Monday, May 8, 2017

The Shrine of Kollchap [refurbished]

Somebody else typed this classic/obscure dungeon up, but unfortunately left if in raw HTML for some reason, so this post is to rectify that. It did a couple things to enhance it too. 

Hit the print-friendly button at the bottom of the post to have your own PDF, dudez.


Background

Many years ago, the Shrine of Kollchap flourished. Priests of Chaos made human sacrifices and their servitors raided the lands around for new victims to satisfy the thirst of the Chaotic god. The villagers, at first, were too terrified to do anything, but at length collected a small army and appealed to the King for aid. He sent only his champion, Amaul, bearing The Sword of The Sorcerer. Together, they marched to Kollchap and drove out the priests and their allies. Amaul, however, was killed in the assault and the sword was never seen again. 

Just recently, the Priests of Chaos have begun to re-occupy Kollchap and some villagers have been abducted. If the Sword of the Sorcerer were to be recovered, the shrine could once again be cleared out and, this time, finally destroyed.

Above Ground

Lurking in the ruins are two ugly humanoid creatures with earth brown skin (Hobgoblins). They will observe the party from a distance and will not attack unless anyone tries to climb through the hole or they themselves are attacked.

2 Hobgoblins (AC 6; Hit Points 2, 6; MV 90'; Attacks 1; Damage 1-8; Save F 1; ML 8; Chaotic)

When the players arrive, they will see what appears to be the remnants of a Grecian-style temple. Pillars are broken down and the roof is badly cracked, but there are signs of rebuilding. The middle of the temple is bare and at the far end there is an irregular hole in the stone floor. The hole is slightly larger than a manhole (four feet in diameter) and is large enough for a man to pass through with ease.
 

Entrance tunnel

11 Normal Bats (AC 6; Hit Points all 1; MV 120'; Attacks Confusion; Damage Nil; Save Normal Man (NM); ML 6; Neutral)

The hole leads down about forty feet and ends in a tunnel. Although the descent is not vertical, it is still fairly steep and unlit, and so characters attempting to climb down it without taking suitable precautions, such as using a rope, may well fall. Roll Dexterity or less on a d20 to avoid this. Additionally, any character hit in combat while trying to get down the hole must roll five or six on a d6 to avoid falling. A fall will cause a character to take 1d6 damage.

The tunnel is ten feet high and there are many stalactites and stalagmites along its length. After about thirty feet the party will disturb a nest of bats. These will fly at the party and cause confusion. If any character engages in combat-- with a wandering monster, for example--while the bats are flying around his head, he will have a penalty of 2 on his 'to hit' roll. No spells can be cast in this confusion.

The Dungeons


General: The majority of passageways in this dungeon are five feet wide except for those leading on to the central Sacrifice Room (12), which are ten feet wide. They are all ten feet high, and walls, floors and ceilings are made of stone. There are no light sources in any passageways. Unless otherwise stated, doors are six feet high and three feet wide and made of oak. They open into rooms; and doors between two rooms open into the higher-numbered room. All doors must be opened in the normal manner (i.e. Base Chance of 1-2 on d6).

1. Orc Guardroom

4 Orcs (AC 6; Hit Points 3, 2, 3, 8; MV 120'; Attacks 1; Damage 1-6; Save F 1; ML 8; Chaotic)

In this room are two sets of bunk beds (one in the north-east and one in the south-west) covered with filthy sheeting. In the center is a large (five foot by ten) battered table. The room is strewn with bones, straw and other debris. The Orcs, if they hear a party making much noise, will wait until the party passes by and
attack from behind, using the secret door. One Orc will generally be guarding the door, the others lying on their bunks. The room contains no treasure other than that which the Orcs carry (2, 11, 7, and 9 eps respectively). Characters will not find this unless they search the bodies.


