Labyrinth Lord: Liath and Bodhmall

I recently picked up two books from Brian O'Sullivan, Fionn: Defence of Ráth Bládhma and  Fionn: Traitor of Dún Baoiscne.  While the books are about Fionn MacCumhail (Finn MacCool) they feature younger versions of the druidess Bodhmal and the warrior Liath Luchara.
Like I did, he has both women as lovers.  I have not read the books yet, but a quick flip and I like what I see.  
His Liath and Bodhmal are not exactly like my versions of them and that is cool.

Like what I have been doing with Skylla I wanted to do some versions of Liath and Bodhmall to test out different systems.  I wanted to do "by the book" versions for both Labyrinth Lord:AEC (as a stand in for any OSR game) and D&D5.  Another good choice would be Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea.

I made minor changes in each case to reflect what works best for that game.

Previous Versions:
Castles & Crusades
Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition, Essentials

Since I am currently running a D&D5 game around 5th-7th level, I set them around that.  I did both versions of the characters around that level.

Liath Luachra
NG Female Half-elf*
Ranger 7th Level

Abilities
Strength: 13 (+1)
Dexterity: 16 (+2)
Constitution: 18 (+3)
Intelligence: 10 (0)
Wisdom: 10 (0)
Charisma: 11 (0)

Saves
Breath: 9
Poison or Death: 8
Petrify or Paralyze: 10
Wands: 9
Spells or Spell-like: 12

AC: 7
HP: 50

Base To Hit AC 0: 14

Abilities
Half-elf
Infravision 60'

Equipment
Long bow (1d8)
Spear +1 (1d6+1)
Leather Armor +1

Water skin, belt pouches, travellers gear, boots.

*I am going with half-elf since I am going with the idea that Liath has some fae or Sidhe blood in her ancestry.  I have a lot of "in-universe" reasons for this, but for me it just works out nice.


Bodhmal
N(G) Female Human
Druid 8th Level

Abilities
Strength: 10 (0)
Dexterity: 10 (0)
Constitution: 14 (+1)
Intelligence: 14 (+1)
Wisdom: 18 (+3)
Charisma: 11 (0)

Saves
Breath: 14
Poison or Death: 9
Petrify or Paralyze: 12
Wands: 10
Spells or Spell-like: 12

AC: 7
HP: 37

Base To Hit AC 0: 17

Spells
1st Level: Divine weather, detect magic, faerie fire, shillelagh
2nd Level: barkskin, cure light wounds, produce flame, charm person
3rd Level: call lightning, pyrotechnics, protection from fire
4th Level: flash fire, summon sylvan beings

Equipment
Scimitar
Leather Armor
Amulet of Protection +1

Water skin, belt pouches, travellers gear, boots.

Stating these two for LL was exactly like AD&D/D&D.  I have made scores of characters for LL but I am always surprised how quick and easy it always is.
Having already done 5e versions; they were just as fast as these.

In the past I had made Liath a barbarian.  Here I went a ranger.  I thought a fighter might also work, but a ranger to me seems closer.  I will have more thoughts on this when I post the 5th edition stats.

Baba Yaga and the Reign of Winter

I know we are mere days before the start of Summer, but I find my thoughts turning to Winter...
The Reign of Winter to be precise.

Backing up.

I have been doing searches for a couple of adventures or adventure ideas for a couple of different purposes. They have been, for the most part, independent searches. But lately they have grown together and lead me to the same outcome.

Search 1 was/is for a very high level adventure for the Dragonslayers. I wanted something published by TSR. I wanted it to be "old school" but didn't have to be from the 70s or early 80s.  Something like "Throne of Bloodstone" but very specifically NOT that.  I wanted it to be an older module for my own reasons.

Search 2 was/is primarily for more adventures in my so-called "War of the Witch Queens" adventure path/campaign.  The idea was to play through all these witch queen themed adventures to some goal.
These two search lead me to the same end point.  The Dancing Hut of Baba Yaga.
It's old. It is part of the "S" series of modules in theory (it is supposed to be S5). It has history.
Plus it deals with the biggest, baddest Witch Queen of them all; Baba Yaga.

Satisfied, I bought the PDF printed it out and put it in a binder with the old Dragon magazine version of the The Dancing Hut and a 4th edition version I bought a while back.  It works perfect as an adventure for the Dragonslayers.

I like the idea that Baba Yaga is in it. I'd also like to work in Iggwilv and maybe Louhi too.

But it got me thinking.  Wasn't there a Pathfinder adventure with Baba Yaga too?
I knew of the Reign of Winter and I thought that maybe the last adventure, The Witch Queen’s Revenge might be a good one to use too.  In the process I also discovered a stand alone (but maybe related) adventure The Witchwar Legacy.

I picked up those three books, but not the first 5 of the Reign of Winter.

Does anyone know if they are any good?  Has anyone played them?

I like the idea behind the adventures, but they are not really something I am looking for.

Plus I would like to fit in all these other adventures too.  I also like the idea that each adventure is from a different game.

Recent purchases

Skylla: Adventurer Conqueror King & Players Companion

Trying to tie a few loose threads together and I noticed this was missing from my mix.
So here are some purposes this post serves for me.
- I wanted to go back and have another look at Skylla. In particular how this version compares to Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea.
- I wanted to go and have a look at the witch from the Adventurer Conqueror King System and the ACKs Player's Companion.
- I am gathering together some threads for my "Adventure Path" War of the Witch Queens.

When it comes to "Old School" Witch classes.  Adventurer Conqueror King System and Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea tie for second place in my mind.  Both are so close to what I like doing with witches.  There are plenty of great ones out there, but these are closest to how I like to play.

Adventurer Conqueror King System also limits characters in terms of levels.  While AS&SH goes to 12, ACKs tops off at 14.  ACKs is also closer to my favorite version of D&D, Moldvay Basic/Cook-Marsh Expert.  In fact all three systems do work pretty well together.  In fact I tend to think of the world used in ACKs as being just a little "south" of the world in AS&SH.  I have not spent as much time with ACKs as the other games, but what I have played I do like.

Like my witch the ACKs witch can belong to a Tradition.  In truth you could move traditions back and forth between the two with relative ease.  The problem here though is that none of the traditions really seem to fit the "knowledge at all costs" mentality I see Skylla as having.  Chthonic is the closest with Voudon coming in a close second.  In the end the powers and spells the Chthonic witch gets tips it into favor.

ACKs though also has a Warlock class. The warlock as described is a much better fit for Skylla than the witch is.  Since the warlock is an arcane spellcaster and the witch is more divine it also makes more sense to go with the warlock.  The Corrupted Scholar template from the Warlock is also a perfect fit.

