So many, especially today. But one I keep going back to for the art is Green Ronin's Blue Rose, AGE Edition.
It is one of the many reasons I keep coming back to this game.
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I am participating in Dave Chapman's #RPGaDAY2024 for August.
Sunday, August 4, 2024
Saturday, August 3, 2024
Dracula, The Hunters' Journals: 3 August Log of the Demeter (Cont.) & Mina Murray's Journal (Cont.)
The Demeter continues through fog and the first mate kills himself. Mina has no new word from Jonathan and Lucy's sleep walking is getting worse. Are they all related?
Log of the Demeter (Cont.)
3 August.—At midnight I went to relieve the man at the wheel, and when I got to it found no one there. The wind was steady, and as we ran before it there was no yawing. I dared not leave it, so shouted for the mate. After a few seconds he rushed up on deck in his flannels. He looked wild-eyed and haggard, and I greatly fear his reason has given way. He came close to me and whispered hoarsely, with his mouth to my ear, as though fearing the very air might hear: “It is here; I know it, now. On the watch last night I saw It, like a man, tall and thin, and ghastly pale. It was in the bows, and looking out. I crept behind It, and gave It my knife; but the knife went through It, empty as the air.” And as he spoke he took his knife and drove it savagely into space. Then he went on: “But It is here, and I’ll find It. It is in the hold, perhaps in one of those boxes. I’ll unscrew them one by one and see. You work the helm.” And, with a warning look and his finger on his lip, he went below. There was springing up a choppy wind, and I could not leave the helm. I saw him come out on deck again with a tool-chest and a lantern, and go down the forward hatchway. He is mad, stark, raving mad, and it’s no use my trying to stop him. He can’t hurt those big boxes: they are invoiced as “clay,” and to pull them about is as harmless a thing as he can do. So here I stay, and mind the helm, and write these notes. I can only trust in God and wait till the fog clears. Then, if I can’t steer to any harbour with the wind that is, I shall cut down sails and lie by, and signal for help....
It is nearly all over now. Just as I was beginning to hope that the mate would come out calmer—for I heard him knocking away at something in the hold, and work is good for him—there came up the hatchway a sudden, startled scream, which made my blood run cold, and up on the deck he came as if shot from a gun—a raging madman, with his eyes rolling and his face convulsed with fear. “Save me! save me!” he cried, and then looked round on the blanket of fog. His horror turned to despair, and in a steady voice he said: “You had better come too, captain, before it is too late. He is there. I know the secret now. The sea will save me from Him, and it is all that is left!” Before I could say a word, or move forward to seize him, he sprang on the bulwark and deliberately threw himself into the sea. I suppose I know the secret too, now. It was this madman who had got rid of the men one by one, and now he has followed them himself. God help me! How am I to account for all these horrors when I get to port? When I get to port! Will that ever be?
Mina Murray's Journal (Cont.)
3 August.—Another week gone, and no news from Jonathan, not even to Mr. Hawkins, from whom I have heard. Oh, I do hope he is not ill. He surely would have written. I look at that last letter of his, but somehow it does not satisfy me. It does not read like him, and yet it is his writing. There is no mistake of that. Lucy has not walked much in her sleep the last week, but there is an odd concentration about her which I do not understand; even in her sleep she seems to be watching me. She tries the door, and finding it locked, goes about the room searching for the key.
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous
On the Demeter, the Captain comes so very close to discovering the secret of what is happening with the boxes of Earth. The mate actually saw Dracula, who is still described as pale, and attempted to kill him. Instead he throws himself overboard.
Back in Whitby, Lucy is sleep walking again and it seems worse to Mina. Again, I don't think this is 100% Dracula's doing. I think he found an "eager disciple" and someone who was already prone to his psychic attacks. Good examples of this from the movies are Francis Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) and John Badham's Dracula (1979). In Badham's Dracula we get Lucy and Mina swapped and the 1890s are replaced by the 1910s. In both cases the "Lucy" character (Mina in Badham's) succumbs to Dracula's will readily and almost eagerly. She represents the England Dracula thinks he is about to dominate. In reality England has moved on to Mina, the modern woman, whom Dracula can try to control but never truly conquer.
#RPGaDAY Most often played RPG
I don't think this one is even a contest. That would be Basic-era D&D.
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| What treasures in such a small box! |
The Moldvay Basic set was more than just an introductory set to D&D. It was an introduction to a hobby, a lifestyle. The rules were simply written and organized. They were not simple rules, and re-reading them today, I marvel that we all conquered this stuff at age 10-11. It may have only covered the first three levels of character growth, but they were a quality three.
I bought the Expert Set for my birthday in 1982. For the longest time, that was all I needed. Eventually, I moved on to AD&D. I discovered those Little Brown Books and even picked up my own real copy of Holmes Basic. I love those games, and I love playing them still, but they never quite had the same magic as that first time I opened up that box and saw what treasures were inside. I did not have to imagine how my characters felt when they discovered some long-lost treasure. I knew.
Today, I still go back to Tom Moldvay's classic Basic book. It is my yardstick for measuring any OSR game. Almost everything I need is right there, just waiting for me.
Holmes Basic, also called the "Blue Book," was my start. Sort of. The rules I used back when I began were a hodge-podge of Holmes Basic and AD&D, particularly the Monster Manual. This was fine, really, since, at the time, 1979, these game lines were a lot closer to each other. I have talked about this in my "1979 Campaign" posts.
Edited by Dr. John Eric Holmes, this book took the original D&D books and re-edited them to a single cohesive whole, though limited to 3rd level, as a means to get people introduced to the D&D game. The Original Rules (see "O" day!) were an eclectic collection of rules that grew out of Gary Gygax's and Dave Arneson's playstyles. Debate continues on who did what, and I am not going to provide anything close to a definitive answer, but the game sold well but had a steep learning curve to others who were not part of that inner circle or came from War Games. The Holmes Edition attempted to fix that.
