RPGs are Now Mainstream, example #254

 I want to share a few books with you today. Not reviews, but I do want to talk about them.

Most everyone reading this blog likely knows about this book.

The Grimtooth Traps books were not official AD&D books, but nearly everyone back in my gaming groups in the 1980s had one or access to one.

These next two are less well-known.

They are the Game Master's Book of Random Encounters. The large hardcover (brown) we got my son for Christmas from Amazon. The smaller green "magazine" style one I bought last week. At a grocery store in South Carolina.

All three books share the same origins and goals. They are third-party products designed for "any RPG" but obviously for their respective current editions of *D&D. They fill a niche market of DM's tools, so a small number of people will buy these. 

The biggest differences?

For the Traps Too book, my then-DM and I had to drive to Springfield, IL, to get it. It was 35 miles away, and then we had to go to a store downtown (Black's Hardware) because our regular D&D stores (Waldenbooks and B. Dalton's) didn't carry this.

I found the magazine Gamemaster's Book of Random Encounters in the periodical rack in the checkout line at a grocery store next to copies of People, Us, and whatever holiday cookbook magazine America's Test Kitchen was selling.

This is just one more example of how ubiquitous RPGs are getting. 

Hell, even at my sister's funeral people from a side of my family I barely know were talking about how great Baldur's Gate 3 is. (Spoilers. It is great.)

Sometimes, it is easy to forget how great we have it now. Sometimes it is easy to forget how scarce or rare things used to be. 

We are really in a Golden Age of RPGs now and sometimes it is nice to sit back and soak it all in.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 12

 In Room 11 there are three small secret rooms behind the many alcoves. All are covered here.

Each of these rooms are small, 10' x 10' or so. Their function is unclear. They could have been guard rooms, storage rooms or something else.

There are no treasures and no monsters here.

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 11

 Going back to Room 2, and moving on down the gallery there are the larger exits to the left and to the right. Taking the left leads to a long hallway. 

The room is a large, circular chamber with a high ceiling. The walls are made of smooth, polished stone, and the floor is covered in a thick layer of dust. There is a single door in the far wall and a large fountain-like structure in the center of the floor. There are alcoves in the walls with gargoyles in the recesses.

The traps in the room are all triggered by pressure plates. The first trap is located by the doorway. If a creature steps on the pressure plate, dart traps will fire (from the gargoyle's mouths), dealing 1d6 damage, save vs Poison or take another 1d8 points of damage. The second trap is located in the center of the room. If a creature steps on the pressure plate, a pit trap will open, dropping the creature 10 feet to the ground below (1d6 hp damage). The third trap is located under the fountain. If the trapdoor is opened, a swarm of poisonous snakes will pour out.

Ten (10) snakes come out from under the fountain. These snakes are blind and are the same color as the stone. They use the same stats as Giant Rattlers.

There is a cache of gold, 105 gp, hidden under the fountain. 

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 10

Moving to the right there is another room, similar to room 9.

This room was also a research library. The books here have been destroyed by water and fire. All are beyond saving.

 

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

 On the back wall of Room 8 there are two small rooms. To the left (perspective of the entrance) is door to room 9.

This room is a small research library. The light inside is magical (no fire near these books).  Most of the books are treatises on magical animals and monsters.  Anyone spending an hour or more reading through these books will gain 10 XP. Spending a week with the entire collection would grant 1000 XP.

There are a few books on the Gravlok Ka Varnash, including how it came to have that name; a powerful wizard had cast read thoughts on it and it scrambled his mind so completely that this was all he could say. 

There is no way to transfer all these books, there are too many. But It is possible to spend some time reading here.

There is nothing here about the Vampire Queen save for books sing her praises or talk about how brutal she is with her enemies. 

#Dungeon23 Tomb of the Vampire Queen, Level 9, Room 8

 At the end of the hall of Room 7 is a large circular chamber. There is a large dark, circular pit in the center of the room.

The floor of the ring slopes down and the center ring rises up four feet from the floor.

There is ancient writing on the surface of the center ring. The words, if anyone can speak Draconic, tell of an ancient creature, the Gravlok Ka Varnash.

The pit can be opened and the creature released if the rituals are followed on the side of the pit.

Gravlok Ka Varnash 

Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 13 (8hp per HD)
Attacks: 12 × tentacle (2d6 each) + poison
THAC0: 10 [+9]
Movement: 120’ (40’)
Saving Throws: D4 W5 P6 B6 S8 (13)
Morale: 12
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 1,200
Number Appearing 1 (1)
Treasure Type: Nil

This creature is a mass of writhing tentacles. Each tentacle can attack on its own and hit a separate target. Doing 8 hp worth of damage destroys a tentacle.

The creature is immune to mind affecting magics like sleep, charm, hold, and ESP.

The wizards here had been studying the creature until it ate too many apprentices.

Knight City: Trials of the Teen Witch!

 I love shared universes. I love shared multi-verses. But anytime I can see a collaboration of various creatives to bring new life to something old or bring to life something new, then I am all for it.

Last week, I shared how both TTim Knight over at Hero Press and Pun Issac over at Halls of the Nephilim brought to life my evil villain, The Refrigerator for their respective Superheroe universes. 

I'll play a little in their sandboxes, too and bring over one of my iconics to their worlds. Today I am visiting Knight City with one of my favorite superheroes Taryn, the Teen Wtich.

Tim is using a modified version of Villains & Vigilantes. I am not 100% clear on all his house rules, but I can't go wrong with a by-the-book super. 

Taryn and Mojo, created in ePic Character Generator

To recap, Taryn is the teen daughter of my witch Larina. I wanted a character specifically for supers that had a magical background. My comics reading through the 1980s was largely Teen Titans and X-Men (so...like everyone else) and I wanted a character that would fit into those sorts of tales. 

Her father is a faerie lord, and his relationship with Taryn and Larina is...complicated. He will feature in other plots, but I am working hard NOT to make this a Trigon-Raven retread right now. Scáthaithe would not really be interested in taking over the Earth. Bringing more magic to it? Yeah, that might work. But really, I think his issue would be for Taryn to stay in the Faerie Realms.

While I always considered Taryn a Millenial/GenZ girl, she is named after "Taryn" from the Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Which is my favorite of the series. She is pretty much equal parts Raven from Teen Titans, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service. She has a thing for flying fast and dating guys with fast Japanese motorcycles.

This is an update/revision of her Mighty Protector stats.

Teen Witch
Taryn "Nix" Nichols

Power Level: 6
Age: 17; Ht: 5' 3"; Wt: 114lb; Gender: F
Basic Hits: 3
Side: Good

STR: 9
END: 12
INT: 15
AG: 12
CHA: 17

Hit Points: 7
Power Points: 48
Carry Capacity: 110 lbs
Basic HTH Damage: 1d3
Healing Rate: 0.9/day
Move: 33"

Damage Modifier: +2
Accuracy: +1
ATT: +2
DEF: ??
PSYCHIC DEF: ??
Detect Hidden/Danger: 12% / 16%

ABILITIES/POWERS

WITCH BOLT: Power Blast, Range 54, 1d20 dmg
TELEKINESIS: 540 lbs 
FLIGHT: 108 MPH
HEIGHTENED SENSES: Detect magical auras
MAGIC SPELLS: Takes a full action to prepare

GEAR

Broom. Prop, needed to fly.

Cat. Her black cat is named Mojo.

LEGAL STATUS: Minor of the United States with no criminal record.

What is Taryn doing in Knight City? No idea! Maybe Tim will let me know!