2. Rubbish Dump

5 Giant Rats (AC 7; Hit Points 4, 3, 1, 3, 2; MV 120'; Attacks 1 bite; Damage 1d3+disease; Save F 1; ML 8; Neutral)

This room is used by the inhabitants of the dungeon to dispose of all unwanted materials, waste and so on. It is filled with broken furniture, bones, shards of pottery, rotting rope, clothes, decaying food, broken weapons and other sorts of debris. The stench is quite powerful but not overwhelming. Characters
searching around in the debris will disturb the Giant Rats, who will then attack. If their morale fails they will flee into the rubble. If players carry on searching the rats will attack until
death. In the rubble is a total of 216 silver pieces but it will take one turn to collect it.

3. Floor-less Room

No Monsters

This room was once the entrance to the main part of the shrine. Only the priests were allowed beyond it. The floor has now fallen in and the door is rotten. If anyone kicks the door it will collapse and they will fall through and down ten feet into a pit, taking 1d6 damage. The door on the other side is closed but there
is a small ledge in front of it, wide enough for one character to stand there safely.

4. Corridor Trap

Green Slime (AC may always be hit; Hit Points 4; MV 3'; Attacks 1; Damage corrosion; Save F1; ML 12; Neutral)

The Slime is clinging to the west wall and will, if not noticed, fall on a party member (determined randomly). Green Slime is only hurt by fire or cold and dissolves wood or metal in 6 rounds. In rounds thereafter the victim tums into Green Slime unless the monster is burnt off (burning damage goes half to the Slime and half to the character).

5. Storeroom

First-Level Thief (Belisarius; AC 7; Hit Points 2; MV 90'; Attacks 1; Damage 1-8; Save T 1; ML 6; Neutral)

This room was once a storeroom for the temple, but now there is only a heap of packing cases against the north wall. Some moldy food remains at the bottom of the cases. The room elsewhere is bare, but characters removing the packing cases and then searching for secret doors may find a sliding panel. Through the secret door is Belisarius (ST 9; INT 11; WIS 12; DEX 15; CON 9; CHR 11), one of the survivors of an NPC. party. Starved and afraid, he is hiding here until he plucks up enough courage to escape. If offered aid he will join the party but not enter into any very dangerous combat. He will tell the party that his party, consisting of a female Halfling Fighter, a Human Fighter and himself, were set upon by a band of Clerics. They tried to flee but the Halfling was captured and he knows nothing of the Human Fighter's fate. He knows of the Orcs and the secret door in Room 1.

6. Healing Pool

No monsters

This pool is circular with a radius of about three feet. The water is deep (c. 10 feet) and has a greenish tint. The water has healing qualities and, if half a pint is drunk, 1-6 hit points of
damage will be healed. (Note that hit points cannot be increased above original number by this method.) The liquid, however, reacts with daylight and if exposed above ground will turn into a mild poison, doing 1d6 hit points damage.

7. Coffin Storeroom

No monsters

This room is bare except for fifteen plain wooden coffins stacked in threes around the walls. Each is about six feet long and two feet wide.

8. Odric'S Bedroom

1 Ghoul (AC 6; Hit Points 10; MV 90'; Attacks 2 claws/1 bite; Damage 3 x 1-3 + paralysis; Save F 2; ML 9; Chaotic)

This room has a sumptuously furnished bed with silk sheets and hangings. Elsewhere there are various cupboards and wardrobes containing various articles of clothing, cups, pots and so on. At point A is a Ghoul, Odric's 'pet'. It serves him as it knows he can kill it. It will attack any intruders and will fight
to the death. The various sheets, clothes and vestments are worth 100 gps if sold, but weigh 200 coins. The outline of the secret door can be made out but the door may not be opened unless a lever underneath the bed is pulled.

