On yesterday's post about Tarot, Witch of the Black Rose. I have seen some issues now and I see that both sides have some valid points.
But I am afraid of becoming this guy...
http://ourvaluedcustomers.blogspot.com/2010/10/as-he-was-paying-for-2-newest-issues-of.html
More later.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Well, that's odd.
It occurred to me this morning while I was running (what, I can run!) that I have never done a post on Tarot the Witch of the Black Rose. I mean it seems to have everything that ends up in my games; red headed witch, lots of supernatural and fantasy creatures, scantily clad women and at least lip service to real practitioners.
Maybe because I haven't actually read any of the comics.
Reading synopsis and overviews online though, "Tarot" or Rowan sounds like what is typically called in my games a "Witch Guardian". Sorta like a Warden of the Dresden Files, but more focused on protecting the coven than being the Wicce secret police. I like that she has a winged cat, that is something I have used in my games too.
I am a fan of Holly Holly Golightly's webcomic "School Bites" and she is one half (or two/thirds even) of the Tarot creative team.
Other parts of it though look fairly cliche'd and even drifting into softcore (neither of which I mind, but everything in it's place after all).
I have seen that includes such notables in witch/wiccan community as Fiona Horne and Raven Grimassi. Not that it matters that much to me, but I have to admire Balent's attention to detail.
The reviews I have seen are somewhat mixed. There are lot of positive ones to be sure, but there are others complaining about the cheese-cake factor, nudity and sex.
So have any of you read it? Is it any good?
Can you give me your thoughts, comments?
Anyone know where I can buy the collected editions?
Reading synopsis and overviews online though, "Tarot" or Rowan sounds like what is typically called in my games a "Witch Guardian". Sorta like a Warden of the Dresden Files, but more focused on protecting the coven than being the Wicce secret police. I like that she has a winged cat, that is something I have used in my games too.
I am a fan of Holly Holly Golightly's webcomic "School Bites" and she is one half (or two/thirds even) of the Tarot creative team.
Other parts of it though look fairly cliche'd and even drifting into softcore (neither of which I mind, but everything in it's place after all).
I have seen that includes such notables in witch/wiccan community as Fiona Horne and Raven Grimassi. Not that it matters that much to me, but I have to admire Balent's attention to detail.
The reviews I have seen are somewhat mixed. There are lot of positive ones to be sure, but there are others complaining about the cheese-cake factor, nudity and sex.
So have any of you read it? Is it any good?
Can you give me your thoughts, comments?
Anyone know where I can buy the collected editions?
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
The Houri for Basic D&D
A few posts back I mentioned the Houri class as a follow-up to the posts at Dangerous Brian.
http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2010/12/houri-class.html
http://dangerousbrian.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-osric-class-houri-part-i.html
http://dangerousbrian.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-character-class-houri-part-ii.html
The class is an update of the Houri class from White Dwarf #13 by Brian Asbury back in June of 1979.
In my discussion I felt that the class had certain qualities to it that would work as a race as well as a class. Well since I have been experimenting with Basic D&D of late I thought I would give this a try.
Since this based on the work of others it is NOT released as part of the OGL.
The Houri Class
The Houri is the offspring of a human or elf and a nymph. Nymphs are known for their unearthly beauty and lascivious natures so the offspring of a chance liaison with an attractive human or elven male is not only expected, but often the way of things. Most of these children are nymphs themselves and continue their lives with their mothers. Every so often though, a child is born that is not wholly nymph. She is not wholly mortal either, but finds a way to live in the world of mortals. Such a creature is known as a Houri.
The typical houri appears as a very attractive female human with elven features, or as an elf with something human about her. Many will claim to be "half-elfs" to avoid any confusion about their racial make up. The houri knows a bit of magic, not as much as a full magic-user or elf and she knows a bit of thief skills, but the main power of the houri comes from her powers of seduction. The Houri has a natural Charm Person like ability that is modified by her own preternatural Charisma.
Minimum Ability Scores: Cha 15, Dex 10, Int 10
Hit Dice Type: d4 (maximum level 11)
Alignment: Any
Experience Bonus: Dex and Cha both 15+
Armour/Shield Permitted: Leather Armour and Small shield (which often features in certain erotic dances) only.
Weapons Permitted: Dagger, Concealed Pin, Flaming Oil, Scimitar (again, all used in certain performances)
Special Abilities
Seduction: the Houri may attempt to seduce a single humanoid of the opposite sex or aligned sexual orientation as per the Charm Person spell. The seduction may only focus on one person and their saving throw is penalized by -1 for every level of the Houri. So for example a 6th level houri would impose a -6 to the target's saving throw vs Spells. The seduction is not a spell, but rather a natural spell like ability of the houri.