Mentzer Basic, or the BECMI (Basic, Expert, Companion, Master, Immortals) rules, was published after the Moldvay Basic, Cook/Marsh Expert sets. The rules between the B/X and BECMI rules are largely superficial (I will discuss this more), and the BECMI rules go past level 14 into the Companion rules (more on that tomorrow).
There is evidence that the Mentzer Basic set, also known as the "Red Box," was one of the best-selling editions of D&D ever, even outselling the flagship line of AD&D at times. It was also sold in more countries and more languages than any other version of D&D. If you recall Sunday's post, the D&D Basic line was in play for 22 years, covering the same time period as AD&D 1st and 2nd Edition rules. And it is still widely popular today.
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| Basic books from England, the USA, and Spain |
Basic D&D has great online support regarding books from DriveThruRPG and other "Old School Renaissance" creators. But it is an older game. One of the oldest in fact. So, some things made perfectly good sense back then that would cause people to scratch their heads at the various design choices (Descending Armor Class? Level limits?), but that doesn't detract from the fun. Finding a Basic game or even people to play it with will be harder.
I am participating in Dave Chapman's #RPGaDAY2024 for August.
Friday, August 2, 2024
Dracula, The Hunters' Journals: 2 August Log of the Demeter (Cont.)
The fog continues
2 August, midnight.—Woke up from few minutes’ sleep by hearing a cry, seemingly outside my port. Could see nothing in fog. Rushed on deck, and ran against mate. Tells me heard cry and ran, but no sign of man on watch. One more gone. Lord, help us! Mate says we must be past Straits of Dover, as in a moment of fog lifting he saw North Foreland, just as he heard the man cry out. If so we are now off in the North Sea, and only God can guide us in the fog, which seems to move with us; and God seems to have deserted us.
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous
The fog is indeed moving with them. I wonder if Stoker was influenced by the tales of King James VI and I and his recounting of the weather that "witches" used against him to prevent his return to England. The same sort of weather is now used to cover Dracula's arrival to England. In each case it is an example of those of evil influence using weather control, or Tempestarii.
Kickstart Your Weekend: Fun and Games Special!
I have a BIG Kickstart Your Weekend post here with lost of fun and games. Quite literally. Perfect since this is Gen Con weekend and I can't be there. So let's see what we have.
The African Boardgames Convention - AB Con 2024
This is such a great Kickstarter. Yes there are rewards, but biggest reward is knowing you helped out a worthy cause and got some kids together to play some games. Check it out and support them if you can.
Damn It, Owen! Cartoons That Refused To NOT Be Drawn
Drawings from industry vets Stan! on the words and wisdom of Owen K.C. Stephens.
This one is great on it's own, but knowing it helps Owen in his fight against cancer is just a huge bonus.
Kitty Clacks - Halloween Treats Polyhedral Dice!
This one is fun! I love the dice from Black Oak Workshop and have a BIG feature I am doing on them in October. So this is quite timely really.
If you like cats, dice, and Halloween, then this seems like a no-brainer.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gallantknightgames/d6-system-second-edition?ref=theotherside
I like the D6 system. There are a lot of really fun games out there that use it and honestly I have never given it the attention it really deserves. Looks like I might get to change that with a new version/edition coming out from Gallant Knight Games and West End Games.
This Kickstarter is doing well and I hope this is the start of a new era for the D6 system.
80's Adventures: 5e Supplement & Adventure Modules for DnD
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dicedungeons/80s-adventures?ref=theotherside
Ok this one is just silly and I love it. D&D Adventures set in the 1980s. I mean really, this has my name written all over it. Way of the Crane Monk, Path of Dance Barbarian? Yeah this will be fun.
Couple of comics featuring witches are next!
Tarot, Witch of the Black Rose: The Vampire of Halloween
Jim (and Holly) are friends of The Other Side and of course I am a fan of all witches.
This one is not live yet, but they are seeking sign-ups for when it is launched next month. I will also repost this one then.
SKYCLAD: Graphic Novel by David Campiti & Michal Dutkiewicz
This one is new to me and seem cut from the same cloth as Tarot. Real witches in the real world. This one has witches running a strip club. Maybe it will give me some idea for my Mayfairs.
Not for everyone, but it looks fun.
Quite the round up. Have fun!
#RPGaDay2024 Most recently played
Most recent played?
That would have to be my AD&D 2nd Edition one set in the Forgotten Realms with my oldest. We play a little here and there when he gets off of work (usually around 11:00pm to midnight).
We have not gotten very far. An hour or two here and there, but we have had a blast doing it.
This is the one where I am running my Sinéad as a DMPC. She is a Bard, so she is always just a support character, and she is the DM mouthpiece on Realms lore. It has been great since I remembered how much fun I always had with Bards.
I am participating in Dave Chapman's #RPGaDAY2024 for August.
Thursday, August 1, 2024
Dracula, The Hunters' Journals: 1 August Log of the Demeter (Cont.)
The Demeter hits a patch of fog.
1 August.—Two days of fog, and not a sail sighted. Had hoped when in the English Channel to be able to signal for help or get in somewhere. Not having power to work sails, have to run before wind. Dare not lower, as could not raise them again. We seem to be drifting to some terrible doom. Mate now more demoralised than either of men. His stronger nature seems to have worked inwardly against himself. Men are beyond fear, working stolidly and patiently, with minds made up to worst. They are Russian, he Roumanian.
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous
Here we see Dracula's ability to control the weather some more, a power often forgotten in some modern retellings of the Dracula story and almost completely ignored in other vampire tales.
We are now down to a crew of four.
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