9. The Office

Fourth-level Cleric (Arch-deaconess of Tranfax; AC 2; Hit Points 14; MV 30'; Attacks 1 mace; Damage 1d6; Save C 4; ML 10; Chaotic)

This room serves as Odric's office. In the center is a table and chair. On the table is a mass of papers. Players searching the table will, 20% of the time, find a map of the whole dungeon. The other papers are of little interest. Just beside the table is a covered pit which leads ten feet own to a tunnel to area 18. The pit has a handle on its cover and metal rings in the wall leading down. Sitting in the chair is the Arch-deaconess (ST 11 ; INT 12; WIS 15; DEX l0; CON 7; CHR 10; Spells - Light, Protection from Evil, Hold Person). She has been sent by her superior to recover the statue of Tranfax, which has been stolen by Odric (see Room 21). She will ask any party not attacking if they know where the statue is, and if so, will ask them to guide her. If not, she attacks the party, calling upon the aid of the Rockmen in Room 9a. In the north wall is a hole where the wall has collapsed and through this the characters can reach Room 9a.

9a. Collapsed Room

2 Rockmen (AC 5; Hit Points 5, 8; MV 90'; Attacks 2; Damage 1-4, 1-4 + Petrification; Save F 1; ML 12; Chaotic)

The Rockmen (see Chapter 3) are rummaging around in this room to see if the statue is buried beneath the rubble. If called upon by the Arch-deaconess they will rush into attack until called off. They have been loaned by Khan to the people of Tranfax to aid in the search for the statue. There is nothing under the rubble in this room.

10. Underpriests' Room

  • 2 First-level Clerics
  • 1 Second-level Cleric
  • (AC 2 (all); Hit Points 5, 3, 10 respectively; MV 30'; Attack 1 mace; Damage 1d6; Save C 1, C 1, C 2; M L 7; Chaotic)
This room is used by the three Clerics as a base and to sleep in. Here they perform all their meditation and rituals. They are only loosely connected with Odric (see Room 12), accepting his leadership only to reclaim the shrine for Chaos. Stacked against the wall are three bundles of sheets, clothes and other
possessions of the Clerics. The senior Cleric (Kithar: ST 9; MT 9; WIS 14; DEX 11; CON 14; CHR 10; Spell - Cure Light Wounds) is standing up clasping a silver hemisphere (about one foot in diameter), the symbol of their cult. The other two (Kerzen: ST 12; INT 7; WIS 15; DEX 9; CON 9; CHR 10; and Ojar: ST 9; INT 9; WIS 19; DEX 11; CON 14; CHR 10) are kneeling in prayer. All are wearing green and white robes and will attack any intruders refusing to surrender. The walls of the room are painted with scenes of religious processions. If forced to flee, the Clerics will try to take the hemisphere with them. It is not solid silver, but is worth about l00 gps.

11. Room of Absolution

1 Bugbear (AC 5 ; Hit Points I l ; MV 90 ' ; Attacks 1 ; Damage 2d4; Save F 3; ML 9; Chaotic)

This room is almost wholly bare except for six large (five-foot-high) urns along the south wall. These contain what appears to be normal water. It is the water with which Odric must wash his hands after any sacrifice. The Bugbear is set to guard the urns and will attack any party entering the room. The urns can be smashed with crushing weapons (maces, etc.). In the bottom of each is a pearl worth 60 gps. Any Chaotic priest who sees a pearl will recognize it and will automatically attack the party. The Bugbear has 76 sps in a pouch.

12. Great Sacrifice Chamber

  • 3 Skeletons (AC 7; Hit Points 6, 2, 8; MV 60'; Attacks 1 scimitar; Damage 1d8; Save F 1; ML 12; Chaotic)
  • 1 Gecko (AC 5; Hit Points 14; MV 120'; Attacks 1 bite; Damage 1d8; Save F 2; ML 7; Neutral)
  • Third-level Cleric (Odric; AC 3; Hit Points 9; MV 30'; Attacks 1 mace; Damage 1d6; Save C 3; ML l0; Chaotic)
  • First-level Fighter (Rosa Dobbit; AC 9; Hit Points 4; MV 120'; Attacks 1; Damage 1d6; Save F 1; ML 8; Lawful)

