This means that outside of some reviews, every article here was about a TSR game. This is a trend that will continue and grow. 

Gamers' Guide covers some small ads. Always fun to look at these. A half-page section alone on Play By Mail games. One in particular is out of Ottawa, IL, a tiny little farm town a few miles south and west of Aurora. It was even smaller back then. My wife is from that area, I am sure I have driven by it.

Convention Calendar gives us the best conventions for the Summer and into the Fall of 1988. One was within easy driving distance to me back then, Capitol-Con IV at the Prairie Capital Convention Center on July 9. Wonder what I was doing then? Likely working at Pizza Hut.

Dragonmirth has the usual collection of comics. Among them was Yamara, whom I caught occasionally enough to find amusing but never often enough to know what was going on with it. There is Elmore's Snarf Quest, now up to episode #58, that's close to 5 years. 

I am sure this is not the first "All TSR, All the Time" issue, but I know that trend is coming. Eventually, all game magazines went this way. White Dwarf had made this switch as early as two years prior, so I guess I am not surprised. It makes sense from a financial point of view, I suppose I miss the days when a game magazine covered multiple games from a variety of publishers.  Today we have the internet for all that. 

So overall a fine issue with some gems; the dragon stuff is great, and I'd like to use it somewhere. 

Happy Year of the Dragon!

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 25

 Continuing on to the next room, this is the tomb of another dwarven prince. There is a sarcophagus and an interned body but no treasure save for a single bottle.

Inside the bottle is a Djinn. 

The djinn will offer the party 3 wishes total if they don't attack it.

The djinn knows nothing about the Vampire Queen. This is because before imprisoning the djinn she wished for him to forget everything about her.

The party could choose to attack. The Djinn will turn invisible and hide. He will come back around to see if he can get the party to consent to the wishes since this is the only way he can get back to the Plane of Air.

The djinn returning to the Plane of Air will also return his memories. At this point, the djinn will return to the party and offer them any weapons they need to help them defeat the Vampire Queen. The djinn is barred from directly dealing with the Queen herself.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 24

 Moving on from the King's Chamber (where the dragon was), we get to the Queen's Chamber. 

This tomb has been desecrated and robbed of all treasures. The Vampire Queen is jealous of any other queen other than herself.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 23

 This room is directly in line with the corridor the party used to enter the room. The passageway slopes down considerably and goes for nearly 100 feet.  The room it opens up into is large.

Inside this room is a large dragon.

This dragon has been down here for centuries and it has grown too large to leave or even fly. It is a Necrotic Dragon. It had been a Red Dragon (and uses those stats) but its exposure to the necromantic magics of this tomb has changed it. Its breath weapon is a gout of black fire that burn cold, but burns all the same.

The local living goblins pay it tribute and the Shadow Elves from above believe it is some sort of dark avatar of long dead gods.

It has maximum HP for a red dragon and three times (x3) the amount of treasure.

It can be harmed with holy water (1d8 per vial) and a light or continual light spell will cause it to hit and save at a -1 penalty.

#RPGaDay2023 Favourite CONVENTION purchase

 There have been a few to be honest. But my most memorable was the purchase of the Mage Knight Apocalypse Dragon back at Gen Con 2011.

Shown here after I got it home with the Aspect of Tiamat and Orcus.  AoT takes up 3x3 squares, Orcus 4x4. The Apocalypse Dragon takes up 7x7.

This beast was originally going to be Tiamat in my games.  But later on WotC would release their own monstrous Tiamat. 

Tiâmat and Leviathan

What about that Apocalypse Dragon?  I still want to get my money's worth out of him.  So he has been redubbed as Leviathan.  Fitting, given the history my games have had with him.  I will need to revisit my stats for him, though. 

This gives me a chance to use both dragons.

Gen Con 2011 was also the same year I picked up all of the Mayfair Demons sets for AD&D 2nd Edition. I might need to go back to those and see if they had a Leviathan write-up. Might be fun.

I also should adopt as much as possible from the Mage Knight rules.

This Old Dragon: Issue #261

I have a few of my original Dragons left from my big box of old musty Dragons I acquired a few years back. I recently picked up a couple more collections in my desire to explore more of the 1990s and AD&D 2nd Edition.  The 90s were an interesting time for me. I began the 90s living in the dorms at my University working on my undergrad degrees and I ended the 90s married, a new baby, and working my first Ph.D. Quite a lot of difference. I also in that time "gave up on" D&D and moved to other games; something I can relate to again now.  But for right now let's focus on this issue #261 from July of 1999 of This Old Dragon.