Skylla, 7th Level Warlock (ACKS)
Template: Corrupted Scholar

Strength: 9
Dexterity: 11
Constitution: 10
Intelligence: 15
Wisdom: 11
Charisma: 12

Hit Points:  20
Alignment: Chaotic
AC: 4 (Ring of Protection AC 4)

Proficiencies: Alchemy, Loremastery, Knowledge (Occult)

Powers
1st level: Familiar (owl)
2nd level: Secrets of the Dark Arts (control Undead as a Chaotic Cleric 3)
4th level: Hex
6th level: Contact Dark Powers
7th level: Scribe Scrolls, Magic Reserach (minor)

Spells
First: (2+1) Charm Person, Light, Magic Missile
Second: (2) Detect Invisible, Levitate
Third: (1): Lightning Bolt

Magic Items
Ring of Protection AC 4, Dagger +1

This Skylla has less spells, but what makes her shine here is the same thing that makes ACKS shine and that is the proficiency system.

Witch Adventures

I have been looking for some published adventures to use with my Witch class book.  Surprisingly most of the adventures I have been working on don't really feature my witch class.  So here are some I have bought over the years.
Note: I wrote these reviews while watching "Blood Sabbath" from 1972, featuring a really young Anthony Geary prior to his "Luke and Laura" days.  Maybe I can use Alotta, Queen of Witches, from this.

No Salvation for Witches
I picked up this Lamentations of the Flame Princess adventure based partly on the name, how could I refuse? I also bought it because I am a fan of +Rafael Chandler and his Teratic Tome.  While this adventure uses the LotFP rules, it can be easily adapted to just about any OSR/Old School game. It is also set in +James Raggi's pseudo European setting which also makes it easy to convert to just about anything if you don't mind ignoring some of the history presented.
As the title implies, NSFW is not for everyone.  It is no worse or no better in terms of art than anything else in the Lamentations catalog or TT.  I will give Raggi credit, he springs for some quality art.
The adventure itself is weird, bloody and full of body horror.  It is also a race against the clock.  IF you go with the idea that Woolcott is a witch (and not a LotFP magic-user) and evil then the PCs have something to work for.  Otherwise I can't see how the world they create in the end is all that bad?  I am kidding, a little.  For me I think it would be interesting that if in their goodwill to recreate a better world they made it more horrible.
The adventure is a combination of Eurotrash occult horror, Lovecraftian style outsiders and creepy history.  There is also a splash of 80s slasher flick in this.  It is a heady brew of horror tropes in the guise of an adventure. The Tract of Teratology featured in this adventure is almost worth the cover price.   The listed monsters are also really cool and unique.  There is just so much I could do with this.
It can be hard to judge power level of this adventure.  But I am going to say high level at least.
The book is 68 pages with covers, maps and OGL.  It is also full color.
Does it work with The Witch? Yes, but some changes have to be made.  Woolcott is obviously a witch, but is she a Witch?  I think I would have to think about it in terms of how I want to run it and who or what the Primogenitor really is.

Dungeon Crawl Classics: Saga of the Witch Queen

This is a meaty module.  84 pages, covers, maps and OGL still leave a lot of pages for material.
First off, if you are not familiar with Dungeon Crawl Classics modules they are meant to emulate a certain feel of early 80s play.  They went on to create the game Dungeon Crawl Classics, but the adventures are still largely OSR compatible. Actually I didn't see a single thing in this adventure screamed is should be used for one system or the other.
This adventure is actually 3 adventures in one.  Legacy of the Savage Kings, The Lost Passage of the Drow, and War of the Witch Queen.  Each one is a different part of the Witch Queen's plan.
Reading through this adventure is one part excitement for the new and one part excitement for the nostalgia.  For the new, I wanted to learn more about Kyleth (the eponymous Witch Queen) and the tome Ars Maleficus.  The nostalgia comes from many little easter eggs through out the pages that call back to adventures of the TSR-days.  I am convinced the Mad Hermit here is the same as the one in the Keep on the Borderland for example.  There are also hints of influences from Vault of the Drow, Ravenloft, and even the rest of the GDQ series.  In fact the second adventure, "The Lost Passage of the Drow" could be slotted into the D series and no one would be the wiser.   Replace Baba Yazoth with the proper Baba Yaga and have one of the many adventures she features in as a side trek.
There are a number of named characters that would work well as witches, Maeve, Baba Yazoth and of course Kyleth herself.   While using the title of "Witch Queen" Kyleth is only an 8th level Magic-user.  Make her a 9th or 10th level witch and then you have something really scary.
Does it work with The Witch? Yes, absolutely.  There are number of great items and story points in this adventure for any witch character.  In fact I would say that any good witch would want to see Kyleth taken out on general principle.  Plus there are a number of encounters and NPCs that would benefit from the rules in the Witch.  Night Hags get more spell casting powers for example and the medusa can also have some levels of witch.
Of course there is the one issue of Kyleth being one of The Thirteen. The Thirteen most evil wizards, witches and necromancers in the world.  She was the newest member, who are the other 12 and what are their plans?  Anyone up for an adventure against the Legion of Doom?  I might have to come back to this idea. I can see witches, vivamancers, blood mages, evil wizards, and necromancers part of this evil cabal. Each providing something different.
Seriously, there is so much fun stuff here I can't wait to try it out.

The Evil of Witches Fen
This adventure is really more of hex-sandbox.  It is two pages and the central conceit is the characters are stranded here till the next boat arrives so they might as well figure out why the place is dying.  There are some suggested quests and some points of interest.  There are a couple of witches mentioned.  The Gray Lady is the spectre of an old witch. She is also a quest. Dispatch her to help bring the area back from extinction.   There is also the remains of a witch cult.  They are not described in any detail.
This is a pay what you want product, then by all mean plop down a buck for it.  At two pages (no title page or ogl) there is a still a lot here.  You can find out more at the author's website: http://games.taskboy.com/#tbg-b
Does it work with The Witch? Yes. Only in teh respect that the adventure has so little detail that it works with anything.  Now for some people this is perfect. Indeed I can see a number of sessions based on these two pages alone.  You can drop it into any game as a break from the regular campaign.  But if you want more meat to your module then this might not be for you.

The Witch of the Tarriswoods
A 24 page OSR adventure (2 covers, toc, ogl, 3 maps).  It's a good adventure of the "there is something strange going on in the woods, let's investigate!" type.  The hazards make this more of a challenge for 3-7 level characters instead of say 1-3.  That is fine really. I would use this to lull seasoned players into a false sense of security and then show them there are still dangers to be had in simple settings.  This is the perfect adventure for say a lazy afternoon. You can drop it nearly anywhere in your world.  Our main bad guygal is Llorona, Witch of the Tarriswoods.  She is a 5th level magic-user.
There are also some new monsters in this that are a lot of fun.
Does it work with The Witch? Yes. I say change Llorona to a 5th or 6th level witch and give her some more spells. Given her name, dress her in blue and white gowns and focus on water-based spells.  change the "wizard staff" to a trident or tined fork.  This would make her much more of a threat.