This room is vast. There is a pole in the center which leads right up to the ceiling. Chained to this is a Gecko (a five-foot-long lizard). The door is divided into two sections: a huge green circle and a white area at the corners. The Gecko's chain precludes it from the white area. In each of the south, east and west corners, there is a skeleton armed with a scimitar. In the north comer is Odric, dressed in black robes, with Rosa Dobbit, the Halfling Fighter. Odric is just about to drag her towards the Gecko to be eaten alive, the cult's normal mode of sacrifice. On the party's intrusion Odric will order the Skeletons to attack the party and then he will attempt to sacrifice the maiden. The Gecko will attack anyone in the circle except for Odric. If the combat looks hopeless, Odric will unchain the Gecko and attempt to flee through Room 15. If killed, Odric has the keys to the cells (Room 13) and to his treasure chests (Room 14) and also 30 gps in cash. If rescued, Rosa will join the party, in gratitude.

The scimitars which the Skeletons use are specialized weapons and if any character tries to use them he will be at a -2 penalty on all combat rolls. It requires a week's training to master the weapon.

13. The Cells

2 Zombies (AC 8; Hit Points 6, 5; MV 120'; Attacks 1 ; Damage 1d8; Save F 1; ML 12; Chaotic)

There are three cells, each separated by bars from the area where the Zombies stand guard. The cells are all locked. Anyone, except Odric, coming this way will be attacked by the zombies. Two of the cells are crowded, each with four decrepit-looking male Humans. If the Zombies are killed and the party has the keys, the prisoners may be freed. Seven of the prisoners are villagers, but the eighth is a wealthy merchant who will reward the adventurers with 50 gps if he is conducted safely out of the dungeon.

14. Treasure Chamber

1 Giant Centipede (AC 9; Hit Points 2; MV 60'; Attacks 1 bite; Damage Poison; Save NM; ML 7; Neutral)

The door to this room is locked. Odric has the key. Inside are four copper-colored chests about three by two by two feet against the east wall. Hidden between two of them is a Giant Centipede. 

Chest 1 is open and appears to be empty. There is, however, a false bottom under which there are 3,000 sps. 

The other three chests are locked (trying to smash the lock with a weapon will be effective but there is a 20% chance of breaking the weapon and rendering it useless). The locks on chests 3 and 4 are poison trapped. 

Chest 3 Save versus Poison or be paralyzed for 2d4 hours. 

Chest 4 Save versus Poison or die, in 10 minutes, unless Cure Light Wounds spell is cast, in which case the victim is helpless for 1-6 weeks. In chest 2 there is a golden statuette worth 300 gps. In chest 3 there are l ,000 gps and two gems worth 150 gps each. In chest 4 there are three scrolls - one of Protection from Evil and two of Cure Light Wounds.

15. Changing Room

No monsters

This room is used by Odric for changing into his sacrifice robes. The room is bare except for a large chest. In this there are a number of clothes, all either green or white. There is a secret door at the back of the room which leads into the rear corridor. The stairs lead up into the upper world.

16. Old Waiting Room

No monsters

This room was once a waiting room for the oracle in Room 17. There is a table and a bench round the walls. There is some junk (paper, broken chairs and so on) on the floor. There is nothing of value here.

17. Oracle Room

No monsters

This room used to be an oracle room where people would come with their questions and the god would answer them. There is a statue of a seven-foot-high human by the west wall. In his hands is an alms dish on which is inscribed, in Common, the word 'Offerings'. Behind the statue are red curtains from ceiling to floor.

18. Pit Trap

No monsters
At this point the floor is covering a pit. Anyone stepping on to space directly over it will fall through, taking 1d6 damage. The pit used to be a tunnel but the handholds leading down have come away from the wall. The tunnel leads to Room 9.