Our cover is an amazing one from Fred Fields and his nod to Sandro Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus."  For this one, "The Birth of Night" Fields had his then-girlfriend (now wife) Sandy do the modeling.  I remember this from back then and I really liked then, still do. 

Dragons from this time period are very different than the ones I have done in the past. This Dragon (and many from the 3rd edition era when I picked it back up) was published by Wizards of the Coast, has a bunch of names I don't normally associate with Dragon (but with other RPG products), and the format has all sorts of changes. All in all, this is going to be just as much as an adventure as ones from the 1970s or early 1980s.

One new thing. Lots and lots of websites! Sadly many are no longer active. 

We get a big ad for the Planescape Torment video game. 

The Wyrm's Turn is the Editorial section that discusses this issue's theme, The Dark. Dave Gross is the editor at this time. 

Fun ad for the 25th Anniversary tour. We are reminded throughout that this is the 25th Anniversary of D&D. We are nearly at 50 now. 

Sage Advice is still here and Skip Williams offers a lot of advice about various AD&D 2nd Ed rule questions.  I half expected to see this one phased out, but there was still a need for it and not everyone was on the Internet just yet (but close). I do have to point out that Sage Advice is still by postal mail. No email address yet. I am sure this will change sometime in the next few months.

The letters section is now D-Mail. They DO have an email address you can use along with the standard postal one. It might even still be active. Just to be 100% clear, I am not sure when a lot of these changes happened, I had what we called "Grad School Guilt." That is where if you read anything not directly related to your subject matter caused a lot of guilt. So I was not reading Dragon all that much from like 1992 on until the 2000s. Oh. The letters. Right. So in something else of a red letter day for me, I recognize one the names of someone that sent in a letter! So Joe Kushner, I hope you got your answer! Later on in the same feature, I see another name I recognize from online interaction.  D-Mail is long, longer than the letters section used to be.

The general consensus in D-Mail is that Dragon Magazine has improved with Wizard's purchase of TSR. While of course they are going to publish that, and yes there is plenty of evidence to support this claim, I would personally pick the magazine back up in subscription about a year or so from this issue.

Nodwick appears as a comic strip on page 13. An order form for back issues of Dragon with issue #70 as the earliest one you can still get. $8.00 and it can be yours. This is about to get less attractive as we will see later in this issue.

Ray Winninger is up with the Dungeoncraft column. This covers building something for your game. This one starts with the notion of building up the PC's base of operations. He covers some rumors and other background building of the area and ends with a map of the tree base. Rather interesting really and set up to be easily added to anyone campaign or game. In fact I am not seeing anything here that could not be used in an OSR game or a 5e game. 

George Vrbanic is next with the PC Portraits feature. This time 14 pictures of Dwarves. An ad for Baldur's Gate follows.

We get to our themed featured articles now.  Up first, Wizards of Dusk & Gloom by Tony Nixon. This covers some options for the AD&D Player's Options books. I actively disliked the Skills & Powers books. That being said these options and kits are pretty cool and add a lot of flavor to the wizard class. There are three options here, the Shadow Caller, the Shadow Seeker, and the Shadow Hunter. There might some 3e equivalent prestige classes out there or some 5e subclasses. There are also three "Books of Shadows" which gives us 17 new shadow-based spells. From what I can tell these spells did make it to the giant Spell Compendiums released by Wizards.

An interesting set of ads. A single page with a bunch of companies and their web addresses. Among them are Guardians of Order (with a Sailor Moon book), Eden Studios (featuring the Abduction Card game), and RPGnet.  

By Any Other Name covers Dwarven Names from Owen K.C. Stephens. A fun little set of tables to build a new dwarf name. 

Objet d' Art is from Dawn Ibach and details the types of treasure you can find in a hoard. Very detailed and quite extensive really. Also can be used in any edition of the game.

Our fiction section is from J. Gregory Keyes, The Fallen God. 

Me and My Shadow continues our Shadow and Dark feature.  This article is by Spike Y. Jones. This covers a number of shadow-centric magic items.  This flows into the next article Conjuring in the Dark. This covers 13 new shadow-based spells. 

Johnathan M. Richards is next with an Ecology of... article, this time Ecology of the Dark Naga. The article seems longer that the previous Ecology articles. While it seems more detailed than the previous ones from the Golden Age, but lacking some of the charm of the old Ed Greenwood ones. Though this one is good, just not sure if the fiction elements live up to the rest of the article. Call me weird, but my preferred Ecology of articles always treated their subject as some sort of scholarly discussion. 