The Ruins of Ramat (S&W)
This one is for Swords & Wizardry, but can be played in any OSR game really.
14 pages, 2 mapes, cover, ogl.  This is the S&W conversion of the Castles & Crusades adventure.
The adventure is a good introductory adventure for players and low level characters.  It is a simple two level dungeon that used to be the home of an evil cult. So there are a lot of undead and some demonic powers here.  The catacombs are supposed to be filled with treasure according to legends.
Given that this all takes place on "Witch Hill" I would want to expand its history a bit to say more about the cults that were there.  I would make the cult a coven of witches.
What I think works best about this module is not only can it be located anywhere, but it can even be located under anything in another adventure.  A little tinkering and suddenly I have "The Ruins on Witch Hill".
Does it work with The Witch? Well. There are no witches in this.  So unless I want to make an active cult there (and that is really a good idea) then there is not much to add from my book.  Save for some magic items and scrolls with ancient spells.

Witches Court Marshes (1982)
When I first got this years ago, but long after I had moved away from AD&D 2nd ed, I was not that impressed. Now looking back at it, it has a certain charm and it does better than my memory of it. The Witch class is a sub-class of Magic-User, but the experience for each level is much lower that I have seen for other witches. There are plenty of new spells and in true old-school fashion some classes and monsters are completely immune to the witch's power/spells.
In addition to all of this there is a marsh that is the home to many evil witches. Given how JG used to write the adventures it can be converted to a lot of systems with ease.
Does it work with The Witch? For the most part yes. While this book was not an influence on my writing of the witch class it does have similar DNA.  That is to say the feel of this book and the time it was published was something I sought to emulate in my own witch.  The classes themselves are not really compatible save that the witch in most cases is compatible with a wizard.
The adventure is certainly usable by today's OSR games.

The Manor, Issue #6
Ah.  Now this one is an interesting case. It does have an adventure and specifically designed to use my witch.  "Witches of the Dark Moon" is a great little one-shot written by +Tim Shorts himself using a lot of elements he had at his disposal. This includes using my own Witch Class for the witches. You don't need my book to play this, but it does add a little extra to the mix.
Does it work with The Witch? Completely.

Adventure Path/Campaign: War of the Witch Queens?
I wonder if I have enough here to make an adventure path/campaign to go after the evil witches in the world, while at the same time protecting the good witches? (hey, I have my biases).  Plus there are an inordinate number of marsh and swamp related locales here.

• Witches of the Dark Moon (The Manor #6): Low level
• Ruins of Remat: Low level
• The Evil in Witches Fen: 4th to 7th
• Dungeon Crawl Classics: Saga of the Witch Queen
• Legacy of the Savage Kings: 4th to 6th
• The Lost Passage of the Drow: 6th to 8th
• War of the Witch Queen: 7th to 9th
• Witches Court Marshes: High Level
• No Salvation for Witches: Finale

I am thinking that running these under B/X D&D, Adventurer Conqueror King or Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea and capping the levels at 13.

Could be a lot of fun.

More Mail Call

I also got this.

It was a total spur of the moment thing, but I am so glad I got it. I have a lot of ideas for this one.
The PDF is nice, but this looks better on my game table.

Petty Gods in Print

I got my print copy of Petty Gods in the mail today.
It's a big book.

It's going to take me a while to go through it all.

Really proud to have been a part of this.

No OSR at GenCon?

I spent my Sunday registering for games at Gen Con. It was fun, and frustrating, as normal.
I didn't get into all the games I wanted, but I got into enough and some of my alternates that I am happy.

But the whole time I am reading through the list I could not help but wonder.
Where are all the OSR games?

I saw a few, but by no means a lot.
I saw a few 4e games too and a lot of 3.x ones.

Look. I don't pretend we are anything more than a drop in a large bucket, but I did think we were a bit of a bigger drop than this.

Is it time for our own convention?  People dedicated to running these newer oldschool games?
Is anyone going to run anything at Gen Con not on the lists?

Guidebook to the Duchy of Valnwall

I know I have been going on and on (and on) about this one, but we are in the final hours now.

Guidebook to the Duchy of Valnwall
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/665143704/guidebook-to-the-duchy-of-valnwall?ref=card

So much great stuff is going into this book and another 100 bucks would be great to get more authors.

Check it out, support or at the very least pass it on to others.

Review: Machinations of the Space Princess

Continuing my reviews of OSR Sci-Fi games.  Next up is Postmortem Studios' Machinations of the Space Princess.   Continuing also with the comparisons. If White Star is Star Wars, Spacemen & Starships is Star Trek then Machinations of the Space Princess (MotSP) is Heavy Metal, the Movie.

Written by +James Desborough and art by +Satine Phoenix this game has a really cool, sexy vibe.
Firmly planted in the PG-13 area, this game does more with a nudge and wink than some games try to do with out right R material.
The game is described as a game of "Kick Ass Heroes".  It is. It is also a game of rogues, smugglers, free wheeling pilots, more-than human psionics and accountants.  Seriously, you can hire them.  But more on that later.

This game is built on Lamentations of the Flame Princess, but it takes more than a few liberties with it.  Bottom line here; you can add this to any of the OSR Sci-Fi games I have been reviewing.
The book itself is 244 pages which includes cover, OGL, title pages and acknowledgments.  There are a few pages of "What is Roleplaying" and examples of play.  Anyone reading this review though can likely skip these sections.

There is a section on the default setting, the Urlanth Matriarchy, and it's fall.  Also each page has a note with some tidbit of information.  Don't ignore these, there is a lot colorful commentary here.
The section on Kick-Ass heroes is a good one and even though it feels like something we have read before it is worth reading again (or for the first time).   MotSP is fully character focused.  The empire, the aliens, the tech, that's all just backdrop to playing a Kick Ass character and having a good time.  This is refreshing for an old school game and honestly for me it nudges MotSP ahead in my book.
The mechanics of building a hero are also here. This is old hat for most of us.
Note: Ability score bonuses are more in-line with D&D 3.x than old-school D&D.  But you could use whatever you like really.
MotMP has Seven attributes.  Comeliness is back.
There are actually a few compelling reasons to include Comeliness and MotMP is a good game to use it.
Races are covered with the default humans and various archetypes of other races (Amoeboid, Aquatic...). Races are also divided up by Species (an actual species), Cultural (many species or one species that make up a culture) say like a planet of criminals or Exotic (something about them is very different), for example everyone is dead or a cyborg.  There are a lot of of these races given and they can be combined in different ways.
Classes cover many of the basics; Experts, Killers, Psions, and Scholars.  Each class has their own sub-specialties, HD, Attack Bonus and Skill Points.   Psions get Psi Points and Power Points.  In what seems reversed to me Psi-Points are your reserve of power to use your psionic powers and Power Points allow you to buy your Psychic Powers.  I am planning to spend some time with the Psion since it is the closest thing I have seen to a witch-like character.