19. Goblins' Room

4 Goblins (AC 6; Hit Points 4, 3, 6, 4; MV 60'; Attacks 1 ; Damage 1-6; Save NM; ML 7; Chaotic)

The room is very stark, with only straw for bedding, on the floor. The room smells pretty terrible and sitting on the straw are four Goblins. They will attack any party which enters the room. If their confidence fails, they will flee through whichever door the party did not come through and then return to their room
by the other door a few minutes later, having run through the corridors and jumped over the Pit Trap at 18. There is a large wooden chest against the west wall which is unlocked and it contains 23 gps, 570 sps and 3,004 cps. The Goblins have, in pouches, 6 sps, 7 sps, 2 eps and 3 sps respectively.

20. Cave

2 Cave Locusts (AC 4; Hit Points 9, 3; MV 60'; Attacks 1 bite, 1 bump or 1 spit; Damage 1d2 or 1d4 or special; Save F 2; ML 5; Neutral)

This room is a cave littered with rocks and boulders. The walls are damp and the atmosphere is humid. Amongst the rocks are two Cave Locusts, but because of their Grey color they may not be noticed at first. In the entrance of the cave there is the body of a human in plate mail. He was one of Belisarius's party (see Room 5). In his hands are a sword and a burnt-out torch. There is nothing of any value on the body except a map, showing Rooms 1, 2 and 5. There is no treasure in the room.

21. Statue Room:

One-way door

The door in the east wall is a sliding block, with a handle on the outside but no handle on the inside. The door is spring loaded so that after sixty seconds it will slam shut and be impossible to open from the inside. In the center of the room is a statue of a man with his hands held out in benediction. Around the plinth on which the statue stands there are some question marks. There are no apparent exits from the room. If any character says the word 'How', the statue will speak the following words:

I answer questions, three a day
Put not your trust in all I say;
If your queries lengthy be
Then I will speak confusingly.


It will answer three ‘How' questions as long as each one contains twelve or fewer words. One answer will be false (determined randomly). If the questions are too long the answers will be nonsense. There is a secret door in the west wall.


22. Meditation Room

No monsters

This room was originally a meditation room, where priests could come and reflect on life for hours at a time. It is now completely bare of furniture but the walls are ornately decorated with paintings of Halflings being tortured and maimed!

23. Flooded Storeroom

1 Lizardman (AC 5, Hit Points 1; MV 60'; Attacks 1 sword; Damage Weapon + 1; Save F 2; ML 12; Neutral)

Sound of rushing water

The stairs leading down are wet and so anyone going down them, without taking care, will have to Save versus Dexterity or fall, taking 1d3 damage. The first thing that strikes the characters, when they enter this room, is the dazzling light. A hole in the ceiling lets in natural sunlight and, for the first round,
characters will fight at -2 on all combat die rolls. When their eyes grow accustomed to the light, the characters will see a flooded room with a few rocks sticking out of the water on the far, south, side. In the water there are broken barrels and wooden cases. Fish bones and other debris lie on the bottom few steps. Sitting on a rock is a Lizardman. Behind the rock are 5 cps in a leather bag, and the Sword of the Sorcerer. This is a + 2 sword which emits a low humming sound when it is within twenty feet of any Chaotic creature.