Peter Whitley gives us something that will be something more and more common; AD&D monsters from a computer game. This time some monster from Myth: The Fallen Lords. There are four new monsters in AD&D Monstrous Compendium format.

John Kovalic is up with Dork Tower. 

A Little Bit of Magic from Lloyd Brown III covers how to measure out magic items in a campaign to keep it from going too Monty Haul.  Examples include magic items with Noncombat Effects, Intermittent Effects, Self-Destructive, Limited Time periods, and items with charges. Advice is given to avoid armor and weapons with pluses to all things.  So a sword +1 is great but it means you will need bigger and better (and more magical) ones later. A sword that just +1 vs say undead keeps the players excited for any magical sword. Or armor that is magically light, but doesn't provide any better protection than normal armor of the same sort. While it was far to late in the game for me at this point, this would have been good advice for me to revisit later on in the 3e and 5e days.

In something that seems really familiar, some Marvel characters. Though this time the Marvel SAGA system (if I am remembering correctly). This time we get Dark Phoenix (Jean Grey) and Phoenix (Rachel Summers) writeups from Jeff "Zippy" Quick and Steve Miller.

Role Models gives us some Alternity alien minis. 

The Convention Calendar gives us the best conventions for the Summer of 1999. A couple of things to note for me. There is a Capitol Con XV at the Prairie Capitol Convention Center in Springfield, IL. That not only was not very far from where I grew up, it was new when I still lived there! I don't think I ever knew about it. Despite it being listed in Dragons before. I can't find any more details on it. Interestingly enough there are listings for August, but Gen Con is not one of them. 

The Ares section is back, this time with Alternity branding. Stephen Kenson (of Green Ronin fame) is up with The Twilight Jungle. This not only continues the magazine's main theme, but the aliens here look very much like something you could find on Pandora from Avatar, only 10 years before the movie came out. The article is fun but highlights the fact that I always wanted to try out Alternity. Something about it just always grabbed me and I just never got the chance to play it or even read it much.  Maybe one day I'll get back to it. 

Dragon Mirth has our comics of the month, plus a sort of find a word puzzle that looks fun. There is a Love Canal joke that I am not sure many would get these days. 

Knights of the Dinner Table has a two-page spread. 

TSR Previews (yes it is still called that) gives us new products for the next couple of months. A few books listed still have their concept covers. Of note are the Forgotten Realms interactive atlas (which I never owned) and the Dragon Magazine CD-ROM which I grabbed the moment I could from my FLGS, which was now for me actually local (and the same one I still use today). A few novels including two I would later read; Ru Emerson's "Against the Giants" (which I only sorta liked) and Ed Greenwood's "Silverfall: Stories of the Seven Sisters" (which I enjoyed more than I thought I would).

TSR News lets us know that the 25th Anniversary Edition boxed set will be released in August. Better grab one of these while you can, the after-market prices are going to crazy! In other news, Gary Gygax will be at Gen Con in August, running games, holding seminars and signing copies of the 25th Anniversary boxed set. 

Finally in Profiles, Steve Kenson gives us some background on cover artist Fred Fields.

So really a good issue. I had a lot of apprehension about approaching this era of Dragon/TSR. I can recall sitting on my couch reading one of the first WotC-produced TSR Ravenloft books and thinking maybe the company and game I had enjoyed for so long but was feeling quite apathetic too was turning around. This issue of Dragon redoubles that. There is a sense of optimism for the future of the game that I had not personally experienced in the late 90s and did really feel until the 3rd Edition Era.  Wizard of the Coast did save D&D and the proof is in these pages.

While many will debate the various "ages" of the game; when was the Golden Age, when did the "Silver Age" begin and what was the time post-Gygax and pre-WotC? One thing for certain for me is that the time between say 1994 and 1999 is a big mystery to me that I did not get to investigate in any detail until I got my Dragon Magazine CD-ROM. Even that only took me to Issue #250.

For this new exploration of Dragons, I am setting my "end date" as Issue #275. It's a nice number, it takes us just inside the changes for 3e and it was just before I resumed my subscription.  I guess by that logic I am setting my "starting" Issue at #151 or so. I have already done some past that. 

Personally, I think these "newer" Dragons will be every bit as interesting to me as the ones from the late 70s and early 80s.