Skills define what a character can do.  The skill system is a d6 roll under the skill points you have for a particular skill.  There are some common skills that everyone can use, the Psi skills (Psions), Combat skills, Scholastic skills, and General skills (ones that anyone can learn but don't start out with).

After skills we discuss gear, which includes arms and armor. Some basic ship stats are also given.  Ships can also have a number of qualities.  My favorite so far is "Killer Paint Job" which makes your ship "look totally rad".  Seriously it like this is the only game that remembers that fun is important!  Ok, not really, but fun is in the forethought here.

Of course you are are going to get all that loot from doing what ever your kick-ass characters do, but can you afford that "killer paint job"?  Better hire that previously mentioned accountant.  Retainers are discussed next.  How many hit die they have (space is a dangerous place) and how much they need to be paid.  So do you want 10 accountants or 1 elite assassin?

There is a chapter on cybernetics and enhancements.  It isn't as fully transhuman as say Stars Without Number, but it gets the job done.

Bodly Going is the chapter on space and planet exploration.  It can also be called 1,001 Ways to Die in Space.  I give James a lot of credit here. I know the guy outside of the gaming world and he is what I call a science-cheerleader.  He does not hit us over the head with hard core science in this, but he is paying enough lip service to the real thing to make this chapter fun to read.  I know he could have dialed this up more, but since his goal is fun this is perfect.

Rocket's Red Glare gives us more details of spaceships.  This includes a lot on combat.  What I do like here is that ships are treated like characters.  It is something a lot of games do so there is a real pragmatic approach to it all.

The rest of this section covers things characters can do and psionics.

A little after the half-way point we get into the Game Master's section.
If the players make kick-ass characters then the game master is instructed to be a bad-ass Game Master.  Additionally advice is how to keep the game fun.
So everything from planetary romance, swords and planets stories, sexy (or sleazy) fun, traps, killing things and taking their stuff and more are discussed.

The book ends with an index and character and ship sheets.

There is so much here to be honest that I doubt I'd ever run out of things to do with this game. It may be more tongue-in-cheek than other sci-fi games.  There are plenty of "Serious" sci-fi games that play great and are fun, but I doubt I will find one with a bigger sense of fun than this one.

Review: Stars Without Number

Continuing my deep dive into the OSR-based SciFi games we naturally next come to Stars Without Number.  This gem was released in 2011 and was written by +Kevin Crawford and Sine Nomine Publishing.  SWN is a big book, 254 pages filed with maps, sheets, a great index, but no OGL statement that I kind find.
To me this book feels more like the work of hard sci-fi; like that Asimov, Bradbury and Heinlein.   Certainly it is epic in scope.  There is more of a setting here than other OSR-flavored games, so if you like that, great, if not, well it seems easy enough to ignore.

Chapter 1 covers Character creation.  We have seen this all before, but perfect for people new to RPGs or scifi fans new to the Classic 6 Attributes and level/class systems.
The classes are the three "archetypes" that you can find in True20 and other games, The Expert, The Psychic and The Warrior.    Each has their own advancement table and Hit Die.  SWN assumes a 20 level career in case you were curious.   Each class also gets their own saving throw tables.
There are background packages which can be added to classes to give your character more depth and determines some of their skills.  There are also training packages to further define your character.
Character creation is a breeze and no one seems to die while doing it.

Chapter 2 covers Psionics.  There are quite a lot of psionic powers detailed here.  So first thing, if psionics are something you must have in your sci-fi game then please check this game out first.  Powers as expected have point cost values.  Psionic points always give the powers a different feel for me than magic, so this is another plus really.  These powers are not merely reskinned spells, they have been redone to fit within the mythos of the game better.

Chapter 3 details all the equipment you will need including the Tech Level of the equipment.  D&D would be tech level 1 (or so) while we are at TL 3.  The game is set at TL 5 with some artifacts at TL 6.  Time Lords are hanging out at 7 or 8 I would say.  D20 Future and Traveller also use a similar mechanic, so if you want to see how they can also work, checking out those games is advisable.
The standard batch of weapons and armor from sticks and stone all the way up to energy weapons are discussed.  AC is descending by the way.  What is really nice about this game is in addition to lasers, energy swords and computers it also includes Cyberware.

Chapter 4 is the Game Systems chapter.  It includes the expected combat, but also a new twist on the skill checks with Target Numbers.  Useful if you are using the skills as described here, but it's real utility comes in how flexible it can be.  I would have to try it out more, but it's close enough to other skill + die roll + mods vs TN that I can see it's use in a variety of situations.

Chapter 5 covers the history of space of the default campaign setting.  Even if you don't use it there are some great ideas here.

Chapter 6 is the Game Master Guide of the game.  Deals with running the game and how and where to use skill checks.

Chapter 7 is World Generation which is just FULL of material for any game.  While this game has a lot going for it, this is the real gem in my mind. This flows right into Chapter 8, Factions.  Factions are important groups.  Say a group of allied pirates or smugglers, a government or a band of plucky rebels.   Several key factors when creating a faction are given and there is a huge list of sample factions.
Chapter 9 discusses what sort of adventures you might be able to have.  With Chapters 6 through 8 and all the details they give, running out of ideas is the least of your worries really.

Chapter 10 covers the creation of alien species. First the hows and whys of aliens are discussed; what to use, where and why to use them.  Some of this is situated in the campaign setting, but there is some good advice here even if you plan on using your own background/campaign or not even have aliens.  Plenty of traits are detailed and how they might combine.  There are three alien races detailed.
Naturally this flows into Chapter 11, Xenobestiary. AKA the Monster Manual.  Again we are given a lot of detail on how make alien beasts and then a listing of several samples.
Chapter 12 gives us Robots and Mechs.  We have various traits detailed and then plenty of samples.
Chapter 13 deals with societies.  This might have felt better coming after Chapter 8 really.
Chapter 14 has designer notes. I nice little treat to be honest.
Chapter 15 deals with the Hydra Sector, or the "Known World" of this game.  Instead of countries we have planets.
Chapter 16 ends the book with scores of random tables. Create just about anything with a few rolls of the dice.
There is a nice Index (sadly lacking in many books) and plenty of maps and blank sheets for characters, starships, and adventures.

Stars Without Number is big.  It is a vast game with endless possibilities.  If there is a sci-fi property out there chances are good that this game will be able to do it.

My only complaint is a non-existent OGL declaration.  Can you do a game like this without one?  Maybe, but I would not want to.  Plus it makes the game's utility a little less for me.

The game is beautiful and there is so much going on with it that it would take me a number of games with it just to get the right feeling for it.   The overall feel I get with this game is that it is the perfect child of Basic D&D and Traveller.  So much of what made both of those games so great is here.

Is Stars Without Number perfect? No, not really. But it is really, really damn close and even from a short distance I could not tell it apart from a perfect game.