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Sunday, January 29, 2017

d30 Monstrous Tricks and Combination Monsters

I took a list of ideas from the Grayhawk supplement and numbered them to facilitate peopling adventures. Lots of Balrogs out there. Any typos that remain are probably Gary Gygax's fault.
  1. Oxen which are cross-bred with Gorgons.
  2. Small lizards which are able to breath fire.
  3. Creatures which grow to huge size if approached too closely.
  4. Animals which turn to some horrid monster if touched.
  5. A giant with faces or multiple heads which can never be surprised, and with four additional eyes is able to see invisible and hidden objects and co-ordinate no less than two attacks per melee round.
  6. Giants known as "Rock Giants" which so closely resemble stone that they can be detected seldom (1 in 12 is a good percentage).
  7. Fire-resistant mummies. Many players will get used to frying these monsters with oil. But watch the fun when they run into one of these critters!
  8. Skeletons who are able to hurl their finger joints as if they were magic arrows.
  9. Monsters which are in endless supply due to a magical point of origin. "Greyhawk" had a fountain on its second level which issued endless numbers of snakes.
  10. Containers which are filled with a gas or liquid which turns into a monster if the gas or liquid is dispensed.
  11. A Medusa riding a Gorgon.
  12. A Medusa who has a pet Basilisk and a pet Cockatrice.
  13. A Balrog riding a Red Dragon.
  14. A Balrog with Salamanders as servants.
  15. A Balrog with a pet fire-breathing Hydra.
  16. A Frost Giant riding a White Dragon.
  17. A Troll with a magic spear riding a Purple Worm.
  18. A Lord with magical arms and armor riding a Wyvern.
  19. An Ogre-Mage mounted upon a Manticore.
  20. An Evil High Priest riding a Chimera.
  21. Hero/Warlock Elves mounted upon Lammasu.
  22. Thieves with Bugbear guards.
  23. A Cloud Giant riding a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
  24. A Wizard with a pack of Hell Hounds.
  25. Mars mounted upon Talos' shoulders.
  26. An Ogre Jelly monster which appears to be a mere Ogre, but. . .
  27. A Snake which is actually Grey Oooze.
  28. A Giant Spider-like Black Pudding.
  29. A Symbiotic Dragon which spits Ochre Jelly, Black Pudding, etc.
  30. A seemingly Golden Dragon which is actually mobile Yellow mold. 

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Sunday, December 18, 2016

Merging Rhialto the Marvellous into The 998th Conclave of Wizards

The 998th Conclave of Wizards (Goodman Games) has a couple minor issues. One of them is the introduction scene of the wizards. There are two problems with it:
1) There is a page of boxed text introducing them. Split over 2 pages. And the players are expected to sit through them. Talk about OSR sacrilege.
2) The wizards aren't Rhialto the Marvellous and his buds.

So the solution, as I see it, is to skip the scene altogether. The rest of my solution should be preceeded with using safety tools to let your players know that they might meet sexist jerks soon.

Rather than the the module's conclave scene, we have something easier to grok. The players are brought to the city by some random circumstances. In my own campaign, I had the city be the silver city on the moon hinted at by The God that Crawls (hey, this was in the pre-canceled days). And Scotty from #Shmelerak sent them there. There are a million portals that could be seeded.

Once in town, they hear the the Starry Council is looking for new (male) recruits, who will be allowed to attend the next conclave (like comic-con for wizards), and get library privileges, etc. If they inquire further (they don't have to because agency, m'kay), they get to meet first one of the little people that provides handy exposition and then 1d3 random members of the Rhialto Super Friends Squad that happen to be holding court that day. Here is a d24 table of them:
  1. Ildefonse, the Preceptor of the council.
  2. Rhialto the Marvellous. The apogee of wizardly fashion.
  3. Herark the Harbinger, precise and somewhat severe.
  4. Shrue, a secret diabolist*, whose witticisms mystify his associates, and sometimes disturb their sleep of nights.
  5. Gilgad, a small man with large gray eyes in a round gray face, always attired in rose-red garments. His hands are clammy, cold and damp; his touch is avoided by all.
  6. Vermoulian the Dream-walker, a person peculiarly tall and thin, with a stately stride.
  7. Mune the Mage, who speaks minimally and manages a household of four spouses.
  8. Zilifant, robust of body with long brown hair and a flowing beard.
  9. Darvilk the Miaanther, who, for inscrutable purposes, affects a black domino.
  10. Perdustin, a slight blond person without intimates, who enjoys secrecy and mystery, and refuses to reveal his place of abode.
  11. Ao of the Opals, saturnine, with a pointed black beard and a caustic manner.
  12. Eshmiel, who, with a delight almost childish in its purity, uses a bizarre semblance half-white and half-black.
  13. Barbanikos, who is short and squat with a great puff of white hair.
  14. Haze of Wheary Water, a hot-eyed wisp with green skin and orange willow-leaves for hair.
  15. Panderleou, a collector of rare and wonderful artifacts from all the accessible dimensions.
  16. Byzant the Necrope.
  17. Dulce-Lolo, whose semblance is that of a portly epicure.
  18. Tchamast, morose of mood, an avowed ascetic, whose distrust of the female race runs so deep that he will allow only male insects into the precincts of his manse.
  19. Teutch, who seldom speaks with his mouth but uses an unusual sleight to flick words from his finger-tips. As an Elder of the Hub, he has been allowed the control of his private infinity.
  20. Zahoulik-Khuntze, whose iron fingernails and toenails are engraved with curious signs.
  21. Nahourezzin, a savant of Old Romarth.
  22. Zanzel Melancthones. Those who meet him forget the details.
  23. Hache-Moncour, whose vanities and airs surpass even those of Rhialto.
  24. Hurtiancz, short and burly, notorious for his truculent disposition.
*: As diabolism is verboten, Shrue is likely the secret villain of this module.