This Old Dragon: Issue #116

Time to jump back into my box of Dragons and pull out a Dragon at random...no not that one, this one. Ok so sorta random. To be fair I pulled this one second and really it is a better fit this week.  If you must know, the one I originally pulled was #106.  Next time for that one. Today I am going to talk about Dragon #116.  

This issue does have significance to me. This is the first Dragon I bought after the watershed issue #114. As I mentioned before I typically bought every other Dragon back then, so this was my next one. I rather liked the cover to be honest.

To set the stage here, this issue was dated December 1986. This was my senior year in high school. My regular DM had gone off to the Air Force the year before and we had done our big "Dragon Wars" which was our "World War."  Most of my AD&D 1st Edition characters were dead or retired and I didn't know what exactly was next.  But this issue gave me ideas.

Letters covers the debates of the day. Mark D. Spivey laments that Dragon is now too much about AD&D and D&D and not other games.  Kent B. Gravelle counters with his observation of AD&D being less popular now than other games. 

Forum laments the lack of women DMs or why D&D is not as popular as Trivial Pursuit or Monopoly. I am no expert (ok but I DO have the benefit of hindsight) that both of these issues will change around the same time.

Add for the Wilderness Survival Guide. I will admit I did enjoy this book.

We get to the main feature of this issue; Maritime Adventures.

While I did use this material then, over the summer in 1987 I was back from college and my DM was back due to medical leave. We began a new campaign with new characters. The idea was to create some ocean going adventures. I rolled a few characters and we were going to something that would today call the funnel.

Margaret Foy is up first with High Seas which is a fantastic overview of nautical terms and ideas for AD&D. So good in fact it can still be used today and for many other sorts of games.  The article is long, 14 pages, and not a bit of it is wasted or fluff. 

Note: There were ads for Traveller and Star Trek RPGs. I kept thinking that I could adapt these rules to space or visa versa. 

Aquatic elves get time to shine in Children of the Deep by Todd Mossburg.  Aquatic elves would have been part of our game. This is a pretty good article really. So good in fact you tend to forget these elves still need to be around the sea. 

In an odd one out, we get an Ecology Of.. article from Anthony Gerard, Ecology of the Minotaur. I would think a Triton or other sea creature would have worked better. But this is still welcome. It is also a rare (but soon to be less rare) ecology article not from Ed Greenwood.  I rather liked this one to be honest. It gave a different insight to Minotaurs. This was on the heels of the second Dragonlance Trilogy which made Minotaurs a more playable race than AD&D core, so this return to form was nice.

Up next we get the first Dragon's Bestiary in nearly five years. This one has a dozen new AD&D monsters all with a sea or underwater theme. Lots of new monsters here, or at least new at the time. 

Ads for The Palladium Fantasy RPG and the Bestiary. Two products I wanted back in the day. I eventually got them both but never really did much with Paladium. 

"Hello? Your Majesty?" from Craig Barrett covers communication in history and fantasy. It is a well-researched article, at least as far as I tell.  Easily could use this in any game. We get coverage of the Horse Post, the Foot Post, and especially messages by sea travel. I can honestly see an interest set of adventures that involve getting critical messages from one place to another while fighting evil wizards, governments, and monsters.

My issue sadly no longer has this, but our center-fold section is a cardstock assemble-your-self 3D ship designed by Dennis Kauth titled High Seas in 3-D.

What I do have is a huge ad for Warhamer Fantasy. And by huge, I mean 8 full-color pages.

Ed Greenwood is back with Rogue Stones and Gemjumping, or how Elminster gets around. This covers a special type of stone, a Rogue Stone, and El's spell to use them as means of getting around. Not a long article, but certainly a fun one.  Something to whet the appetite for the upcoming Forgotten Realms campaign set.

In an interesting and long article, By Tooth and Claw by Gregory Detwiler gives us details on how just normal animals can be terrifying foes in any game, especially for lower level characters. While the focus is AD&D it can be adapted to all games that have animals.  

Michael DeWolfe and Galan Akin are up with the only ElfQuest RPG article I can recall. High Ones, Ancient Ones covers the origins of the Elves in the ElfQuest universe.  I mean I have always known about Elf-Quest, I am not sure I know much of what it is really about. I mean I know it was created by Wendy Pini. But that is about it. The RPG uses Chaosium's BRP I also knew that much. 

Role of Computers by Hartley and Pattie Lesser talks a bit about communication and how humans can now use computers to talk to each other via BBSes. Something that soon dominate my own experiences in a couple of years. They even talk about how one day you could read Dragon over your computer! Imagine that! They also cover the DM's aid Dragonfire II. Likely the software can be found somewhere on the internet now.  They also look at Bard's Tale a full-featured computer RPG.