Review: Starships & Spacemen 2e by Goblinoid Games

I have been in a real Sci-Fi mood of late.  Partly due to the new Star Wars film coming out, partly due to the release of the revised d6 Star Wars game out there on social media, but mostly due to the release of White Star.  It got me thinking about about another favorite game of mine, Starships & Spacemen.
If White Star is "Star Wars" then Starships & Spacemen is classic "Star Trek".
The author, +Dan Proctor admits his love for Star Trek in the forward of the book, and the cover is certainly evocative of the Original Series.

So what is Starships & Spacemen (S&S)?  It is a "military style" missions-based, old-school game in the milieu of Star Trek.  First off it is important to point out that while this is the "2e" version of Starships & Spacemen it is more compatible with Goblinoid Games other products like Labyrinth Lord, Realms of Crawling Chaos and Mutant Future.  In fact I would go out on a limb and say Mutant Future is a must have since it has rules that can used to create mutants aka aliens.  Realms of Crawling Chaos is Cthulhu and those creatures are aliens after all.  Labyrinth Lord of course provides more monster/alien creatures.
Also, given that it is compatible with Labyrinth Lord it is also compatible with 100s of other products also compatible with LL.  It is also compatible with 1000s of other OSR/Old School products too.

The book itself is 95 pages of content, some ads for other Goblinoid Games products, two full color covers (front and back), character sheet, ship record and hex map. There is no OGL page that I could see.

The system is class and level based.  There are various races your character can belong to. Three basic classes all in the "Confederation" military-like branch; Military/Command, Sciences and Support/Tech.  Or if you prefer, Gold Shirt, Blue Shirt, and Red Shirt.  There is Officer level advancement to level 12 and Enlisted advancement to level 9.  So if you are running a game of a starship "boldly going where no one has gone before" then you are set.   While I am enjoying class/level systems much more now than ever before I do have some issues with this, but I will talk about that later.

The introduction covers the basics of the system; very much the same as Labyrinth Lord.
Section 2 covers the characters and character creation.  Here we have our classes and basic races.
Each class has some basic skills that improve with leveling and each race has ability modifiers.  The races are as expected pastiches of the expected races. This is fine since it works so well here. There are a couple of others too, including some reptoids and a frog like race.
Equipment covers the expected range too.  Though there are two entries that caught my eye. The robot dog for you K9 or Daggit fans.  Also there is a telepathic dog.  This caught my eye because back in college I ran a brief "Trek" game where the medical officer had a telepathic dog on board.

Section 3 covers Psi powers.  These are not class based, but a random  d6 power.  The powers are detailed like spells and there are couple of special powers for stronger characters.  Like other sci-fi games built on the d20 core adding new powers can be easy, but care should be given as to not make the game too much about powers.

Section 4 covers Planetary Adventures. Or what your away team is doing. This covers a lot of "adventuring" style topics including mapping, various weapon damages, and other hazards.

Section 5 is the meatiest of the book.  This covers Galactic Adventures.  I think my favorite bit here are all the space hazards.  Space Mirrors, Gravity Wells.  Enough for a full season of starship disaster scenarios. Atmospheric combat, diseases and even time travel is covered.  So of the top of my head nearly any episode of the classic series can be reproduced with this chapter.  How is plays out of course is up to the players.

Section 6 covers Starships and discusses their basic use, creation and stats.  Combat systems are covered, energy weapons, solid projectiles and shields.  Transporter Teleporter systems are discussed including the ever popular mishap (yes there is a table).   Computer systems are covered (yes they can run more than one program!)  Ship to ship combat gets a pretty decent section since it covers new ground.

Section 7, Alien Encounters is the biggest.  This covers not just sentient aliens, but "monster" types as well.  Again move creatures from other games back and forth here with no effort.  The best section is the random "forehead" alien system.  Roll some dice and you have a new alien race. You can even randomly determine a background and environment.
The flows right into Section 8, Alien Artifacts.  Lost tech of ancient civilizations.

Section 9 is advice for the "Star Master" or Game Master.  Some brief background on the setting is given.  There is just enough information here to start a campaign and then get going.  Really this is all you need.  The game is one about exploration and discovery.  So it follows that much of the galaxy should be unknown.  This game is so flexible that you can do just about anything with it.

Frankly, the game really is awesome and has all the joy of Labyrinth Lord, only with spaceships and lasers.

Critiques
Ok so this game is perfect for a Trek-like game where everyone is serving aboard a starship.  The class/level system works for this.  But I do have two issues I want to bring up.  One is outside the scope of the game, the other is inside it.
First off. If I want to play a game of "Orion" Pirates or Smugglers I have to bend my Officers level advancement a bit.  Indeed, some of the classes would not quite work with a group of characters where everyone has to do a little bit of everything.  Yesterday my friend Greg Littlejohn (gm for my oldest in his other game) talked about a Smuggler class.  That might work well here too.

Secod point is the level titles them selves.  While it make perfect sense to have a bunch of Ensigns (1st level) running around doing things, it makes less sense when everyone on 10th+ level and all Admirals.   For this I would use the level titles as suggested ranks only.  Or maybe make the PCs part of a special task force that allows them to work outside the normal ranking system.

Despite this there is enough here to make it all work.

May the Fourth be With You

It's "Star Wars day".

I suppose you will be seeing this in a lot of places today, but I also want to increase the volume on this.  James Spahn has released his old-school Space Opera epic, White Star.
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/148169/White-Star-White-Box-Science-Fiction-Roleplaying-Swords--Wizardry

James and BRG has come a long way since putting out LL compatible classes for a buck.
This should be a hit for him.  It is already #1 at RPGNow.com

Kickstart Your Weekend: Valnwall UPDATE

I want to update you all on a Kickstarter I shared last week.

Guidebook to the Duchy of Valnwall is set in the same Duchy as the Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/665143704/guidebook-to-the-duchy-of-valnwall

This project will detail the Duchy of Valnwall and the surrounding areas.

It is the stretch goals that are really the interesting features of this book.

Each stretch goal will include an adventure or content by some of the best in the OSR.
Check these names out.

Stretch Goal #1: ($1250)  MET
A mini-adventure by James M. Spahn of Barrel Rider Games.

Stretch Goal #2: ($1,500)  MET
A mini-adventure by Jason Paul McCartan of Infinibadger Press and OSRToday.

Stretch Goal #3: ($1,750)  MET
A mini-adventure by Tim Shorts of Gothridge Manor.

Stretch Goal #4: ($2,000)  SOOO CLOSE
A mini-adventure by Joe Johnston of Taskboy Games.

Stretch Goal #5: ($2,250)
A mini-adventure by Tim Brannan of The Other Side Blog.

Stretch Goal #6: ($2,500)
A mini-adventure by author Paul "greyarea" Go.

Stretch Goal #7: ($2,750)
A mini-adventure by cartographer Matt Jackson.

Stretch Goal #8: ($3,000)
A mini-adventure by Jeff Sparks of Faster Monkey Games.

