#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 8, Room 13

 Beyond the spider webs, there is a hidden but not difficult to find. Especially considering this series of rooms is much like the previous three.

Inside this room sitting on a pile of rocks and surrounded by spiders is the rare and ancient Aš ("Ash") demon.

Aš Demon

Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 8+8 (44 hp)
Attacks: 2 claws (1d6+4x2), 1 bite (1d8+4) + poison
Special: Poison, immune to fire, webs, gate demon, petrify gaze
THAC0: 12 [+7]
Movement: 150' (50')
Saving Throws: D8 W9 P10 B11 S12 SS 8 (8)
Morale: 11
Alignment: Chaotic evil
XP: 3,258
Number Appearing: 1 (1d3)
Treasure Type: B

Poison: Any creature that is bitten by the Aš must make a successful saving throw versus poison or be poisoned for 2d4+2 turns. The poison causes the victim's blood to burn from the inside. During the duration, the victim suffers from burning pain to the point where they cannot perform any actions. A remove poison counteracts this. 

Immunity to Fire: The Aš is immune to fire.

Gate Demon: The Aš can gate (25% probability of success) another Aš or 1d6 fiendish spiders.

Petrify Gaze: The Aš has the ability to petrify any creature that meets its gaze. Any creature that looks directly into the Aš's eyes must make a successful saving throw versus petrification or be paralyzed until a remove paralysis spell can be used.

#RPGaDay2023 Old game you STILL play

 Many of my games are old. Most of them really.  But the one I keep going back to time and time again is the B/X version of Dungeons & Dragons.

Both the Basic Set and the Expert Set were my literal Gateways to Adventure.

I also have a few different copies of remixes I have done. Various combinations and redits.

It is still one of my favorite games.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 8, Room 12

Again, going back to room 2 and moving to the next hallway.

This room is similar to the other three rooms off of this central chamber. It is long and a little wide. 

Coming down from the top of this room are five large Fiendish Spiders.  

Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 6* (27hp)
Attacks: 2 claws (1d4 x2), 1 bite (1d8 + poison)
Special: Poison, immune to fire
THAC0: 14 [+5]
Movement: 120’ (40’)
   Web: 180' (60)
Saving Throws: D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 SS 11 (6)
Morale: 8
Alignment: Chaos
XP: 561
Number Appearing 1d4 (1d6)
Treasure Type U

Poison: Save vs poison or dance for or suffer "demon fever" for 2d4+2 turns. Fever, unable to focus (attack or cast spells)

Immune to fire: Fiendish spiders are immune to fire.

They drop down to attack. Their treasure can be found bound up in their webs.

Baldur's Gate III

 I picked up Baldur's Gate 3 yesterday and spent most of the night/early morning playing it with my oldest. We did a LAN connect between our two computers and it was an absolute blast.

The game plays just like D&D 5th Edition. So combat is easy and intuitive and honestly a lot of fun. Characters are just like 5e as well.

I did a version of my witch Larina for solo play.  Here she is as a Warlock.

And for the game I started with my son, I am playing a version of my paladin Johan.  He is playing his typical character, a blue dragonborn wizard. But tonight was not about exploring new things. It was about Dad and Son time with characters we both know well.

I guess there are something like 1,700 alternate endings to this game and several hundred hours of cinematics. Plus, according to my son who has been playing it since it was in Early Access, it is very mod-able.

This is good, because once you design your character that is what you have. Want something new/different? Make a new character. So it is like D&D! ;)

The game is gorgeous and the game play is easy. Actually playing the game is typical of computer RPGS. In my first go I missed saving a cleric that could have helped me (found her later) and a wizard.

Woo hoo! I have 18 hp and an ally!

Since the main plot involves Mind Flayers (that's not a spoiler, that is the first 3 mins of the game), you can even ally yourself with the enemy of my enemy, a githyanki.

And the nicest cleric of Shar you will ever meet.

I am not sure how much I am going to get to play it. But looking forward to it!

#RPGaDay2023 WEIRDEST game you've played

The weirdest wasn't due to the rules, but rather the add-ons.

It was a Gen Con and we were playing in an AD&D 1st Ed game. That year I want to take my family on a tour of all the editions of D&D prior to 5e coming out.  The DM though, had a copy of the old Lion Rampant Whimsy Cards, and he LOVED them.  

The game though was so damn weird and not at all AD&D 1st ed. Felt pretty disappointed, to be honest.

I liked the idea of the cards, but not this guy's execution of them.

When the modern editions came out, the Path of Horror Cards in particular, I picked them up. So not a complete loss really.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 8, Room 11

 Hidden by the darkness is a small door, only large enough to allow one medium creature through at a time. 

This small room is filled with gems. Most are useless glass but have a magical glamour on them to make them look like real gems.  A dispel magic will remove this.

There are 3d10+10 real gems worth 1d6x5 gp each.

There are no creatures or other creatures.

#RPGaDay2023 Favourite tie-in FICTION

 Normally I avoid tie-in fiction for RPGs. 90% of the time, you can what I call, "hear the dice being rolled in the background." Most of it tries to cleave too close to the rules and less interested in telling a good story. 

But that is not always the case.

Back when I was gearing up to run the GDQ series for my family, I wanted to read what others had done, to immerse myself in the world and the adventures again.  That is when I discovered the writing of Pauli Kidd.

Pauli took the familiar locations and then gave me characters I really enjoyed. The Justicar, Escalla, even Cinders. They were a very rare treat. She did a fantastic job here, and I never heard the dice once.

Set in the World of Greyhawk, these books are less about these fabled locations and more about the characters. I had so much fun with them that I included Evelyn, the Princess Escalla as the daughter of the Justicar and Escalla (half-human/half-pixie, looks like an elf) in my own running of these adventures. Through interaction with the party, she became the lead freedom fighter to free the surface elves from their enslavement by the Drow across multiple planes. 

Another set are the Brimstone Angels series for the Forgotten Realms by Erin M. Evans. While the books focus on the twin tieflings Farideh and Havilar, the books cover some of the biggest events in Faerûn and even deftly cover things like the changes in world history from 3rd Edition to 4th Edition to 5th Edition.

Her books were so well received that it even added details to the rules, such as Mahen, Farideh, and Havilar to the list of Dragonborn names. 

There are few others, but these are the best in my mind.