†: Teutch will refuse to hold court with females in attendance. This is but one of the facets of the council's sexism. Females are much derided by the order as they think women to be seduction targets at best and dark practitioners of the art of ensqualming at worst. Let players hate the wizards; they can relish them being taken down in the future by that old threat from a previous aeon: The Murthe. Or maybe the PCs will actually help out on the conclave's darkest hour, because agency.

More details about each wizard can be found here.

Anyhoo, outside of the council court encounter, the players can look into rumors and such, finding out details of whatever wizards they want to target for burgling, the spell duel, or patronage.

At some point, roll one of the wizards to be missing along with the Baton of Perpetual Light, opening the option to go to their tower or The Obelisk out in space.

The wizards should be given ad hoc spell-effects in a spell duel based on the following d12 spell names/how high they rolled (just roll one each round the wizard can cast something; roll a d5 to see what level the spell is):
  1. Xarfaggio's Physical Malepsy
  2. Arnhoult's Sequestrious Digitalia
  3. Lutar Brassnose's Twelve-fold Bounty
  4. The Spell of Forlorn Encystment
  5. Tinkler's Old-fashioned Froust
  6. Clambard's Rein of Long Nerves
  7. The Green and Purple Postponement of Joy
  8. Panguire's Triumphs of Discomfort
  9. Lugwiler's Dismal Itch
  10. Khulip's Nasal Enhancement
  11. Radl's Pervasion of the Incorrect Chord
  12. Claytonian's Attributive Counterspell
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Wednesday, September 14, 2016

LOTFP Summon Spell for DCC (another way)


I and others have previously explored ways to use Lamentation of the Flame Princess's summon spell in DCCRPG. This is another attempt, but this time, I'm utilizing the fumble and misfire mechanics of DCC spells. You'll probably need both Lamentations and DCC to use this spell. DCC demons don't seem to have a set way to determine Will, so I just went by HD. Also, I did away with most of that play it safe and summon a weak demon rigamarole.


Google doc link if you can't read the embedded text.
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Monday, June 20, 2016

Calabraxis Expanded

+Stephen Murrish has taken the basics of Wizardarium of Calabraxis and expanded it it just the ways I always hoped a reader would; he added an extra dungeon level and a nearby town. It's a really significant amount of content which could probably make a dungeon on it's own...
Non-embedded google docs version viewable here.



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Wednesday, September 9, 2015

d24 Names for Tough PCs and NPCs

Give them to a tough dood, dudette, or third genduder. Mix and match and mash the given and surnames.