Stretch Goal #9: ($3,250)
A mini-adventure by Erik Tenkar of Tenkar's Tavern.

Stretch Goal #10: ($3,500)
A mini-adventure by Pete Spahn of Small Niche Games.

Not a bad crowd to be included with!

I promise I have something special planned for this, but only if the stretch goal is made.

Like this? Share with others!

Kickstart Your Weekend: Guidebook to the Duchy of Valnwall

This week I would like to draw your attention to a new Old school Kickstarter.

Guidebook to the Duchy of Valnwall is set in the same Duchy as the Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/665143704/guidebook-to-the-duchy-of-valnwall

This project will detail the Duchy of Valnwall and the surrounding areas.
The book has already been funded and the first stretch goal reached.
It is the stretch goals that are really the interesting features of this book.

Each stretch goal will include an adventure or content by some of the best in the OSR.
Check these names out.

Stretch Goal #1: ($1250)  MET
A mini-adventure by James M. Spahn of Barrel Rider Games.

Stretch Goal #2: ($1,500)
A mini-adventure by Jason Paul McCartan of Infinibadger Press and OSRToday.

Stretch Goal #3: ($1,750)
A mini-adventure by Tim Shorts of Gothridge Manor.

Stretch Goal #4: ($2,000)
A mini-adventure by Joe Johnston of Taskboy Games.

Stretch Goal #5: ($2,250)
A mini-adventure by Tim Brannan of The Other Side Blog.

Stretch Goal #6: ($2,500)
A mini-adventure by author Paul "greyarea" Go.

Stretch Goal #7: ($2,750)
A mini-adventure by cartographer Matt Jackson.

Stretch Goal #8: ($3,000)
A mini-adventure by Jeff Sparks of Faster Monkey Games.

Stretch Goal #9: ($3,250)
A mini-adventure by Erik Tenkar of Tenkar's Tavern.

Stretch Goal #10: ($3,500)
A mini-adventure by Pete Spahn of Small Niche Games.

Not a bad crowd to be included with!

I promise I have something special planned for this, but only if the stretch goal is made.

Review: CC1 Creature Compendium

I love monster books.  The Monster Manual for 1st Ed AD&D was my gateway drug to D&D addiction.  I can still just sit there and read and reread monsters.  So when a new monster book comes along and promises the same level of thrill and excitement as that first time. Well I pay attention.
New Big Dragon Games Unlimited is saying just that.

CC1 Creature Compendium
"Remember those flashes of inspiration that electrified your brain when you first picked up that hardback volume of monsters all those years ago?" Richard LeBlanc begins this new monster book right where I need to, reminding me of the absolute JOY I had holding the 1st Ed. Monster Manual in my hands for the first time.

This book doesn't quite fill me with that joy (that is a TOUGH act to follow) but it does come close and for the price it is a damn fine book.

So what does this book have?  Well it is 94 pages total and over 200 new monster for your Old-School game.  Which system?  All of them, or nearly enough.    Each monster is "dual" stated for 0e/1e and BX.   Simply read the stats that work the best for you and take what you need from the other.  Sometimes there is no difference. For example an AC of 3 in AD&D is roughly an AC 3 in BX and the monsters will either list 3 or some other close number.   Movement rates are easy to convert of course and alignments are different systems, but all in all it is still nice to have.

There are a lot of fun monsters here too.  A mix that reminds me of the old Fiend Folio to be honest.  Even the art, which is good, reminds me of the FF a lot.   Every monster is illustrated, or if they are not I didn't see it.  So a lot of art.

Of particular use are the two appendices.
Appendix A gives us Treasure Types by Edition. 0e, 1e, HB and BX.  Subtle differences in each, but best to line up what you are doing.
Appendix B gives us the monster XP totals for various editions as well. 0e, S&W, BX/BEDMI, LL, 1e and OSRIC.  Great to have.

If they wanted to capture the feel of reading the old MM then they were successful.  If you love old school games and monsters then this really is a must buy.

I am curious to know what people think of the dual stating.

A to Z of Vampires, Gierach

Let's head back to Eastern Prussia, in what is now Poland today.  Not that far from our last stop, but still far enough away to give us a different sort of vampire.  Let's spend some quality time with the Gierach.

Presented here are the stats are for OSRIC.

Gierach

(turned as type 10)
frequency: Rare
no encountered: 1d4
Size: Man-sized
Move: 120 ft or 180 ft flying (AA: level V)
Armour class: 1
Hit Dice: 8+3
Attacks: 3 (claw/claw/bite)
Damage: 1d6+1/1d6+1/1d4
Special attacks: See below
Special defences: See below
Magic Resistance: See below
Jair probability: 75%
Intelligence: Low
Alignment: Chaotic evil
level/xp: 8/3,950 + 10/hp

Not known for their intelligence the Gierach can be easily confused.  These are again revenant type vampires. They look like hideous corpses with red eyes, long fangs and long claws. They smell of decay and earth.  The Gierach spends most of it's time in it's coffin but it can venture out attack victims.

If you suspect a grave to have a gierach in it, lay a fishing net over it. The monster will have to untie all of the knots before it can leave to hunt.  You can also spread poppy seeds or salt on it's grave for the same results.

The gierach leaves it's grave and searches for blood to consume.   Like base vampires, it will drain 2 points of Con per attack.  The gierach is not a subtle creature, it attacks with the purpose of feeding as much as possible and then getting back to it's grave.

The gierach is repelled by holy symbols, garlic and salt.  Holy water can damage it and sunlight can kill it.  It can transform into a large wolf or a large bat-like creature.  A gierach reduced to 0 hp will become smoke and will return to its grave.

To destroy it you must find it's grave before noon and burn the body and clothing till nothing but ash remain.  The ash must then be scattered.   Failing to do so could result the gierach's return.

What are YOUR Favorite NEW Old-School Adventures?

For the longest time I go on and on (and on and on...) about my enjoyment of the many of the old school games.

But I am really doing my contemporaries a huge disservice.   So today I wanted to talk about some of my favorite old-school adventures published within the last few years; aka the OSR adventures.

The Hanging Coffins of the Vampire Queen
I have talked about this one a lot.  It's a meat grinder and just a crazy, gonzo adventure with tongue firmly planted in cheek.  It is great fun and you can read more of my experiences here, http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2014/10/into-lair-of-vampire-queen.html

The Shrine of St. Aleena
Another great intro module and a great intro to what Old School Gaming can be.
I also covered this one here, http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2013/10/review-shrine-of-st-aleena.html

Oak Grove Whispers
Another great intro module set outside of the City of Domvay (and included in the special edition print versions of the book). If The Shrine of St. Aleena works for you then give this one as a try.  This is more straightforward.