Thief: At 2nd level and every other level after the houri can use thieves' skills as a thief half her level. The skills are mundane and still require the proper tools.
Spells: The houri may cast spells as per a Magic-user or Elf. Her spells though are more limited in nature and are listed here. Houri record their spells in a spell-book as do magic-users. Note: A houri may also use cantrips if the Game Master allows them. Houri gain bonus cantrips based on her Charisma score rather than intelligence.
As a Monster
Houri
Armor Class: 9
Hit dice: 1*
Move: 120' (40')
Attacks: 1 Weapon
Damage: By Weapon (typically 1d4)
No. Appearing: 1 / 1-2
Save As: Elf 1
Morale: 10
Treasure: Same as Nymph
Intelligence: 10
Alignment: Neutral
XP Value: 10
Monster Type: Demihuman (race)
The Houri are the offspring of a nymph and a human or elf. There are fey creatures, but the more mortal ones choose to join the worlds of humans and elves.
A Houri can cast Charm Person any number of times a day, but can only have one charmed "thrall" at a time.
Houri that are closer to their elven parent are sometime indistinguishable from other elves. Houri's are often found with Gypsy Elves whether their lineage includes elf or not.
http://timbrannan.blogspot.com/2010/12/houri-class.html
http://dangerousbrian.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-osric-class-houri-part-i.html
http://dangerousbrian.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-character-class-houri-part-ii.html
The class is an update of the Houri class from White Dwarf #13 by Brian Asbury back in June of 1979.
In my discussion I felt that the class had certain qualities to it that would work as a race as well as a class. Well since I have been experimenting with Basic D&D of late I thought I would give this a try.
Since this based on the work of others it is NOT released as part of the OGL.
The Houri Class
The Houri is the offspring of a human or elf and a nymph. Nymphs are known for their unearthly beauty and lascivious natures so the offspring of a chance liaison with an attractive human or elven male is not only expected, but often the way of things. Most of these children are nymphs themselves and continue their lives with their mothers. Every so often though, a child is born that is not wholly nymph. She is not wholly mortal either, but finds a way to live in the world of mortals. Such a creature is known as a Houri.
The typical houri appears as a very attractive female human with elven features, or as an elf with something human about her. Many will claim to be "half-elfs" to avoid any confusion about their racial make up. The houri knows a bit of magic, not as much as a full magic-user or elf and she knows a bit of thief skills, but the main power of the houri comes from her powers of seduction. The Houri has a natural Charm Person like ability that is modified by her own preternatural Charisma.
(*Whitewitch by Tommie Lejis, http://www.elfwood.com/~tommie)
Minimum Ability Scores: Cha 15, Dex 10, Int 10
Hit Dice Type: d4 (maximum level 11)
Alignment: Any
Experience Bonus: Dex and Cha both 15+
Armour/Shield Permitted: Leather Armour and Small shield (which often features in certain erotic dances) only.
Weapons Permitted: Dagger, Concealed Pin, Flaming Oil, Scimitar (again, all used in certain performances)
| Level | Title |
XP Required
| Hit dice (d4) | Special | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 1 | Novice |
0
| 1 | Seduction | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2 | Flirt |
1,200
| 2 | Thief 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 3 | Charmer |
2,400
| 3 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | - | ||
| 4 | Allurer |
4,800
| 4 | Thief 2 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | - | |
| 5 | Temptress |
9,600
| 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | ||
| 6 | Enchantress |
20,000
| 6 | Thief 3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | - | - | - | |
| 7 | Vixen |
40,000
| 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | - | - | ||
| 8 | Courtesan |
80,000
| 8 | Thief 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | - | - | |
| 9 | Seductress |
160,000
| 9 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | - | ||
| 10 | Houri |
260,000
| 10 | Thief 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | - | |
| 11 | Nymph |
360,000
| 11 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | ||
HOURI SAVING THROWS
| ||||
| Level |
1-4
|
5-8
|
9-10
|
11
|
| Death Ray or Poison |
12
|
10
|
8
|
6
|
| Magic Wands |
13
|
11
|
9
|
6
|
| Paralysis or Turn to Stone |
13
|
11
|
9
|
5
|
| Dragon Breath |
15
|
12
|
9
|
7
|
| Rods, Staffs and Spells |
15
|
12
|
9
|
6
|
CHARACTER HIT ROLLS (on 1d20)
| |||||||||||||||||||
| Level |
Target's Armor Class
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Houri | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | -1 | -2 | -3 | -4 | -5 | -6 | -7 | -8 | -9 |
| 1-4 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| 5-8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 9-10 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| 11 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
Special Abilities
Seduction: the Houri may attempt to seduce a single humanoid of the opposite sex or aligned sexual orientation as per the Charm Person spell. The seduction may only focus on one person and their saving throw is penalized by -1 for every level of the Houri. So for example a 6th level houri would impose a -6 to the target's saving throw vs Spells. The seduction is not a spell, but rather a natural spell like ability of the houri.