1
Deathtit
Cinachøke
2
Kag
Lafgüt
3
Sword
Dagshiv
4
Hisneimiz
Akilinwurd
5
Sopping
Hardman
6
Holy
Diver
7
Slap
Dashzson
8
Kill
Kilkil
9
Argun
Groanstein
40
Fatt
Rekless
11
Lurv
Wortmun
12
Leroy
Jenkins
13
Dab
Gentilblud
14
Mash
Lovesperm
15
Dirkk
GentlechΩk
16
Phelonius
Derkski
17
Slick
Arghorn
18
Hort
Cuttington
19
Garg
LeBlood
20
Doom
Shake-spear
21
Fark
Asshold
22
Oam
Mahnswat
23
Hohld
Mahbeir
24
Float
Nugget

Bonus name: Bloody Morose

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Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Interview! Aaron Kesher of THAC0: The Movie Fame

THAC0 might seem at first to be just some amateur project, but it is really, genuinely good, especially once the intro has passed. Based on a play, it has great dialogue and will make any RPG smile. Especially when they make fun of GURPS. And Neil Gaiman is in it for a second! It also scratches my suburban/cold-mid-west-hell gamer nostalgia itch.

I bugged Aaron (the guy who leaves everybody hanging all the time in the movie) on Google Plus for some info on this great work. The short interview is below the embedded video. It's short because though I asked follow up question Aaron stuck to character and left me hanging. Oh well, as long as you get a chance to enjoy a great movie, I've done my job!

"You've got to convert to 3rd edition!"
"Why?"
"Why?! What the hell kind of question is that? It's the new edition." 
"So?"
"It's the new edition! It's one number higher!"


Me:

 
You've mentioned THACO started as a play. Who wrote it? How long was it? How many times was it performed? Were the cast members of the movie also in the play acting troop?


THAC0 did indeed start as a play, written for the 2005 Minnesota Fringe Festival by my multi-talented friend Bill Stiteler, who's active in the MPLS theater world. He's written a number of other plays for the Fringe as well, including an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's lesser known graphic novel "Signal to Noise", in which I also participated, and the slightly infamous "Watching Porn".

All FF shows are an hour long. It's a dynamic venue, so when you finish you have 10 minutes to strike your entire show and get off the stage so the group coming in after you can have 10 minutes to set up before their curtain. Needless to say, the sets are minimalist. In fact we managed to fit it all in my Honda Element, where we stored it until the next performance.

There were five performances, the last three of which, after word got out in the MPLS gaming community, were completely sold out. Some people even saw it twice, which was pretty awesome. You could hear people in the audience, as we were setting up, saying "Oh--I used to have that game!"

We did another run, about a year later, maybe, in a small local theater. Only  three performances I think. We also had the chance to perform selected scenes at CONvergence. I couldn't be there for some reason, but my shoes were awesomely filled by Dawn Krosnowski.

I dug this up after some searching: http://thacothemovie.com/ [the link was dead by the time I clicked on it, but you can always plug it into The Wayback Machine]

You see pictures from both instances in the Flash rotation... I'm the one with the earrings and SF MOMA t-shirt...

The play and the movie had the same cast, though with some of us in different roles. In the play, I believe our names were Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I played Mark, the DM, and I Bill played Matthew, the guy we were waiting for. The play had an extra element where, between scenes in the basement, Matthew was spotlighted and delivered a monologue about different aspects of geek culture. This didn't make it into the movie.

In the movie, Bill and I switched parts, mostly due to time constraints on my end (my wife and I had just had twins). Since the monologues were gone, my part was small enough that I only had to commit to a couple of days of actual filming. And we also all just used our own names.

Oh, and there was also that cameo by Neil Gaiman... :)


Claytonian JP
 Yeah, that was a curious cameo. How did you land one of the best fiction authors of our time? Was his initial reaction when approached as leery as the line he delivered in the movie, or was he up for anything?

Aaron Kesher
Actually, if I'm remembering this correctly, a friend of Bill and his wife worked for Neil in some capacity, so they had gotten to know him. It may have started with Bill contacting him back in 2003 for permission to turn Signal to Noise into a Fringe play. So anyway, he was happy to do it--the reaction was entirely acted. :)

[THAT'S ALL FOLKS]
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Want to give feedback? Share this on g+ and give me a tag (+claytonian JP) (if you want to keep it private, share with only me). If you spot a typo or don't have g+, you can just email me. Claytonian at the gmails.