Dwimmermount
A lot can be said (and has been said) about this mega-dungeon/campaign, but one thing is for sure. Autarch really saved this project.  I am not a huge fan of mega-dungeons, but this really is a must have.  I think in the end what sells me on this project is it's vision. Sure it could be described (and has been) as a monumental act of hubris OR you could look at it as a commentary on how the OSR solidified 70s and 80s nostalgia into a post-millennial marketing tool.  It might not be the best at saying what we do, but it is an honest look.

Castle of the Mad Archmage
This might be the closest we will ever get to exploring Castle Greyhawk. Yeah it is not perfect, but the effort and work here is beyond reproach and it is a damn fun adventure.  This is also on the complete opposite end of the spectrum from Dwimmermount.  Like the other mega dungeon this is the vision of one man, in this case Joseph Bloch.  Though were Dwimmeromount received much hype CotMA just quietly got published with no drama.  When Bloch has done Kickstarters they have been on point, fast and he usually gets people their materials WAY before he promised he would.  This is also a good example of the OSR ethic.  There is still nostalgia here but it took a different path.

No Salvation for Witches
I will be honest. I find most of James Raggi's adventures to be unplayable.
Not due to content or anything like that. I just believe that the GMs job is to help characters to greatness, not stick them into an adventure where they have no chance of winning.   I don't mind a meat grinder now and then (see Vampire Queen above) but not a design philosophy centered around fucking with the players.  Tomb of Horrors was a one time deal, not a template for every adventure.
That being said I like No Salvation for Witches.  It still has the same art quality one expects from LotFP and the adventure still has buckets of gore, but author Rafael Chandler brings some of the same splatter-punk horror the he demonstrated in his own Teratic Tome (which would make a good add-in for this).  I like the setting and the plot is something taken out of the most salacious accounts of the witch trails. Well if those accounts were embellished a little by Clive Barker.
NSFW (cute) is set in LotFP's pseudo historical Europe, but frankly I would rather take it and set it in the world of Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea to give it that "older and colder" feel that AS&SH does so well.

Liberation of the Demon Slayer
Venger As’Nas Satanis has a reputation comparable to James Raggi. Liberation of the Demon Slayer does nothing to change this.  Also this adventure is something I might like to run under Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea.  There is a mix of demons, devils and Lovecraftian beasts/gods that somehow feels right for that world.  There is a lot of the author's advice for running and some of his house rules. Normally I might ignore these, but they seem central to his design philosophy that maybe, just for this adventure, they should be used.
If you, like me, love eldritch abominations and dark magic then this the adventure for you. The adventure itself "sounds" simple enough. Retrieve a demon killing sword from the caves to stop the demons attack your village. Easy peasy.   Trouble is that the author grew up when dungeons-as-meat-grinders were a thing.  This adventure though is closer in tone and danger to the Hanging Coffins of the Vampire Queen than it is to most Lamentations of the Flame Princess products.  With the right DM this could be a great and dangerous adventure where the party could live. Sure they could all easily die too. One can read this and imagine that all of the author's games are a bit like it.
Actually I have known the author for a number of years and yeah this is exactly the kind of things I expect in his games.  I think the difference here with this adventure and some of his earlier material is there is a maturity here to accept the absurd.  This adventure can be played straight or with a dash of dark humor.  Think of it as a horror movie, even the scariest have a touch of humor to them; it sets you up for the bigger punch later down the road.
Curiously enough in my own games I do have an epic weapon for killing demons. In my current world state this sword is lost and a quest is needed to recover it.  Maybe this is what I need.  If so then the value of this adventure just increased ten-fold for me.   I am going to have to spend some quality time with it and a pencil to see if it can be recrafted into something that fits my world a little better.

The Snake's Heart - A Lost Age Adventure
This is my newest one. The overall feel of this one is like an action movie. Maybe more like a horror-action movie, but you get the idea.  The adventure is hard core old school. It is compatible with S&W: White Box but like most of the OSR adventures it can be used with just about any rules.   The file is a pretty simple affair; 19 pages, line art. So nothing too fancy, but the aesthetic is very, very old school.  It looks like something your older brother's friend who was the first kid in the neighborhood to play D&D might have made; only a lot better.
The adventure itself starts with a simple set up and encounter (I like adventures that make the players DO something right away) and then that simple encounter leads to a confrontation with an evil cult. Shenanigans ensue. The adventure takes a few cues from more modern adventures and separates encounters. The effect this has is to keep the action flowing.  If this were a movie it would be Raiders of the Lost Ark or, more aptly, The Temple of Doom.  At just under $2.00 it is also perfect for an afternoon when you want to play something but don't have an adventure ready to go.  
For myself I might make some minor changes here and there.  Snake Goddesses are fun and all but what if I need a Wolf Goddess or a Centipede one?  It make a great introduction for some characters that have already been through one adventure and are their way to the larger plot brewing.   I say grab this one and use it this weekend.

Hmm...maybe there is a campaign here.

What are your favorites? What have I missed that I should be playing.

Return to Dolmvay

So on a whim (and to celebrate the fact I sold like 6 print copies of the Witch in December) I spent some of my hard earned freelancer money on +Pete Spahn's  hardcover of the Guidebook to the City of Dolmvay (Special Edition).

Sorry for the blur on the spine.  But I wanted to show that this is a thick book.

What I have said in my earlier review of the PDF version still applies here.
The font size is larger than I expected. This is both good and bad. Good for my Grognard eyes but a smaller book might have been nice too.  In the end, I think it is a good thing.

The book will look great on my "OSR" shelf.  It will help build up that shared world idea I have.

So what makes this the "Special Edition"? Well it includes the adventure "Oak Grove Whispers" adventure for 1st to 3rd level characters.  The pdf of this adventure lists at $4.95, so to including this in the special edition is a real treat.

The book really nice to be honest.  A nice hefty tome at 261 pages. If you want to see what it looks like, grab the PDF, it is Pay What You Want.

Still want to make a Witch Cover for it.  Now that I have the Oak Grove adventure I have some better ideas.

Review: A Red & Pleasant Land

Notice: I am not taking down this post because I feel it is more important to leave it up, but also update everyone on what is happeing now as February 11, 2019. Please see this newer post first. http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2019/02/i-am-going-to-talk-about-zak-today-and.html

I picked up a copy of +Zak Smith's "A Red & Pleasant Land" on PDF recently.  I like enough to also pick it up in dead tree version as a post-Christmas present for myself (35.75€ or about $45).

I want to say off the bat that when I heard Zak was doing an Alice in Wonderland-ish sort of adventure my expectations were high, but guarded.  I have seen Alice done a number of bad ways; mostly ones that relied on a one to one translation between story to game.  That is all well and good, but ends up robbing the story of what makes it good and ends up short-changing the player's experience in the game.  To be blunt, it's not a D&D adventure.  I had reasonable assurances that this would not happen here, I didn't know what sort of thing we would end up with.

