Tuesday, July 4, 2023

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 7, Room 4

 Following the lava tube past the hellhounds, it gets hot. The party enters a large room with glowing rocks. The floor is cooling (but by no means) cool, lava.  Inside "cooling off" there are three Fire Nymphs

Fire Nymph

The nymphs look tired, but they do not attack. Nor do they attempt to charm. The floor is too hot to wal across and the nymphs move further back. 

They will ask the party what they want, and try to figure out if they have a ruby or diamond of good size (50 gp). They will say they missed their opportunity to get back to the Plane of Fire and are stuck here. If the party has a ruby or diamond, they can use a ritual to get back home. The gem will be destroyed though in the process.

If the party coporates with them and lets them have a gem. Then they should receive the same XP as if they had defeated them.  If there is a party member with Charisma of 16 or higher they will offer a "Kiss of the Fire Nymphs" to the party.  This will grant anyone who receives it a +1 against all saves vs fire and fire magic for 24 hours.

If the party chooses to attack the nymphs, instead they will use all their burning hands attacks and try to charm anyone onto the lava floor. Grant the party only 1/2 the normal XP for defeating the fire nymphs in combat.

Monday, July 3, 2023

Monstrous Mondays: Fire Nymph for Old School Essentials

 It's a warm one out today (and I am posting remotely after visiting with my mom on her birthday) so let's get a conversion in shall we?

Here is a Fire Nymph from the Tome of Horrors now for Old School Essentials.  An update to my 5e version.

Fire Nymph
Nymph, Fire

Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 2* (9hp)
Attacks: 1 x magic (charm) or burning hands (1d6 damage)
THAC0: 18 [+1]
Movement: 120’ (40’)
Saving Throws: D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (4)
Morale: 6
Alignment: Neutral
XP: 25
Number Appearing: 1d4 (1d6)
Treasure Type: D

This creature appears as a very attractive and beautiful female with long, flowing fiery-red hair. Her eyes are pale blue and her skin is lightly colored with a cinnamon hint to it.

A fire nymph is a very beautiful creature that dwells on the Plane of Fire. It is akin to the nymph and dryad, though its origins obviously lie elsewhere. Fire nymphs rarely visit the Material Plane, though mages are known to request their company on occasion. A fire nymph is most easily summoned on Midsummer's Eve where they can walk about and interact with mortals and other fey. A fire nymph usually wears translucent robes of white or ash.

Fire nymphs can charm like a their terrestrial cousins, but they can also cast a burning hands spell three times per day. Additionally, they have immunity to fire and take double damage from cold.

Summoning a fire nymph is relatively easy but not without dangers.  The nymph's passionate nature causes her to move from one emotional extreme to the next very quickly. When a fire nymph is angry, her hair will burst into flames.

Also, due to their passionate nature, there are many gifted pyromancers that claim to be the offspring of a wizard and a fire nymph.

Fire Nyphs are also known as Pyroeads in some arcane circles.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 7, Room 3

In Room 2 there are five round passageways that lead out.  They look like old lava tubes and are larger than the one the salamanders came out of.

On the first tube on the left the party will come face to face with the three large mastif-like hounds. They are large, vicious, and on fire.

Hellhound

These are powerful Hellhounds

One has 7 HD, and two have 6 HD. They attack the party.

Sunday, July 2, 2023

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 7, Room 2

 The area at the bottom of the stairs is an oval-shaped natural cave. There are small openings in the walls where fires can be seen. In one of the larger holes to the left of the stairs a glow can be seen. The glow, and the heat, grows stronger by the moment.

Fire Salamander

From the hole emerges a large lizard-like creature, a Fire Salamander

There are two in total, they crawl out to attack the party. 

They have Treasure Type F x2 hidden in their lair. 


Saturday, July 1, 2023

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 7, Room 1

 The passageway beyond the opening on level 6 leads to long, long stair going down.

Level 7, Room 1

Giant visages of the soulless damned are carved into the walls on either side of this massive staircase. The detail is phenomenal and you swear it looks like they could reach out and get you. 

The air here is hot and quite fetid. The heat seems to come from everywhere, and even the rocks glow with a soft hellish light.

While on this level humans, elves, forest gnomes, and halflings will suffer a -1 penalty to hit due to the heat. Dwarves, deep gnomes, and others accustomed to the deep caves of the nether dark suffer no penalties.


Friday, June 30, 2023

Friday Night Videos: Songs of the WASTED LANDS

Nothing gets me in the mood for working on a campaign or writing new material quite like a good playlist.

My memories of old-school gaming are inexorably linked to old-school rock and metal. In fact back in the 1980s we would stop our games if a particular video, mostly Iron Maiden or Judas Priest, came on MTV.

So here is a playlist from Jason Vey, author, and lead designer for the Wasted Lands RPG currently in Kickstarter.

Enjoy!



Kickstart Your Weekend: Wasted Lands and Sherwood

A couple of Kickstarters close to my heart today.

Wasted Lands: The Dreaming Age Role Playing Game

A tabletop RPG of cosmic horror, swords, and sorcery in a savage lost epoch, 1000 years after the Old Ones fell to their eternal sleep.

Wasted Lands: The Dreaming Age Core RulesWasted Lands: The Dreaming Age Campaign Guide

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jasonvey/wasted-lands-the-dreaming-age-role-playing-game?ref=b0ulif

I have been talking about this Kickstarter all month, and now it is live. Please check it out and give Jason your support.

Sherwood: The Legend of Robin Hood 5E

Sherwood 5e

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/sherwood-the-legend-of-robin-hood-5e#/

Adam Thompson, brother of the late Jonathan Thompson, has taken over Battlefield Press and plans to get Jonathon's unfinished work completed.  And I, for one, could not be happier.

Jonathan was a great guy, and he had such a love for RPGs and everything about them. It is great knowing that there are still guys like Jonathan and Adam for every crappy person in this biz you meet.

I have only gotten to know Adam over the last few days, and he also seems like a great guy.  I can think of nothing more fitting than getting all of BPI's projects out there for gamers to enjoy.

Sherwood, here is something that should have been a no-brainer. Robin Hood, for D&D. Yeah. Let's make this one happen!