Thief: At 2nd level and every other level after the houri can use thieves' skills as a thief half her level. The skills are mundane and still require the proper tools.
Spells: The houri may cast spells as per a Magic-user or Elf. Her spells though are more limited in nature and are listed here. Houri record their spells in a spell-book as do magic-users. Note: A houri may also use cantrips if the Game Master allows them. Houri gain bonus cantrips based on her Charisma score rather than intelligence.
As a Monster
Houri
Armor Class: 9
Hit dice: 1*
Move: 120' (40')
Attacks: 1 Weapon
Damage: By Weapon (typically 1d4)
No. Appearing: 1 / 1-2
Save As: Elf 1
Morale: 10
Treasure: Same as Nymph
Intelligence: 10
Alignment: Neutral
XP Value: 10
Monster Type: Demihuman (race)
The Houri are the offspring of a nymph and a human or elf. There are fey creatures, but the more mortal ones choose to join the worlds of humans and elves.
A Houri can cast Charm Person any number of times a day, but can only have one charmed "thrall" at a time.
Houri that are closer to their elven parent are sometime indistinguishable from other elves. Houri's are often found with Gypsy Elves whether their lineage includes elf or not.
2nd Edition lives on!
While 1st Ed AD&D continues to get all sorts of gushy love and the border skirmishes between 3rd and 4th are still going on, 2nd Ed often gets forgotten.
But not by these guys.
PurpleWorm.org is a site dedicated to 2nd Edition AD&D. Full of content.
http://www.purpleworm.org/content/
THAC0 Forever! Is a AD&D 2nd ed centric Blog.
http://add2e.blogspot.com/
Planet AD&D (where I used to be a contributor) is going on 12+ years of providing D&D material for readers. It was primarily a 2nd Ed site, but now it caters to many flavors of D&D.
http://www.padnd.com/
I used to work on Planet AD&D and there is still some content there that belonged on my original The Other Side website.
I have talked about my experiences with 2nd Ed in the past, but today just reflect on what was good about this, the most dismissed of all the Editions.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Red Sonja
I was thinking after yesterday's post on Red Sonja and what system to run her in. While certainly nearly any flavor of D&D would be fine, I also think there is another very good choice. Army of Darkness. The comics have a vibe about them that has always reminded me of the Evil Dead movies. Not so much the humor, but the darkness.
Red Sonja, the comic, is now published by Dynamite, which also gives us the Army of Darkness Comic and the Army of Darkness/Xena crossovers. Given I have down all of that for Army already, then it make even more sense.
Of course given the source material it also makes sense to stat Sonja up using OD&D. My favorite OD&D like product is Spellcraft and Swordplay by Jason Vey and using his Hyborian Age Supplement.
Red Sonja of Hyrkania (Army of Darkness)
Very Experienced Hero
Life Points 76
Drama Points 20
Attributes
Strength 6
Dexterity 5
Constitution 6
Intelligence 4
Perception 4
Willpower 5
Qualities
Promised One (Choosen of Scáthach)
Acute Senses Vision 1
Attractiveness +3
Hard to Kill 6
Fast Reaction Time
Natural Toughness (+4 to Armor)
Nerves of Steel
Resistance (cold) (she grew up on the Steppes)
Situational Awareness
Drawbacks
Adversary (lots)
Honorable (Minimal)
Humorless
Love, Tragic (various significant others and offspring)
Mental Problems (Mild Cruelty)
Skills
Acrobatics 7
Art 0
Crime 3
Doctor 2
Driving/Riding 4
Getting Medieval 9
Influence 2
Knowledge 4
Kung Fu 5
Languages 4 (varies on which comic)
Notice 5
Occultism 2
Science 0
Sports 1
Wild Card
Combat
Maneuver Bonus Base Damage Notes
Sword 14 35 Slash/stab
Punch 14 12 Bash
Dodge 14 Defense action
Parry 14 Defense action
Red Sonja of Hyrkania (Spellcraft & Swordplay)
Warrior (Fighting Woman): 8th Level
"Every great fantasy swordsman, from Robert E. Howard's barbarian hero to Tolkien's great returned King are warriors." - Spellcraft & Swordplay, p. 11
Strength: 18
Dexterity: 16
Constitution: 17
Intelligence: 12
Wisdom: 11
Charisma: 18
Attacks: 7+5 (7 attacks per round, +5 to any one attack)
Hit Points: 56
Alignment: Neutral (Unaligned)
AC: 5
Sword: 1d6+3
According to Jason's rules the Hyrkanians are a horse culture. They also take a -2 to save vs any sort of mind-affecting magic, including illusions. (Save vs. Wisdom)
+2 to Con-based Saves
Red Sonja vs Red Sonja vs Red Sonya
The Red Sonja in the comics now is not the same as the Red Sonja of a few years ago. In the current comics the woman calling herself Red Sonja is actually the reincarnation of the first Red Sonja. The Wikipedia article gives a rough overview, but it also mentions another "Sonja". Red Sonya of Rogatino was not "the she devil with a sword" we all know and love, but rather a "gun-slinging warrior woman of Polish-Ukrainian origin" from the 16th Century.