TSR Previews lets us know what is upcoming for 1987. In particular, H2 Minds of Bloodstone and DA2 Temple of the Frog.

Cool ad for some D&D shirts, I should have jumped on that, I kinda wish I could get them now.

Marvel-Phile gives us six heroes I have never heard of. Crossfire, Ringleader, Bombshell, Oddball, Tenpin, and Knickknack. Remember I am a DC fan.

Ok, here is the reason I wanted this one for today.  All six incarnations of The Doctor for the FASA Doctor Who RPG by none other than Margaret Weis and Michael P. Bledsoe (the game's author) in Doctor Who? The article is copyrighted 1986 FASA. The article goes into far more detail than the game does. I imagine the article was part of the 1985 rule manuscripts and was cut for size and expanded on here.  It is useful enough that it should be added to one of the boxed sets of any serious Doctor Who RPG Gamemaster. 

Flamethrowers get special coverage in William A. Barton's Aim and Burn.  

Gamer's Guide gives us some small ads. This month we get two ads for people to draw your character, something I really wanted back then. Johan I had just been retired and Larina was only 6 months old (or 19 in game years).  I do admit I look up the addresses and names on some of these ads to see if they are still in business. 

Convention Calendar covers the con scene for the start of 1987.

We end with Snarf Quest, Dragonmirth, and Wormy.

A good issue that I would not see the value of until six months or so later. 

Monstrous Mondays: But What About Dragons?

Did quite a bit of work on my Basic Bestiaries last week.  Mostly edits and some large-scale moving around of content. I am close to publishing yet, though I have more art for BB1.

Here is where I am on content.

	aka	Complete	Started
Basic Bestiary I	Witch Monsters	284	339
Basic Bestiary II	Undead	131	378
Basic Bestiary III	Demons	155	240
Basic Bestiary IV	Dragons	12	20

So, nearly 600 monsters are complete, and nearly 1,000 total started in one form or another.

A couple of things. 

Basic Bestiary I has shrunk while Basic Bestiary III has grown. I moved over about 20-25 creatures from I to III since they fit better.

Also, you might notice Basic Bestiary IV, aka Dragons.  I have talked about it, but not much. Mostly because I kept it closer to my chest, but really because so little of it was done.

This project grew out of something my oldest had been working on for a while, a book about dragons we were calling "Here There Be Dragons." It has been an on-again, off-again project for a while (ok 11 years) but I was leaving it in the hands of a then 11-year-old to work on. We resurrected it a while back and I have been slowly converting material from it to my Basic Bestiary format.  But that is not all, I also want to come up with a good monster stat block that will really take advantage of how awesome (in all senses of the word) dragons are.  I experimented with this one, but it is not 100% where I want it to be yet.  

I love the idea of Dragons getting their own book. I mean if I am going to do a book of Undead and Demons then Dragons really should get their own too.

In addition to the stat block, I have other issues to work out. Should Tiamat be in the Demon book or the Dragon book? Right now she is in both. What about one of my favorites, the Piasa Bird? Is it a dragon?

Next year, 2024, is not just the 50th Anniversary of D&D but it is also the Chinese year of the Dragon.  Feels like to me that an Old School monster book about dragons would be perfect.

I just need to get my ass moving on these.

I am also ditching the current covers I have for them and looking for something new. Still figuring out what to use.  I want the same artist for all four and they must feature the creature types covered. Still searching.

BTW if you want some cool dragon content now, Bruce Heard has a bunch up on his blog.

• D&D Class: The Dragon Cultist
• D&D Class: Dragon Slayer
• Dragon Steeds Pt. 1
• Dragon Steeds Pt. 2
• Dragon Steeds Pt. 3

Review: Castles & Crusades Codex Germania

Today I am going further south and a little more back in time.   Related to the Nordic myths and tales are the older Germanic ones.  Given the connections between the two, I am going to have to point out the differences and commonalities. 

Castles & Crusades Codex Germania

For this book, I am reviewing the PDF and hardcover edition of this book.  This book has 110 pages, so slightly smaller than the other codices.  Like a lot of Castles & Crusades books, the art here is from Peter Bradley.  Once again Brian Young is our author and designer.  Young also spends some time comparing the Germanic and Nordic myths and tales.  

These myths come from central Europe and begin as early as the 1st century BCE right on up to the time of the Vikings.  