Also, and I have admitted this many times, I am not a fan of Lamentations of the Flame Princess.  But I can say that LotFP and James Raggi do have an amazing art vision and the budget to match and it seems (to me any way) that James leaves people the hell alone and lets them create.  You saw that in Zak's last work Vornheim, you can see it Rafel Chandler's "No Salvation for Witches", and you can see it this book as well.  While the LotFP rules are in mind when this was made, you can either run it with all the free rules that James gives away for free (another credit to him) or use whatever rules you want.  This is important to me and I will talk about it more later on.

So what *is* A Red & Pleasant Land?
Overtly it is an adventure, in the broadest sense.  It can also be a campaign guide to a strange new land (or world).  Breaking it down to it's atomic elements it is Vampiric court intrigue with the cast of Dracula, Elizabeth Bathory and Alice.  But that is like saying that putting salt on your meal is the same as putting Sodium and Chloride on your steak and trying to eat it.

Let me instead start on the outside and work my way in.  This book is gorgeous. It really is.  If you have Vornheim or spent anytime on Zak's blog then you have an idea of what you will be looking at, but that is not quite it either.  The art comes just this side of reality short of being phantasmagorical. Just slightly out of sync with what you should be seeing.  This is intentional since that is also the feeling of the adventure/text itself.  (I am going to keep calling this an adventure since that is the easiest translation).  Honestly, get this bound in red with gold trim and it would be a book better suited for a coffee table rather than a gaming table.  I don't mean that derisively, I mean that in open honesty.
If the art is fantastic then the maps are amazing. I love all sorts of old-school maps and I love a lot of different styles. But these again are very evocative of the setting.

 The other thing is this adventure is big.  While the form factor is small, the book has 197 pages.  There is a lot here.  Zak  suggests that you can use parts of this book or the whole. I will add that if you opt for the parts alternative then there is absolutely something in this book you can use.

Working in, the adventure and background are all woven together in such a way that it is all familiar and yet new at the same time.  It's like returning to a place you have been years and years later. Except when you were at the place back then you were on LSD the entire time. You memories of it have not faded per se but are warped.  This is like that but now your memories are perfect and the reality is warped.

This actually touches on the first issue I have with running this adventure. Now by "I" I mean just that. Me. Not extrapolating it to anywhere else.  I don't think I could run this as a D&D adventure for my group.  To be blunt about it my kids (which is my group) don't yet know enough about Dracula, Alice or any of the other elements in this to make it worthwhile.   This is an adventure for older, wiser and maybe even a little bit jaded players.  This adventure needs to be played by people that have tried to play Dungeonland and found it lacking.

You are going to need the right group for this adventure. The book it totally worth getting just to look at, read or steal ideas from, but if you are going to run it then you need to take stock of your own group and make sure it works for them.  If your group is more of the "kick in the door, kill the monster, get the gold, move to next door" type then this will only have some utility for you.  That is fine there are plenty of fun adventures for those groups.   I suppose that if you have read "A Midsummer's Night Dream" and thought to yourself that it would make a great adventure of intrigue then this one might work for you.   As point of reference, duels are covered as being something that can be deadly. And so are Banquets.  Again some people will scratch their heads on this but I can think of at least three players off the top of my head right now that would totally run with this idea.
It is a prime example of Zak making things he wants to play and if you like it you can come along too.

Back on track.  The Alice.  This is a neat idea, but for me one of the weaker links. I totally get what Zak is doing here and maybe even a little of why. But Alice comes off as an ersatz, but weaker, Slayer, ala Buffy or maybe even the Schmuck quality from Army of Darkness. Though to be 100% this quote from the book is very awesome:

"Alices forever find themselves falling into cursed rabbit holes, accidentally killing witches, having their halfbrothers stolen by goblin kings, being willed magic rings, finding demons inserted in their chests or having armored knights ride through their homes at bedtime. Obscure gods, however, sympathize with them (they are often born to powerful families), and an Alice is a boon to any adventuring party. Some Alices wear striped stockings, some Alistairs wear pointed shoes."  - AR&PL, p. 30.

I love that image. In my games I have called these types of characters Dorothies.  The Exasperation Table really makes this character shine and makes it something unique.

The land itself, Voivodja, is in the truest sense of the word a nightmarescape.  It's not that it is just horrific, there is more. The best nightmares lull you into a false sense of hope or familiarity. You think you know what this is all about, but you don't.  The land is big, densely packed and old. Very old.  The main feature (well, to me anyway) is the intrigue between the Vampire Courts and the potential of what you can do with those.  Think about it really. Ancient, decedent vampire royalty fighting protracted war.  Sure. We did all that in the 90s with Vampire the Masquerade; but this is yet another new take on that.

The monster/NPC section is great. So many ideas.  If you are going to smorgasbord this book then start here.  There are unique vampire nobles and strange animals, so really enough to keep characters of any level busy. That's misleading...I personally think the vampire nobles in this book work better as non-combatants.  Their job is not to be sullied with the likes of mere adventurers.  But engaging them in courtly battles. That's where they shine.  Really, this is one of the first adventures where a battle of wits to the death (!) is not only likely, but likely to happen before breakfast.

We end this book with more random tables that you could (or should maybe) ever use.  30 pages worth.

So there are a lot of reasons to buy this book.  The only one that matters though is do you have the right kind of group for it? If any of these ideas appeal to you then get it. If you are unsure, well I am sure there is something here to make it worth your time and money.

Personally I want to give it a go under Ghosts of Albion.

In any case I think it is a solid hit.

The Basic Illusionist

It slipped under my radar, but +Nathan Irving quietly released his excellent Basic Illusionist a few days ago.

If you remember the Basic Illusionist was Nathan's entry into the S&W Appreciation Day back in April of 2014.  Since then the book has seen some edits and it is now available as a proper DriveThruRPG download.

I talked about this book at length back in May.  Everything I said then applies still.
http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2014/05/pwwo-basic-illusionist.html

I mentioned a few games it works well with (PWWO) but since that time I have also used it in conjunction with other books.

ACKS Player's Companion
The Gnomish Trickster has a number of good spells that work well for the Illusionist.  All the arcane spells tagged as (ill) for illusion would work nicely as well.

Adventures Dark and Deep
This game has both an illusionist and a mountebank classes.  Not to mention plenty of spells.

The Companion Expansion
This is another "Companion" style book for Basic-era D&D and clones and is something of a forgotten treasure.  It also has an Illusionist Class that is roughly equal with the Basic Illusionist, but the real feature of this book is the expanded spell list.  If you are looking to extend your illusionist a bit more with more spells then this is a good way to do it.

Labyrinth Lord Advanced Edition Companion
Given it's aim to emulate AD&D via the Basic D&D-like rules it is no surprise then this illusionist cleaves very close to the source material.

I stand by my assessment of this book that I made then.  This is hands down one of the best books of this type you can get and really captures what the OSR is about.  Also, if you are playing an illusionist of any sort in any of the games I have mentioned, then by all means get this book.