What they had in common was coming from the same general area (Hyrkania/Ukraine), of course red hair and the temper to match.
Given the change in the comics one is tempted (and I often am) to say this is another reincarnation of the first Red Sonja (which of course is backwards since Sonya came before Sonja). Works for me.
Given that, who is to say when the next time Red Sonja is reincarnated, and what system.
ETA: A pic of Red Sonya originally posted by Mikeyboy over at Red Sonja: She Devil with a Sword.
Red Sonja, the comic, is now published by Dynamite, which also gives us the Army of Darkness Comic and the Army of Darkness/Xena crossovers. Given I have down all of that for Army already, then it make even more sense.
Of course given the source material it also makes sense to stat Sonja up using OD&D. My favorite OD&D like product is Spellcraft and Swordplay by Jason Vey and using his Hyborian Age Supplement.
Very Experienced Hero
Life Points 76
Drama Points 20
Attributes
Strength 6
Dexterity 5
Constitution 6
Intelligence 4
Perception 4
Willpower 5
Qualities
Promised One (Choosen of Scáthach)
Acute Senses Vision 1
Attractiveness +3
Hard to Kill 6
Fast Reaction Time
Natural Toughness (+4 to Armor)
Nerves of Steel
Resistance (cold) (she grew up on the Steppes)
Situational Awareness
Drawbacks
Adversary (lots)
Honorable (Minimal)
Humorless
Love, Tragic (various significant others and offspring)
Mental Problems (Mild Cruelty)
Skills
Acrobatics 7
Art 0
Crime 3
Doctor 2
Driving/Riding 4
Getting Medieval 9
Influence 2
Knowledge 4
Kung Fu 5
Languages 4 (varies on which comic)
Notice 5
Occultism 2
Science 0
Sports 1
Wild Card
Combat
Maneuver Bonus Base Damage Notes
Sword 14 35 Slash/stab
Punch 14 12 Bash
Dodge 14 Defense action
Parry 14 Defense action
Red Sonja of Hyrkania (Spellcraft & Swordplay)
Warrior (Fighting Woman): 8th Level
"Every great fantasy swordsman, from Robert E. Howard's barbarian hero to Tolkien's great returned King are warriors." - Spellcraft & Swordplay, p. 11
Strength: 18
Dexterity: 16
Constitution: 17
Intelligence: 12
Wisdom: 11
Charisma: 18
Attacks: 7+5 (7 attacks per round, +5 to any one attack)
Hit Points: 56
Alignment: Neutral (Unaligned)
AC: 5
Sword: 1d6+3
According to Jason's rules the Hyrkanians are a horse culture. They also take a -2 to save vs any sort of mind-affecting magic, including illusions. (Save vs. Wisdom)
+2 to Con-based Saves
Red Sonja vs Red Sonja vs Red Sonya
The Red Sonja in the comics now is not the same as the Red Sonja of a few years ago. In the current comics the woman calling herself Red Sonja is actually the reincarnation of the first Red Sonja. The Wikipedia article gives a rough overview, but it also mentions another "Sonja". Red Sonya of Rogatino was not "the she devil with a sword" we all know and love, but rather a "gun-slinging warrior woman of Polish-Ukrainian origin" from the 16th Century.
Given the change in the comics one is tempted (and I often am) to say this is another reincarnation of the first Red Sonja (which of course is backwards since Sonya came before Sonja). Works for me.
Given that, who is to say when the next time Red Sonja is reincarnated, and what system.
ETA: A pic of Red Sonya originally posted by Mikeyboy over at Red Sonja: She Devil with a Sword.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Amazons and She-Devils
I posted a couple of new posts to two blogs I contribute too.
Red Sonja: She Devil with a Sword and Amazon Princess.
Should come up with some stats for both, just have to figure a good system to do it in.
Sonja works well in nearly any system, Wonder Woman is a bit trickier.
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