Chapter 1: In Ancient Tales

Like the previous books, this chapter covers the history of the Germanic peoples as well as a brief bit on their legends and stories.  Like the Nordic (or to the point the Nordic myths are like these) we get an origin story about Giants and three Gods.  Young takes pains to differentiate these myths from the Norse and talks about the shortcomings of the source material.  Here we see the first comparisons between Woden and Odin.

Chapter 2: Of Germania & Beyond

This chapter covers the Germanic lands.  Now to assume there is only one Germany is a huge mistake and one that Young deftly avoids. There are lots of lands here and lots of peoples dating back to the height of the Roman Empire to it's fall.  It is helpful to consult the map or hit up various maps online.  

Chapter 3: Magical Beings & Monsters Dwelled

Once again we have a chapter on monsters and it is a real collection of gems.  Here are 40+ monsters. All are a little bit familiar to any D&D players, but these harken back to their "original" forms so great for players that have "seen everything."  

The monsters are of course enough on their own, but there is a nice section here on the complexities of the Germanic dragons.  Essentially if you ever have read about the dragon Fafnir, then you have an idea of what this is about.   Honestly, this is something that all dragons should have or at least the really interesting ones.  Speaking of the interesting dragons, there are also tables to determine what a unique dragon's name would be.  

Chapter 4: In Wizardry & Enchantments

Here we get some new magic-using classes.  There is the Halirúna, or the Dark Witch (Intelligence-based) which I absolutely love, the Erilaz, or the Rune Master (Wisdom-based) which also has runic magic (like the Nordic book), and the Gudja. or People of the Gods, the clerics for this setting. 

Magic is not a "supernatural" force here, but rather a natural one; THE natural one to be honest.  This chapter uses magic as a means of connecting the people to the gods. Which are coming up next.

Chapter 5: To Serve the Gods

This chapter covers the gods and discusses the overlap between these cultures and the Nordic.  Young points out that due to the Roman Empire the gods and myths of the Germanic pagans are a bit better documented than that of the neighboring Celts. Among these gods it is likely that Woden (Odin) and Þūnor (Thor).  Again there are no stats for gods here (as it should be).  

The chapter also details Germanic pagan beliefs and practices. 

Chapter 6: Skilled in Battlecraft

Warriors are still one of the highest castes in the life of the Germanic peoples.  This chapter gives us information on arms and armor used. How retainers were used and honored, and other topics on warcraft, including special unique weapons. 

The new class, the Drachentöten (lit. "Dragon Killer") is a Dexterity-based class. 

Chapter 7: Castle Keeper Info

Like the other codices, this covers running a Castles & Crusades game with this worldview.   The importance of the king and lawgivers are established and explained. 

The common folk are not forgotten and details like the importance of names (and many tables of names) are detailed. 

Chapter 8: Sample Adventure Module

The sample adventure, "The Monster of the Fens," is given.  It reminds me, naturally enough, of Beowulf.  The adventure takes place in East Anglia so Young states that it can be integrated with the Codex Celtarum.  The adventure is for 2 to 4 characters of 3rd to 4th level. 

It is a fun little adventure and reminds GM/Castle Keepers that even a "simple" monster like a Troll would be a menace to the folks of pagan Germanic lands. Indeed, much like Beowulf shows.

The temptation is great to compare this to the Codex Nordica and also to find it lacking.  This temptation must be avoided!  The Codex Germanica is its own thing. While the myths and stories will feel familiar to the more popular Norse myths, they are their own, situated within their own time and place.   These myths feel older and darker in many respects.  In many ways, I like these myths and tales a little more than those of the Norse. 

Again, this book is light on actual rules details, save for the classes, so it is an excellent resource for any RPG.  Converting it over to AD&D, D&D 5, or your favorite OSR-Clone would be trivial at worst. Of course it is designed for Castles & Crusades which is fantastic in it's own right.

Monstrous Monday: Zinc Dragons

Saw this on social media. Got me thinking.

Yeah.  Where are they?  I mean we have had Orange, Yellow and Purple dragons. 

So what do we know here?  According to the Monster Manual for AD&D 1st Ed.:

Copper dragons live in warmer rocky regions, live in caves, and have acid or a cloud of gas as their breath weapons. They have 7 to 9 HD, the same as the Green.

Brass dragons live in sandy deserts and have two types of gas as their breath weapon, poison and sleep. They have 6 to 8 HD, the same as the Black.

Bronze dragons live underground near the water. Their breath weapons are lightning and a repulsion gas cloud. They have 8 to 10 HD, the same as the Blue.

There is then some parity then between the Chromatic and Metalic. It follows that if I create some "new" Chromatic dragons (Orange, Purple so far) I should have some new Metalic dragons too.

My Orange dragon has 9 HD (9 to 11), my Purple has 10 HD (10 to 12).  I am not saying I need to duplicate the parity of the 1st ed book, but it is a good place to start.

I know I need to work on my dragons a bit more.  There is not really enough detail in my stat block as it is right now.  

Dragon, Zinc
aka Draco Spodium Ailbum
Huge Dragon, Metalic

Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Lawful [Chaotic Good]
Movement: 150' (50') [15"]
  Fly: 210' (70') [21"]
Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 5d8+20** (26 hp) (5HD to 7HD)
  Huge: 5d12+20** (36 hp)
THAC0: 10 (+9)
Attacks: 2 claws, 1 bite, + special
Damage: 1d6+3x2, 2d8+3
Special: Breath weapons (Burning Cloud or Choking Cloud), dragon fear, low-light vision (120’), magic use
Save: Monster 5
Morale: 10 (10)
Treasure Hoard Class: XV (H) 
XP: 575 (OSE) 660 (LL)

Habitat: Populated temperate to tropical zones
Probability Asleep: 35% 
Probability of Speech: 90%
Breath Weapon: Burning Cloud or Choking Cloud, 
Spells: First: 3, Second: 2

Zinc dragons are silver-white dragons that are often confused with smaller silver or white dragons save that they prefer to live in warmer climates in populated areas.  They will often shape change into human or dwarven form to move among humanoids.  In either human or dwarf form, their hair tends to be a very light blond or white and their skin tones range from olive to dark tans, though they can alter this as they see fit. They are fond of humanoids but still remain a bit aloof from them.

Zinc dragons can attack with a claw, claw, bite routine in dragon form.  They also have two breath weapons they are capable of using. The first is a choking cloud of particulates the other is a cloud of burning smoke. Both require a save vs. breath weapon or take damage equal to the dragon's current hit points. Save results in half-damage.  In both cases, the area 50 ft by 50 ft in front of the dragon has reduced vision to all but the dragon. Attacks are at -2 for the next round following the breath weapon attack.  In dragon or human form they may cast spells as a 4th level magic-user; three 1st level and two 2nd level.

Zinc dragons keep their hoards nearby, usually buried under whatever urban-dwelling they live in, or if in the wilderness, in a deep cave. 

--

Certainly one of the weaker dragons.  Maybe adventurers never encounter them because they avoid adventurers and potential dragon-slayers.

Sword & Sorcery & Cinema: Beowulf (2007)

"I am Beowulf, I am here to kill your monster."

Moving outside of the 80s and the Swords & Sorcery flicks of old to a newer (but still 14 years old) flick.  The big All-Star Robert Zemeckis and Neil Gaiman version of Beowulf.

I figure since all month is about monsters, let's go with one of the most famous monster-hunting tales in the English Language.  

Now let's be upfront about this.  The movie takes some liberties with the source material.  But I don't feel they are undue liberties.  Beowulf at its heart is a tale of good vs. evil, man vs. monster, and in some ways the Pagan world vs the Christian one.   That at least has always been my take on it.

When I first saw this movie it had been years since I had read Beowulf.  I remember it was stuck in the back of a bunch of myths and legends of Greek and Norse myths. The way the book was structured I thought there was a chronological progression of them; the Greek, then the Norse then Beowulf. And there was, to a degree, but not in the way I was thinking about them.  This is a topic I am going to come back to later.

Beowulf (2007)

I imagine that most people reading my blog have some passing familiarity with the story of Beowulf, Grendel, and Grendel's Mother.  Today though I am talking about the movie. 

Overall I like this particular version of the story, I am not sure I am 100% happy with the animation though. It reminds me a little too much of Shrek.  Now that would be a movie, replace Grendel with Shrek. Might have been an improvement over the whinny Grendel we get here.  This guy is supposed to be a fearsome demon-like monster.  Not an overgrown kid that can't sleep because his neighbors are partying too hard.  Though getting Crispen Glover to play Grendel was inspired.  Still, there is a bit of an Uncanny Valley to all of this. 

Still though, what a cast!  Anthony Hopkins as King Hrothgar likely his audition for Odin in Thor.  Ray Winstone as Beowulf cuts an imposing figure, but I can't help but think the role would have been better served by the likes of Sean Bean.  John Malkovich as Unferth is woefully underused but still manages to chew up the scenery.  The one though that got everyone's attention was Angelina Jolie as Grendel's mother.  Changing her from an ugly monster that was worse than Grendel to a succubus-like seductress was an interesting choice and one I still think works.  Robin Wright plays Queen Wealtheow as a more or less older Princess Buttercup. 

The creatures; Grendel, his mother, the dragon, and the sea monsters all look fantastic. The movie makes the idea that Grendel and his mother are demons. Likely playing into the idea of Pagan vs. Christians. 

Much like the epic poem, the parts leading up to Beowulf's and Grendel's fight and right after it are the best parts.  Afterward, it kind of drags a little for me.

Neil Gaiman wrote the script and did a really good job. 

Gaming Material

I have been posting my Beowulf gaming material now for some time. My two biggest are the Aglæca and Trolla.  This though is another example of something I started thinking more and more about when working on The Craft of the Wise: The Pagan Witch Tradition,  a game of fighting demons and other monsters against the backdrop of the rise of Christianity and the decline of Paganism.  Would be a lot of fun.

#AtoZChallenge2021: D is for Dragon, Purple

I am SO glad I watched Dragonslayer over the weekend because it really puts me in the mood for today's monster.  

Dragons are a huge part of the games we play at home. My oldest son LOVES dragons and has, well, I have no idea how many, scattered all over the place. His games are filled with dragons.  So when I want to add new dragons to my games or books, I first turn to him.  Especially if I want a fresh take.

I remember the Purple, Yellow, and Orange dragons from Dragon Magazine 65 and then updated in Dragon magazine 248.   I included my own take on an Orange dragon in my Pumpkin Spice Witch book.   This dragon was originally conceived for my High Witchcraft book.  This is the dragon that has given us so many draconic bloodline sorcerers.

Dragon, Purple
aka Draco Arcanis Occultis, Arcane Dragon
Huge Dragon

Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 1 (1)
Alignment: Chaotic [Neutral Evil]
Movement: 180' (60') [18"]
  Fly: 240' (80') [24"]
  Burrow: 90' (30') [9"]
Armor Class: 0 [19]
Hit Dice: 10d8+20* (65 hp)
  Huge: 10d12+20** (85 hp)
THAC0: 11 (+8)
Attacks: 2 claws, 1 bite, + special
Damage: 1d6+3x2, 2d8+3
Special: Breath weapon (magical energy), dragon fear, low-light vision (120’), magic use
Save: Monster 10
Morale: 10 (10)
Treasure Hoard Class: XV (H) 
XP: 2,300 (OSE) 2,400 (LL)

Habitat: Underground or Urban areas
Probability Asleep: 25% 
Probability of Speech: 100%
Breath Weapon: 75’ long, 5' wide beam of magical energy
Spells: First: 3, Second: 3, Third: 3, Fouth: 2, Fifth: 1

Purple dragons are a very rare mutation among prismatic dragons.  They are born mostly to red, blue, or black dragons and rarely among green or white. Even then only 5% of all dragon births can result in a purple dragon.  It is believed they are born most often in areas of high magic.  Since all of the prismatic dragons are very vain, the wyrmling purple is often abandoned. Green dragons usually kill them outright.  The ones that survive learn that their most important weapon is guile, trickery, and deceit. 

Like all dragons, the purple can fight with its claws and bite. Their breath weapon is a 75' long beam of magical energy. They will also fight with spells in any form. 

The purple dragons are among the smartest of all dragon-kind. They will always speak and use magic. They can cast spells as a magic-user/wizard of 9th level. These dragons are fond of casting Polymorph Self  (fourth level) and masquerading as a human.  In this form, they will be found living in cities where they will often study magic and accumulate wealth.  Their lairs will have an underground area where they will keep their treasures and sleep in their dragon form.

These dragons are very solitary in regards to other dragons, but they do keep humanoids nearby. These are often servants, slaves, thralls, and the occasional victim.  They have been known to also become the patrons of Draconic Warlocks and Witches.  Wizards will also seek them out for advanced training in the magical arts.  A purple dragon can speak draconic, common, its alignment language, and up to four more languages.  Typically elven is learned. 

--

This block has the extra details needed for dragons.  Additionally, we see our first Huge creature.  It can use the normal d8 for hp if you wish to stick to the rules of your particular Basic game, or you can use a d12 instead to reflect its larger size. In the case of this 10 HD monster, the difference is 20 hp.

AND

If you are doing the A to Z Challenge Scavenger Hunt, you just found a Dragon!